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19.06.2020 Wine lovers' paradise. The region between Jena and Halle is a designated natural park dominated by two rivers, Saale and Unstrut, and famous for its wines. On our way through, we have passed vineyards and little wineries, inevitably had a couple of glasses, and even got to know a young wine expert. In Jena, we were hosted by Anna, a geography student and passionate traveller who knows a thing or two about edible herbs and plants, sustainable living and healthy mindfulness. She lives in a shared flat with three other people and we were treated to an awesome evening with the entire lot. Sharing a meal, many stories and some bottles of wine with these warm-hearted people really inspired and energised us. One of Anna's flatmates, Leonie, is well on the way to becoming a trained grower and maker of wines. She patiently answered all our questions about her job, and in the end even gifted us with a bottle of her first very own wine, which we vowed to keep for a very special occasion. Moving on the next day was a little challenging for two reasons – not only because we would not have minded staying a little longer with our new friends, but also because the rain came down in sheets pretty much all day. However, we bravely cycled on to Freyburg, home of what is probably the country's most famous sparkling wine, and in the evening reached a great campsite with wooden cabins shaped like wine barrels, hot showers and lots of sheltered space for our gear. The campsite is located on the shores of Germany's largest manmade lake. Geiseltalsee was created after a huge surface mine finally ran out of coal in 1993 and was abandoned. As the site was renaturalised, they created a really attractive recreational area with marinas, comfortable tracks for cyclists and walkers, and even a small vineyard. We stopped there for a second breakfast this morning, before carrying on towards our next destination, the city of Halle in Saxony-Anhalt. #scoutbound #jena #geiseltalsee #wine #wein #studentenleben #cycling #rotkäppchensekt #geiseltal #lake #see

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