Mid-life gap year Tanya and Craig

We have tried hard not to plan too far ahead and keep our journey fluid. Once the Denmark part of our journey drew to a close we began thinking of the next part of our odyssey through Germany and into the Netherlands. We were keen to visit either Hamburg or Bremen. Most people said that the two cities were similar but Hamburg had more to offer. We visited Hamburg and while it had some amazing architecture which we loved as we cycled the city and its canals; largely we found it rather soul-less.   Having been told of the similarity between the two cities, we decided to visit Bremen anyway. After all Bremen was where Craig's first car was made. Borgward cars were made in Bremen in the 50's and 60's before going bust. Strangely the tourist guide books do not mention Borgward cars. They do mention the Bremen Rathaus (town hall) and the Brothers Grimm tale of The Bremen musicians.  We arrived in Bremen cursing at traffic and after struggling to find a car par...

The city of Schwerin has a beautiful castle that was formerly the royal house of Pomerania. More than any other castle we’ve visited, Schwerin Castle has an integrated indoor / outdoor design.  Every view, whether it be outside or inside is beautifully framed. It is a small, but intricately ornate castle set on a small island on the edge of Lake Schwerin. So far it is Tanya's favourite castle. The city of Lubeck is closer to the border with Denmark and the old gates to the city are unlike others we've seen. It is made of two brick towers joined by a cathedral like centre section. It looks like it was built as much to impress those who passed though it as it was a defensive structure.     The Lubeck Radhaus (town hall) is also worth stopping for. Its exterior and parts of the interior are constructed of glossy dark coloured bricks. Inside, the low vaulted ceilings together with the painted walls, tiled floor and dark timber feel rather g...

The first thing that you notice about Dresden is that it is a city of mixed architecture. Ornate baroque are intertwined with 1960/70s Soviet looking housing blocks and ultra-modern shopping malls that have been constructed in the past 15 years.  During WW2 Dresden was flattened by Allied bombing and most of the old buildings and bridges lay in ruin. Most have now been reconstructed and many are still under reconstruction. Everywhere you look there are cranes and scaffolding.  The Frauenkirke (a highly ornate baroque church) in the centre of the city lay in ruin until 1992. Churches were not rebuilt during the soviet era as religion was banned. The Frauenkirke has now been rebuilt in all its glory.  Dresden was the capital of ancient Saxony, being the seat of royal power the old buildings are more ornate than most others in Germany.  On the edge of the old town is Grosse Park, it is the lungs of the city. It cove...

Consciously deciding to take back roads and explore smaller towns we came across the town of Harburg in northern Bavaria. It was an unplanned stop, we were attracted by the 11 th /12 th century castle high on the hill above the town. We visited the castle and while there were told of a free parking place for campervans in the centre of town on the river.   It was a beautiful spot, so we spent two nights listening to the water run over the weir, watching the ducks and fish, observing the locals swimming their dogs and horses. It was a very peaceful place to be, we even grew to be soothed by the chime of the church clock every 15min.                                                                                                   ...

I have always thought that Lederhosen were dress up costumes and not out-fits to be worn on serious occasions. It is easy to imagine how one could have this perspective; however as we learned this week, this is far from true.  Lederhosen are worn by Bavarians to celebrate traditional holidays, christenings and major events. They are worn with a highly detailed linen or cotton shirt; usually a hat, long woolly socks and often a knitted jacket or vest. The lederhosen are usually made from buck-skin, but wild boar suede and goat skins are all used.   Who knew? For some people, in particular in rural Bavarian villages it is an outfit that one wears to church every Sunday. Each village has its own “coat of arms” with features that demonstrate the region. These “coats of arms” are embroidered onto the chest-strap between the braces. Yesterday afternoon we pulled into the carpark of a small Bavarian Gasthaus (village pub). Halfway thro...