Wernigerode


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March 11th 2018
Published: April 6th 2019
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Dortmund - Wernigerode


View of Wernigerode in the morningView of Wernigerode in the morningView of Wernigerode in the morning

... from the orangery and pleasure garden just above the city.
My first conference trip for my new employer took me to the small city of Wernigerode, located in the uplands of Harz in the north-eastern part of Germany. The city is just a few kilometres from the mountain Brocken, the tallest mountain in the region (1,141 m). Thus, it is located in a very scenic and mountainous landscape, and it is a really pretty little place. The historic city centre – the city was first mentioned in the year 1121 – dates from the middle ages and has a lot of beautifully decorated semi-timbered houses of all colours and sizes (the town is called “the colourful city”). For example, town hall has a lot of elaborate wooden carvings. Moreover, there is the “tiniest house” dating from the 18th century. It is just below three metres wide and was fit into a gap between two houses. Furthermore, there is the “crooked house”, a former mill. Due to a subterranean stream, it sank into the ground on one side and is therefore called crooked house. But there are also other building styles, like for example various houses in baroque style. Finally, there are some remains of the city wall. Above the city sits
Wernigerode CastleWernigerode CastleWernigerode Castle

... enthroned above the city, a mix of different building styles.
enthroned Wernigerode Castle, a castle that they started building in the 11th century that was expanded and refurbished over and over across many centuries so that nowadays it is a mix of different styles, Romanesque, Gothic, Baroque. There is also an orangery overlooking the town, located in a nice little park.

I arrived in the city around lunchtime. Getting to Wernigerode had taken me about four hours from Dortmund. There are no long-distance trains stopping there, so I had had to catch a regional train for the last part of the journey. Thus, the city is quite remote. Within the city, however, pretty much everything is within walking distance. The only place that was slightly more remote was the university of applied sciences, where the conference took place.

After checking into my hotel and doing a bit of work, I caught the bus to get to the conference venue. Because of the conference I did not have a lot of time to explore the town, especially not during daytime, but there was time for a bit of exploring.

A morning run took me up to the orangery that is located in a pleasure garden. From there, I
Town HallTown HallTown Hall

... originally built in the 13th century, with most beautiful wooden carvings around the main gate.
had a wonderful view of the town in the morning light. There I also found out that the city is really surrounded by rather steep mountains – it was a good workout to get into the park! The park was originally designed as a baroque park, then changed into a garden in English style. For the 2006 state horticultural show, the park was redeveloped. It has a lot of old and beautiful trees and is a nice spot to be in.

In the evening we went for a self-guided walk in town. I already mentioned town hall, originally dating from the 13th century, with some building alterations from the 14th and 15th century. It was rebuilt in the 16th century after a fire as a semi-timbered house with two small towers, a wide flight of stairs at the main entrance, and wooden carvings. It is known to be one of the most beautiful town halls in Europe. Our walk also took us past the different houses I described above, and we got a good impression of a very charming old city. Our walk ended at the former city wall.

I did not have time for much more, and
City WallCity WallCity Wall

... to our right, with a medieval house to our left.
I had to leave the conference early because of other obligations. But I think that the city and region are very worthwhile visiting, and I am sure there must be some great hiking and biking. So I might come back and explore a little more of the city and its surroundings.


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OrangeryOrangery
Orangery

... located in the pleasure garden just above the city.
Pleasure gardenPleasure garden
Pleasure garden

A track somewhere between the trees, ideal for a morning run.


6th April 2019
Wernigerode Castle

Interesting take
Always great when an interesting pic comes to add to our Palaces & Castles thread in the Photography Forum...check it out.
7th April 2019
Wernigerode Castle

Re: Interesting take
Oh wow. I just spent quite some time admiring all the wonderful castles. Some of them are so much like fairytale castles that one might think Walt Disney must have drawn them. I am personally a great fan of Neuschwanstein Castle, but have to say that I also found the French castles by Delek Delek and Colomares Castle in Spain pretty impressive. Happy to share my shot there as well, just not sure how to do it. Any advice?
7th April 2019

Nice blog
I love reading blogs that are to locations most people don't write about. Thanks for taking us along.
7th April 2019

Re: Nice blog
My pleasure. Thank you so much for coming along and enjoying the journey with me :-)

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