Day 16 – Warnemunde

 

Day 16 – Warnemunde

Our long time friend Christiane (who was our Au Pair many years ago and lives near Hamburg) met us at the cruise terminal and provided us with a wonderful guided tour of Wismar, Rostock, and Warnemunde.  While Warnemunde is primarily a modern beach resort town, Rostock is a large port and Wismar is a very old town with a long history as a port and trading center – these offered very different views of northern Germany coastal cities. 

Wismar bears a striking resemblance to Amsterdam, with its Hanseatic league trading houses, canals, and massive old churches.  Dutch architecture abounds.  While Amsterdam was saved from WWII bombing Wismar and Rostock were not.  A poignant reminder is the original main church in the old town.  The nave and chancel areas were destroyed while the high tower and narthex areas were not destroyed.  The outlines of the building are preserved as monuments to the many people that died in the bombings.  We spent time in the St. George church, which mostly escaped damage.  Christiane convinced us to ride the elevator to the top of its very high tower, where we enjoyed the expansive view of the town, the port, and the surrounding sea.  It had become a lovely day, with mixed clouds and sun – but still cold.

Rostock was much larger than Wismar and had grander streets and buildings, mostly in later architectural styles.  A fountain in one of the squares – “Lebensfreude” – is a celebration of life with whimsical statues and varying water sprays.  We had a simple late lunch there and enjoyed unusual sandwiches using some of the special German breads.  We then drove to Wernamunde and visited one of the beaches.  Unfortunately, the cold air and high winds drove us off the beach quickly.  We could, however, imagine how inviting the sprawling beaches and parks would be to summer holidayers.  Then back to the port and our ship.  We were sad to say goodbye to Christiane, but will see her again in Kiel!

We were treated to a traditional German Um-Pah band on board and had a wide range of German foods: pretzels, henschen, sourbraten, spaetzle, red cabbage, and local beers.  It was a fun change from the (very good) ship food.

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