Potsdam (20/07/2019)

Finally a Saturday meant that Ania was able to join me on a day trip from Berlin, this time to the nearby city of Potsdam. So after taking the local S-Bahn train we reached the destination in just over half-hour. After exiting the train station we walked and reached the Old Market Square which once used to form the historic center of the city. Potsdam, alongside many other cities throughout Germany, was heavily bombed during WWII and thus its center was mostly destroyed as well. A plan to reconstruct the square and its surrounding historical buildings has been carried out since the beginning of this century and so far many reconstructions have been carried out, mostly replacing communist-style buildings that had been built between the war and now. The City Palace, once the second official residence of the margraves and electors of Brandenburg, later Kings of Prussia and German Emperors, has been completely rebuilt and finished in 2013. It now houses the parliament of the state of Brandenburg. Next to it, some further reconstructed buildings include 18th-century palace buildings which were supposed to copy and represent Palladian architecture, including the Palazzo Chiericati in Vicenza, and Palazzo Pompei in Verona. At the northern end of the square stands imposing the church of St Nicholas, built during the 19th century in Neoclassical style, of which we visited the interior. After visiting the church we then started heading north and passed by the 19th century Church of St Peter and Paul which caters to the local catholic population. Close to it we then walked through the so-called Hollandisches Viertel, or Dutch Quarter, a part of town characterized by 18th-century buildings and houses imitating the typical dutch ones. We then walked along the town's main street filled with shops and people strolling around. We stopped to have ice cream which tasted so-so and then reached the western end of the city. Here stands the Brandenburg Gate, so-called because facing the town of Brandenburg an der Havel. It was built at the order of Frederick II of Prussia in 1771 and replaced an older medieval gate. Together with other gates (including that of Berlin), it took inspiration from those ancient roman ones in Rome, in this case specifically the Arch of Constantine. An avenue sided by trees then led us directly through the Sanssouci Park from where we could now spot the famous Sanssouci Palace set on the northern end of the park on an elevated hill with gardens and fountains all around. We circled the main central fountain and walked up the terraced hill filled with vines to finally reach the palace at its top. Built in 1747 for Frederick the Great, it was then to become his private residence for when he wished to retire from the hustle and bustle of Berlin. It features a beautiful Rococo style which has been later known as Frederician Rococo due to its specific architectural details found just in Potsdam. The palace and its park are now a Unesco World Heritage Site so I was able to add it to my list of visited sites. We decided to skip visiting the interior as there was quite a line and the hot and sunny day prompted us to visit the rest of the parks and gardens scattered throughout. We passed by the Historic Mill of Sanssouci, an 18th-century mill built to resemble the typical dutch ones and then continued further passing through the Nordic and Sicilian gardens. Just ahead to our right stood imposing the Orangery Palace with its terrace garden. Built during the 19th century for King Frederick IV of Prussia in the style of the Italian Renaissance with the Villa Medici of Rome in mind. From there we then walked further through a nice forest which partly shielded us from the scorching heat of that day and reached the western end of the huge park where the New Palace stood. Built in 1769 for Frederick the Great it is considered as the last grand Prussian Baroque palace and due to its size was quite impressive to look at. A further walk took us then south to reach the Charlottenhof Palace, built in 1829 in a Neoclassical style to resemble a Roman villa. Quite small in size it featured a nicely kept garden with a pleasant canopy. Close by we also passed a low building called the Roman Baths, which as the name suggests was fashioned to resemble those of ancient Roman times. Further on we then passed by the Chinese House, a building built in 1764 in Rococo style in imitation of a Chinese structure in a fashion called Chinoiserie which was typical in that period all around Europe. At that point we decided to walk all the way back to the city, walk through the Brandenburg Gate, and then along the main street once more before turning north and reaching a park area called Alexandrowka, an idyllic rural Russian village made up of 14 farmhouses and an Orthodox Church. The village was built right after the Napoleonic war when a group of war prisoners of Russia remained in the city after the Napoleonic army was defeated and had left the city. King Frederick III had then the village built to host those who had decided to stay and become part of the palace's staff. Further up north we then reached the Belvedere on the Pfingstberg, a palace built in 1863 for Frederick IV on top of the Pfingstberg hill with commanding views of the surrounding landscape. Not far from there we then reached another palace, the Cecilienhof, built during WWI as a Tudor Manor House for the Hohenzollern family. It was the last palace built for them before their capitulation after the end of the war. It then became famous for becoming the location of the Potsdam Conference in 1945, in which leaders of the UK, US, and the Soviet Union met to make important decisions affecting the post-WWII shape of the world. I particularly liked the inner courtyard and the typical Tudor architecture. From there we decided to head back towards the city by walking alongside the bodies of water characterizing this region made up of lakes and ponds formed by the Havel river. We passed by the Marmorpalais a nice palace built in the Neoclassical style at the end of the 18th century and with a commanding view over the Heiliger See. Finally, after a bit more walking we then reached the city and then the train station from where we took an S-Bahn train back to Berlin.

View of the reconstructed buildings of the Maktplatz

The church of St Nicholas

The Brandenburg Gate

Sanssouci's fountain and gardens

The staircase leading up to the palace

The Rococo architecture of Sanssouci

The New Palace

One of the Russian wooden houses in Alexandrowka

The Russian Orthodox Church

The Tudor styled Manor House of Cecilienhof

The Marmorpalais overlooking the Heiliger See

Brandenburg an der Havel (19/07/2019)

After three consecutive sunny days, a cloudy day prompted me to take a closer day trip, this time to the nearby town of Brandenburg an der Havel, just west of Berlin. So after taking a local S-bahn train I reached the small town in just about one hour. After getting off the train I headed towards the city center, first passing by the Jakobskapelle, a small brick gothic church which was unfortunately closed. After a little bit of walking I reached the old town proper, marked at its southern end by the Steintorturm, a medieval tower which used to be part of the fully defensive complex of walls that surrounded the town. This part of the town was actually the Neustadt, or New town, which was probably formed around the 12th-13th centuries alongside the Old Town. The two were joined together not long after to consistute the town of Brandenburg. The long Main Street of the Neustadt then led me to one of the city's main churches, the church of St Catherine. Considered as the largest in town, it is built in a beautiful brick gothic style dating to the end of the 14th century. It's structure reminded me a lot about the churches from the northern part of Germany, and in fact I learnt that Brandenburg had as well been part of the Hanseatic league thus having the influx of the architecture from that part of Germany. The interior held some interesting and rich furnishing including some beautiful gothic altarpieces. After visiting the church I walked through the center and reached the northern end of the Neusdtadt, where another tower, the Muhlentorturm singladded that part of the defensive walls. The walls of the town have long since gone, however the two towers and the outline of the houses and streets, seen particularly well from above, clearly marked the trace of where they once stood. Continuing further north I then reached the St Peter and Paul Cathedral. Founded by King Otto I during the 10th century, the building then commenced during the 13th century and was only completed 300 years later in its current Gothic structure. Its interior was quite simple with whitewashed walls, but featured some interesting furnishing. Particularly noteworthy was the annexed convent which could be visited freely and held many restored rooms showing the early structure of the Cathedral including some Romanesque and Gothic capitals. A little museum also showcased some altarpieces, liturgical objects and paraments. The city lies on the Havel river, hence its name, however many other small rivers and affluents encircled or flowed through the city center. After crossing one of the main branches I reached the part where the Old Town is set. Here I visited the church of St Gotthardt, one of three main ones together with the Cathedral and St Catherine. The church was started during the 12th century, that's when the west tower dates from, and was later finished during the 15th century from when the rest of the church dates to. The Gothic interior was well furnished and quite colourful with some Baroque additions as well. Right in front of the church, a curious bronze statue of a dog with antlers was placed, but I could not figure out why and what it represented. Not far from there I then reached the western end of town where the Rathenower Torturm was set, another of the towers characterising the old walls. Walking a little further I then reached the old town hall, built in gothic brick during the 15th century with the typical Roland statue standing in front of the entrance dating to 1474. At 5.35m high it is one of the tallest and most impressive Roland statues in Germany. In from of the statue and town hall a fountain was set with another bronze statue of the same dog I had previously seen right next to it. After having crossed another bridge I reached a nice area where boats and canoes were being rented and a open air museum featuring a reconstructed ancient slavic settlement had been set up. I then crossed yet another bridge and crossed through the Neustadt once more to reach the National Archaeological Museum. Housed in what was once the Monastery of St Paul, it features archaeological remains from the Stone Age all the way to the modern period. The lady at the main desk was very friendly, and though not able to speak English tried to tell me everything in German with me being barely able to understand anything at all. I really enjoyed touring around it, admiring the objects in such a historic setting which had been wonderfully restored not long before, in 2008. Once the visit was over I decided it was time to go so headed back to the train station from where I got the next ride bound to Berlin.

The Steintorturm part of the defensive walls

The church of St Catherine

Interior of St Catherine

A street in the old town

The St Peter and Paul Cathedral

The church of St Gotthardt

Interior of St Gotthartd

The Roland statue in front of the town hall

The Monastery of St Paul where the Archaeological museum is located