[All photos courtesy of Rosemarie]
On one fine July day, nine members of the Low German Language group, Plattfische (named for the flatfish like flounders, halibut, and turbot that are commonly found in the Oder/Odra river) in Schwedt/Oder went on an excursion to the Valley of Love. 
The Valley of Love is a landscape and nature park in the Lower Oder Valley in Poland between Krajnik Dolny, Krajnik Górny and Zatoń Dolna, and just a bicycle ride across the Oder River from Schwedt/Oder. The group met with friends to enjoy a walk through the woods, climbing up the now-restored hiking trails to the numerous viewpoints overlooking the river, and taking in the beautiful nature around the famous Adam and Eve pond sculptures. The excursion ended with good coffee and cake at the nearby café.
History of the Park
At least 150 years old, the location originally belonged to the Humbert family of the Hohenkranig estate, since the early 19th century. The foundation legend is that Anna von Humbert built the park as a gift to her husband, Carl Philipp von Humbert, in loving memory of where they fell in love. Today, there is a sign at the entrance of the park that reads, “Wilkommen im Tal, das die Liebe schuf” (Welcome to the valley where love was born). During the expansion of the Oder Valley between 1872 to 1933, the park became a popular tourist destination, complete with hiking trails, sculptures, and restaurants with Alpine-style carvings, the trend in architecture at the time. The Valley of Love enjoyed park guests from Stettin and Berlin – many coming to the park to get engaged – and held Easter egg hunts for the school children. The park was abandoned in 1945, and over the next forty years most of the buildings and bridges would be destroyed by vandalism and neglect.
Restoration
Since the 1990s, following the reunification of Germany and the democratic transition in Poland, German-Polish cross-border structures were put into place with the hopes of forming a common identity between the bordering cities and regions. Among the programs conducted during this time were environmental conservation projects, which include the establishment of the Lower Oder Valley Landscape Park in Poland, and the German Lower Oder Valley National Park. Residing within the Lower Oder Valley Landscape Park, the Valley of Love was given a new life when a joint restoration project between Germany and Poland worked to restore the old hiking trails, benches, railings, and viewpoints. Today there are many events held in the Valley of Love annually, and the park is a beloved excursion spot for both local Polish people and Germans alike.
We at Wandering Oderites had the pleasure of visiting the landscape and nature park in 2016, and highly recommend putting it on a list of places to visit.
Sources
https://reiseziel-uckermark.de/tal-der-liebe-schwedt-oder/
http://seaofadventure.eu/?page_id=755
http://pomorzezachodnie.travel/en/Discover-Nature-Landscape_parks/a,4947/Cedynia_Landscape_Park_EN
http://www.espaces-transfrontaliers.org/en/bdd-borders/frontiers/frontier/show/allemagne-pologne/