Tom`s travels: Lübben, Senftenberg & Altdöbern (15/11/2020)

On a relatively sunny weekend, the type of sun you can get in eastern Germany during the fall with a kind of haze lingering and the low sun showing itself lazily, we decided to do another day trip from Berlin. We chose to head south and visit three small towns along the same train line. Our first stop was the small town of Lübben, located right next to the Spreewald in the historical region of Lower Lusatia. In fact here, as in the surrounding towns, you can find some bilingual signs with both German and Sorbian names and words. After getting out of the train station we headed in the direction of the city center passing through a nice park, Der Hain, before reaching the old town. As we approached from the west and crossed over the Hauptspree on a bridge we caught sight of the remains of the city walls that once surrounded the whole old town. Unfortunately, the city was heavily damaged during the last months of WWII when the advancing Red Army was nearing Berlin, losing thus 85% of its buildings. Nowadays some old architecture mixes with the typical grayish and unaesthetic east german plattenbau buildings. In the center of town, we then decided to visit the main church, the Paul-Gerhardt-Kirche. The church features a late Gothic structure and a bell tower from the 15th century while the interior and furnishing are mostly baroque additions from the 17th century such as the main altar from 1609. In the southern part of the town, we then reached the Schloss Lübben, a mostly baroque structure. Once a medieval castle stood on its spot, later fully rebuilt during the 17th century. After damage suffered during world war 2, it was restored to its baroque state and now consists of three separate structures: the Marstall which were once the stables and now house the city library, the main tower, and the Oberamtshaus which served as the seat of the government of Lower Lusatia. The latter two now hold the city museum. Behind the castle, on a small island surrounded by the Spree river, is a nice park with even a hedge maze. After heading back through town and to the train station, we then took a train in the direction of the next town, Seftenberg. After getting off the train and out of the station we headed towards the old town just a few minutes walk to the south. Like other towns in the area, it was damaged during ww2 and partially reconstructed after the war. As we walked by we passed the Wendish church, a 17th-century baroque building that replaced an older wooden one from the previous century and serving the Sorbian population of the town. Nowadays it is used as a community center. Just a few steps further we then passed the church of St Peter and Paul, the main religious building of Seftenberg. Originally built in the second half of the 13th century it suffered several refurbishments and reconstructions after a few city fires and most notable after ww2 when it was finally given its current late gothic appearance. It was known as the German church as it served the german population in contrast to the nearby Wendish church. From the church, which was unfortunately closed, we then passed through the main square, the Markt, with nice rebuilt buildings such as the impressive Wilhelmine Adler Pharmacy built in 1902. At the center of the square stands the copy of a Saxon milepost from 1741. On the southern edge of the old town, we then passed by the Schloss Seftenberg, both a castle and fortress that served as the town's main defense point. This Renaissance construction originally dates to the 15th century with additions from the 17th and 19th centuries. It features a central low castle surrounded by ramparts now covered in bushes and ivy which make up a nice little city park to stroll around. Just south of the fortress we then reached the Senftenberger See, a large man-made lake created over an exhausted open-pit mine. Here we sat on a bench and enjoyed our lunch with a view over the lake and a bit of sun lazily peering through the clouds above. After our break, it was time to head back to the station and take the next ride to our last stop for the day, the small town of Altdöbern. The train station is located a bit far off from the town center but we nonetheless walked through the suburbs and soon after reached the town's main attraction the Altdöbern castle. Built in the renaissance style during the 16th century it was later replaced by a baroque building with rococo additions. During the 19th century, it suffered some transformations with some additions in a neo-romanesque style such as the eastern part that features a somewhat medieval-looking tower. Interestingly from 1943 to 1945, Altdöbern Castle served as the quarters of the Swedish Embassy, which had moved there due to increasing air raids on Berlin. The castle also features a really nice and large park around it which we strolled for a bit enjoying the late sun and fall colors. We then passed the service buildings of the castle, the former stables and the Orangerie now turned into a nice cafè, and then reached the city center. Here surrounded by a small park and a small cemetery is the main parish church, rebuilt in 1921 after it burned down because of arson in 1914. After one last stroll around it was then time for us to head back to the train station and eventually catch the train back to Berlin.