In Germany’s Spreewald, mail has been delivered by boat for 129 years
A unique postal route uses boats to serve villages across Spreewald’s wetlands
Dubai: With the arrival of spring, German postal worker Andrea Bunar returns to delivering mail by barge through the Spreewald waterways southeast of Berlin. After months of winter deliveries by car, the 55-year-old resumes navigating narrow canals using a long oar. For 14 years, she has served the village of Lehde, where mail is uniquely delivered by boat. From April to October, she travels an 8-kilometer route, dropping letters and packages into riverside mailboxes. The UNESCO-listed Spreewald, known for its lush wetlands and canals, provides a scenic backdrop to this centuries-old postal tradition.
Every week, Bunar delivers around 600 letters and 80 packages. She needs about two hours to steer her barge through the 8-kilometer (around 5-mile) route. "This is and has been my dream job all along," Bunar said with a smile. "Being on the water is just so relaxing - it slows down life."
