Volta: The Walk With No Destination – and What Bergmannstraße Has to Do With It

In Berlin, people walk to get somewhere: to the U-Bahn, to the corner shop, to an appointment. In Greece there is a word for the exact opposite – Volta (βόλτα). A volta is a walk whose purpose is to have no purpose.

So what exactly is a volta?

The word probably comes from Italian (volta – a turn), and that is exactly what a volta is: a round. You take one in the early evening, after dinner or on Sunday, along the promenade, around the village square, up the main street and back down again. You walk slowly, stop, run into someone you know (you always do), pick up a coffee or an ice cream. You see and are seen – without anyone ever calling it that.

That is why the word is so hard to translate. “Walk” sounds like exercise, “stroll” like shopping, “going for a turn” comes closest. On a volta, the street itself is the destination – and in the end you are back where you started, just in a better mood and with three pieces of news more.

The four unofficial rules of the volta

1. No destination. If you “just have to pop into the post office”, that is an errand, not a volta. 2. A relaxed pace – very much in the spirit of siga-siga. 3. Stopping is part of the way. A chat at the side of the street counts as progress. 4. A table waits at the end. A good volta ends with food, coffee or a glass – and rarely where it was planned to.

A volta in the middle of Kreuzberg: Bergmannstraße

When we asked ourselves where in Berlin you can walk a real volta, the answer came quickly: Bergmannstraße, just a few minutes on foot from us. And its history fits the topic remarkably well. Until 1837 the street was called Weinbergsweg – the path that ran along the vineyards where wine had been grown in Kreuzberg since the 16th century. Its current name honours Marie Luise Bergmann (1774–1854), who owned the land around it. And to this day grapes grow in Viktoriapark, used for the district's own “Kreuzberger Wein”.

A path between vineyards on which you walk back and forth without hurry: for a Greek restaurant, that is a lovely coincidence. If you want to try the Mastiha volta yourself, here is our suggestion in five stops:

🚇 Start at Mehringdamm. This is where the lively part of Bergmannstraße begins, with small shops, second-hand boutiques and cafés. ☕ Stroll slowly along the street. Shop windows, street cafés, antiques – and rule 3: stopping is allowed. 🧺 Marheineke Markthalle. A meeting point in the neighbourhood for decades, for looking, snacking and chatting. 🏛️ Detour to Chamissoplatz. Cobblestones, gas lamps, Gründerzeit buildings – the square is a listed heritage site, and on Saturdays there is an organic market. 🍽️ Finish with us, Arndtstraße 12. Rule 4: a table waits at the end.

If you want to walk further, extend the route towards Südstern: it gets quieter there, several cemeteries border the street, and the volta turns into its calm half – ideal for conversations for two.

Now it is your turn: where is your volta?

Every city has corners where time slows down. Where is your volta in Kreuzberg or elsewhere in Berlin – which street, which bench, which square? And which rule would you add as rule no. 5? Answer (reply) to the comment that fits you, further down: 🚶 Team “Bergmannstraße – that is where I walk” 🌙 Team “I have my own secret volta route”

⏳ Volta countdown: 1 day until the Drachmen Fest

Tomorrow, Tuesday 29.09., from 5 pm it is time: once a year we celebrate just for fun, with live music and prices like in 1960, in drachmas. Our suggestion: walk your volta along Bergmannstraße tomorrow afternoon and let it end with us at Arndtstraße 12 from 5 pm. In line with rule 4, a table is waiting. Reservations: 030 612 85 386.

After that we take a little volta ourselves: we are closed for holidays from Sunday, 04.10. (in 6 days) to Thursday, 15.10. From Friday, 16.10. we are back for you. Καλή βόλτα – enjoy your walk!