Alster Lakes
Twin city-center lakes ringed by promenades, where a civil servant has guarded the resident swans for centuries.
Location
About this audio guide
This guide to the Alster Lakes in Hamburg follows Olaf Nieß, the city's Schwanenvater or swan father, an office that has existed since at least sixteen seventy-four and that Olaf inherited from his father Harald before formally taking over in nineteen ninety-six. You'll hear how he tracks and feeds roughly one hundred twenty swans and coaxes them each November into ice-free winter quarters across town, one very polite conversation at a time, and about the old Hamburg legend that ties the city's fortune to these birds. Watch for him working the shoreline as you walk the promenade.
This audio guide was created using AI.
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