Pursuing high culture by bicycle - once around Muenster's Aasee lake

By Juliane Albrecht Jul 13, 2010, 12:27 GMT

Muenster, Germany - Whoever visits Muenster in north-western Germany always comes away astonished by the many bicycles parked at every corner. And bicyclists are to be seen everywhere out on the streets.

Above all, Muenster offers bicycling enthusiasts one thing: an attractive mixture of cycling in the greenery not far from downtown and in the next moment, the chance to explore the hustle and bustle of the historic old town centre.

Those who arrive at the train station can actually get started immediately: right in front there is Germany's largest bicycle centre with a garage and bicycle rental store. Among the 250 bicycles there are also tandems and children's bikes.

Heading in the direction of the city centre one can't miss the main promenade. The green belt encircles the entire central city area.

One alternative is the Aasee lake tour: on the south-western corner the Promenade foliage opens up to provide a view of the water.

What had once been the tiny river Aa was dammed up to create a small paradise of cafes, a harbour filled with sailboats and pedal boats. At one end there's a ferry ship, at the other end peace and quiet except for the chirping of birds.

The Aasee lake is surrounded by about six kilometres of shoreline and by a landscape of meadows and parks.

This route has something to please every taste: sculptures alongside the paths for art lovers, a historical mill and open-air museum for history fans, a zoo and natural sciences museum for the young, and here and there, quiet isolated spots where you can simply let your feet dangle in the water.

Right at the shoreline facing town three supra-dimensional spheres immediately grab peoples' attention. The 'Giant Pool Balls' are the first work of art of the 'sculpture projects' held every 10 years after the first art exhibition in public space was held in 1977. The gigantic billiard balls by Claes Oldenburg caused a stir at the time.

Moving past the Aasee terraces, one leaves behind the hustle and bustle of the city, with the next destination the Pardo pier, surrounded by trees and fields. It was here that Cuban-born artist Jorge Pardo left his work for the 'sculpture projects' directly on the water's edge in 1997.

Then, passing beneath the Tormin Bridge the next attraction are the yew tree hedgerow of Rosamarie Trockel and a work by Donald Judd named 'ohne Titel' (untitled) consisting of two concentric rings of concrete.

Up over the gently sloping shoreline is the Muehlenhof Museiu. A windmill from 1748 is surrounded by buildings which give visitors an impression of life in the Muenster region in the 17th and 18th centuries - including a country schoolhouse, a carpentry shop, barns and stables.

A few hundred metres away there is the natural sciences museum with a planetarium and an all-weather zoo where even in rainy weather visitors can explore an exotic world of animals without getting their feet wet.

The other end of lake Aasee is at the same time the starting point for the most natural setting of the recreation and bicycling area. Around the tiny Modersohnweg bridge a panorama opens up of trees, reeds and bushes and the idyllic world of birds.

Those who proceed further westwards and then dismount from their bicycle might, with a bit of luck, catch a close-up glimpse of a heron or a dabchick.

Around the renaturalised course of the Aa river one can also see how marsh warblers, kingfishers and ruddy shelducks have made it their habitat.