Learn Hardcore German: Damals, als ich zum ersten Mal allein reiste, suchte ich oft die Stille in kleinen Parks. - Back then, when I travelled alone for the first time, I often sought silence in small parks.

als ich zum ersten Mal allein reiste is a subordinate clause (introduced by als), so it must be set off by a comma at the end.
Damals is a correlating word that belongs together with als (like “back then, when …”). In German, such pairs (damals, als … / dort, wo … / so …, dass …) normally get a comma between the two parts.

So the first comma separates damals from its als‑clause, and the second comma closes the whole introductory time phrase before the main clause suchte ich oft die Stille in kleinen Parks starts.

What is the difference between damals and als here? Don’t they both mean “when”?

They play different grammatical roles:

damals is an adverb meaning “at that time / back then”.
als is a subordinating conjunction meaning “when” for a specific event in the past.

Together, Damals, als … literally means “Back then, when …”.

You can use damals alone:
Damals reiste ich zum ersten Mal allein. – Back then I traveled alone for the first time.
You can also use als alone:
Als ich zum ersten Mal allein reiste, suchte ich oft die Stille …

In this sentence, they are simply combined for emphasis and clarity.

Why is the verb at the end of als ich zum ersten Mal allein reiste?

Because als introduces a subordinate clause. In German:

In main clauses, the conjugated verb is in second position:
Ich reiste allein. / Damals reiste ich allein.
In subordinate clauses introduced by words like als, weil, dass, wenn, the conjugated verb goes to the end:
als ich allein reiste
weil ich allein reiste
dass ich allein reiste

So als ich zum ersten Mal allein reiste is a classic subordinate clause with reiste at the end.

Could I use wenn instead of als here?

Not in standard German. There’s an important distinction:

als is used for single, specific events or periods in the past:
Als ich 10 Jahre alt war, … – When I was 10, …
wenn is used for:
- repeated / habitual events in the past:
  Wenn ich als Kind krank war, blieb ich im Bett. – Whenever I was sick as a child, I stayed in bed.
- present or future conditions:
  Wenn ich müde bin, trinke ich Kaffee.

In this sentence, the speaker talks about one specific time in the past (the first time they traveled alone), so als is the correct choice.

Why does the main clause start with suchte and not with ich after the long beginning? Could I say … reiste, ich suchte oft …?

German has a “verb‑second” rule for main clauses:

The conjugated verb must be in second position, no matter what is in first position.
The entire chunk Damals, als ich zum ersten Mal allein reiste counts as Position 1.
Therefore, the verb suchte must be Position 2, and ich comes after that.

So:

✅ Damals, als ich zum ersten Mal allein reiste, suchte ich oft die Stille …
❌ … reiste, ich suchte oft … – wrong, because here ich would be in Position 2 and the verb in Position 3.

You could also put the subject first without the long intro:

Ich suchte oft die Stille in kleinen Parks. – Here Ich is Position 1, suchte is Position 2.

Why is it reiste and suchte (simple past) instead of bin gereist / habe gesucht (present perfect)?

Both tenses are grammatically possible, but they have different stylistic uses:

Präteritum (simple past: reiste, suchte) is more common in written narratives and stories.
Perfekt (present perfect: bin gereist, habe gesucht) is more common in spoken German for past actions.

So this sentence sounds like written narrative or a reflective text. In everyday speech, many people might say something like:

Damals, als ich zum ersten Mal allein gereist bin, habe ich oft die Stille in kleinen Parks gesucht.

That’s acceptable in spoken language, but for written style, reiste / suchte is more natural.

Why is it zum ersten Mal and not für das erste Mal?

The fixed idiomatic way to say “for the first time” in German is:

zum ersten Mal
or
das erste Mal (e.g. Es war das erste Mal, dass …)

Für das erste Mal has another meaning: it’s used more like “considering that it was your first time”:

Für das erste Mal hast du das sehr gut gemacht.
= For a first time, you did that very well.

So:

zum ersten Mal reisen = to travel for the first time (chronology)
für das erste Mal ganz gut = quite good for a first attempt (evaluation)

What exactly is going on grammatically in zum ersten Mal? Why zum and why ersten with -en?

Zum ersten Mal comes from:

zu dem ersten Mal

Details:

zu always takes the dative case.
Mal is a neuter noun: das Mal.
Dative singular of das Mal is dem Mal → zu dem Mal.
zu dem contracts to zum in normal usage.
With a definite article in the dative (dem), the adjective gets the ending -en:
zu dem ersten Mal → zum ersten Mal.

So the structure is: zu (prep) + dem (dative article) + ersten (adjective, dative) + Mal (noun).

Can I say alleine reiste instead of allein reiste? And what’s the difference between allein and einsam?

allein and alleine both mean “alone, by oneself” and are both correct.
Allein is a bit more neutral/formal; alleine is very common in speech. You can use either here:
- … als ich zum ersten Mal allein reiste, …
- … als ich zum ersten Mal alleine reiste, …
einsam means “lonely” (emotionally), not just physically alone:
- Ich war allein. – I was by myself.
- Ich war einsam. – I felt lonely.

The sentence is about traveling without company, not necessarily about feeling lonely, so allein / alleine is the correct word.

Could the word order be als ich zum ersten Mal allein reiste vs als ich zum ersten Mal reiste, allein? Where does allein usually go?

In practice, both positions are possible, but the version in the sentence is by far the most natural:

✅ als ich zum ersten Mal allein reiste – standard, smooth.
✅ als ich allein zum ersten Mal reiste – also possible, but the focus shifts slightly.
❓ als ich zum ersten Mal reiste, allein – would sound odd and fragmented; you’d normally not put allein after a comma like that here.

Rule of thumb: adverbs like allein usually appear right before or right after the verb phrase. Here, allein reiste flows naturally and clearly expresses “traveled alone” as one unit.

Why is it suchte ich oft die Stille and not something like suchte ich oft nach der Stille?

The verb suchen works in two main ways:

Transitive, with a direct object (accusative)
- Ich suchte die Stille. – I sought the silence.
- Ich suche meinen Schlüssel. – I’m looking for my key.
With the preposition nach
- dative
, especially for more literal searching:
- Ich suchte nach meinem Schlüssel. – I was searching for my key.
- Ich suchte nach einer Lösung. – I was searching for a solution.

With abstract nouns like Stille, the idiomatic collocation in a more literary style is often „die Stille suchen“ (direct object), which sounds smoother and slightly more poetic.
Nach der Stille suchen is understandable but less common and more literal‑sounding.

Why does Stille have the article die? Could I drop the article and just say suchte ich oft Stille?

Stille is grammatically feminine, so its article is die: die Stille.
In German, many abstract nouns often appear with a definite article, similar to English “the silence, the freedom, the love” in certain contexts:
- Ich suchte die Stille.
- Er liebte die Freiheit.

You could say suchte ich oft Stille, but it sounds rather unusual and stylistically marked. More natural variations would be:

Ich suchte oft die Stille. (as in the sentence)
Ich suchte oft Ruhe. (using Ruhe, another word for quiet/rest, usually without article in that usage)

So die Stille here is the most idiomatic choice.

Why is it in kleinen Parks and not in kleine Parks? Which case is that?

The phrase in kleinen Parks is in the dative plural.

The preposition in can take dative or accusative:

Dative = location (where something is):
in kleinen Parks – in small parks (place)
Accusative = direction / movement into (where to?):
in kleine Parks gehen – to go into small parks

In this sentence, in kleinen Parks expresses the place where the speaker sought silence, not movement into the parks, so dative is correct:

Ich suchte die Stille in kleinen Parks. – The searching happens in the parks (location).

Why is there no article before kleinen Parks? Why not in den kleinen Parks?

German often omits the article in indefinite plural when talking about things in general or some unspecified examples:

Ich mag kleine Parks. – I like small parks (in general).
Er lebt in großen Städten. – He lives in big cities.

In kleinen Parks here means “in small parks” in general, not particular, known parks.
If you said in den kleinen Parks, it would mean “in the small parks”, referring to specific parks already known from the context.

So:

in kleinen Parks – some/any small parks, generally
in den kleinen Parks – those particular small parks we both know about

Why is the adjective ending kleinen and not kleine in in kleinen Parks?

Because of three things combined:

Case: dative
Number: plural
No article before the adjective

In this situation, the adjective gets the ending -en:

in kleinen Parks (dative plural, no article)
mit alten Freunden
von großen Städten

General rule: in the dative plural, adjectives almost always take -en, regardless of whether there is an article or not:

in den kleinen Parks (with article)
in kleinen Parks (without article)

So kleinen is the correct form here.

Can the position of oft change? For example, is suchte ich die Stille oft in kleinen Parks also correct?

Yes, oft (an adverb of frequency) is quite flexible in German. All of these are grammatically correct, with slight differences in emphasis:

Damals, als ich zum ersten Mal allein reiste, suchte ich oft die Stille in kleinen Parks.
– Neutral, typical: “I often sought silence in small parks.”
… suchte ich die Stille oft in kleinen Parks.
– Slightly more emphasis on where that often happened.
… suchte ich in kleinen Parks oft die Stille.
– Focus a bit more on in small parks as the location of that often‑repeated action.
… oft suchte ich die Stille in kleinen Parks.
– Emphasizes the frequency oft by putting it early.

The version in the original sentence is the most standard and neutral.