Above you can see a photo that I shot with my smartphone a long time ago. I made some adjustment and like the artificial or painted look. The photo was taken in Salem near Ratzeburg, a very beautiful place here in Northern Germany as you can see here. Back then when I was younger, I was every weekend there and whenever I had school vacation, because my grandma and grandpa do camp there since a long time.

It was my happy-place because life in a district of a city appeared more loud and more stressful even as a kid. But this place was silent and time did not run as fast as in the city. In the city I always had the impression that I left the school in the afternoon, made my homework, played soccer with my friends and then I was called inside for the evening meal to finally go to bed. I am not saying that I didn’t enjoy my teenage in the city, but the nature always got me, it was so peaceful and as said, it seemed to be able to alter the time days did not end. I have the best memories when I think about this place because grandma and grandpa allowed me to hike all day long without reporting back. I knew the radius of the area a kid could walk during the day. I sat in forests listening to owls and near the river to find fishes swimming near the surface of the water.

My uncle had a camping place there too and I still remember how he taught me to use a fishing rod. And how grandma and grandpa allowed me to go fishing with my uncle at night. I remember the bright round moon in the sky, and how mist and morning dew started to appear. I remember how grandpa invited us and his friends every friday in the small restaurant with the thatched roof near the river, and that the Currywurst with french fries tasted so good. I remember how I did go bathe in the river every single day with my grandma, and how we swam to the other side of the river. I remember how she always laughed when I told her that I disliked the fact that there could be large fishes below me that I can’t see, and that she convinced me to swim to the other side anyway since we don’t have dangerous fishes.

I remember the camping soccer tournaments, the village festivals where my grandpa and his band played songs. I remember how I always helped him to set the music hardware like speakers, cables and instruments up before the festival started. I remember how another family member told me the trick to collect hundreds of beer bottles to earn money and how this basically were the first 50 Deutsche Mark that I earned in my life. I remember how I gathered courage for the first time to talk to a girl who entranced me at first sight, and how we came together. I remember that the day just didn’t end at this place and that I liked it a lot. I experienced a very good childhood and youth at this place. I wasn’t unhappy in the city, but both city and nature were totally different experiences I enjoyed to make.