In the centre of the bilingual city of Biel, 5082 m² of asphalt are spread out. The rectangular, light grey surface is called Place de l'Esplanade. Between the Palais des Congrès, a representative modernist building, and the Coupole, the Autonomous Youth Centre founded in 1968, the square tells the story of a city between upheaval and recession and is still subject of constant change and controversial urban planning.

The film focuses on the exciting life journey of Swiss writer Katharina Zimmermann. She follows her husband on a mission to the jungle in Indonesia where she raises their four children and five foster children and lives through the military coup. Back in Switzerland Katharina discovers her voice and finds her path. Now, at eighty, she is writing her life story. Yet suddenly she faces another battle because her publisher is threatening to let her go.