Blogs from Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany, Europe - page 2

Gestern bin ich von München nach Schwerin gefahren. Die Entwicklung meiner Stimmungslage folgte dabei dem üblichen Muster. Als morgens der Wecker geklingelt hat, habe ich mein Vorhaben verflucht und wäre am liebsten diese Tage faul zuhause geblieben. Als ich mit einem Kaffee von Starbucks in München im ICE saß, hat sich meine Stimmung schon wieder etwas verbessert. Die Fahrt über Hamburg war dann doch etwas lang und ich konnte es kaum erwarten, endlich anzukommen. Außerdem bekam ich langsam Hunger. In Schwerin in meinem schönen Hotelzimmer angekommen habe ich ein Stimmungshoch erlebt. Danach habe ich gut zu Abend gegessen und wenn ich am ersten vollen Urlaubstag dann auf Besichtigungstour gehen kann, werde ich einen weiteren Gipfel durchleben. Mein Hotel ist übrigens der Niederländische Hof, der seit der Hochzeit des Mecklenburger Herzog mit der niederländischen Königin um 1900 ... read more

Just to add a different dimension to this blog, German has its fair share of comical sounding words so from time to time I'll share my favourite ones with you. Today's German comedy word: Knoblauch = garlic 30.08.2015. The day of embarkation. It is also our wedding anniversary. It was grey, overcast with that threat of a down pour. Can I just clarify that that last statement has nothing to do with it being our anniversary. I was just providing an update on the day's weather!! It is also our good friends Donny and Marie's Ruby wedding anniversary so congratulation to you both where ever you are in the world! Our train to Warnemunde was at 09:44. The street to the train station which yesterday had been a hive of activity and business was strangely quiet. ... read more

We left the marina in Warnemünde, Germany at 7:50AM on June 6th with clear blue skies and 8-10 knots of wind so started off with a pleasant sail. It warmed up enough that we even wore shorts wile sailing – what a refreshing change from what it has been. We were headed to the city of Stralsund in Germany in order to break up our trip along the southern coast of the Baltic. It is located on the mainland of Germany near the island of Rügen. In order to get to this city you must follow a very long and shallow channel of water, reminded us of our time in the Chesapeake. Fortunately it is very well marked, however there were times when we passed bits of water that were marked with 0 depth on our ... read more

Bathing in the Baltic took place in Warnemunde, a district of Rostock situated where the River Warnow meets the Baltic Sea. It is a very popular beachside resort. Many Germans travel from Berlin for a day at the beach - a 2 and 1/2 hour train journey. During the summer they bathe and sun bake, on their towels or in their pre-booked wicker baskets, in the nude or with bathers. From Rostock it is about a half-hour journey by tram and then train. We went on a Saturday and the train was very very crowded. The weather was warm with a pleasant Baltic breeze. There is a long promenade along which are the heavily booked hotels and pensions and also the ubiquitous wellness centres. We chose to walk along the sand at the water's edge. No ... read more

I head out from Duvendiek to catch the train to Rügen from a nearby town, but realize I will miss it, and start heading to Stralsund. I approach the next town just as another train pulls in, and miss it as well, doh! Rather than wait an hour or two, I opt to cycle along the motorway on the dedicated path to Stralsund. The path is fast but unpicturesque. From there I get the train to Lietzow, which is the closest town to Kap Arkona along the train network. Kap Arkona the northernmost point of Rügen, and my destination for the day. From Lietzow the hilly path winds through a beautiful beech forest and then dips down to the coast, before turning slightly more inland through beautiful pastures and meadows towards Glowe. The path changed from ... read more