Neubrandenburg, Burg Stargard & Neustrelitz (11/05/2024)

On another day trip from Berlin, I decided to head north to Mecklenburg Vorpommern and visit a few towns. Unfortunately due to work on the train lines, there wasn't a direct train during that period but I had to switch once to a bus. Having arrived in Neubrandenbrug I headed towards the old town, still surrounded by the original medieval walls and some of the best-preserved in the country. I entered the old town through the Fangelturm, a 15th-century medieval tower part of the walls and with a small gate made in the 19th century. Right nearby was the church of St John built in a red brick gothic style during the 14th century and part of the Franciscan monastery. Today the church and monastery host the city museum. From there I headed through the middle of the old town, though most of the buildings were destroyed during WWII. In the middle of town was the Marienkirche, a red brick gothic-style church from the end of the 13th century. At the southern end of the old town, I reached the medieval walls once again and here came to the Stargarder Tor, one of the four medieval city gates which gave the nickname to the city, the city of four gates. This one built in 1311 consists of two parts, an outer gate and an inner one, and connected by a wall between them. The outer gate, richly adorned with gothic gables and a height of 18m conceals its defensive nature while the inner gate reaches a height of 24m. The latter, on the city side, features nine terracotta figures called Adorantines with open arms, also present on another of the city gates, but nothing is known about the symbolism and age of these figures. From the city gate, I then followed the inner perimeter of the walls admiring the interesting feature of the so-called Weikhaus a series of small houses built directly in the walls once used for observation and defense; the city once counted a total of 56 of these buildings. On the eastern side of the old town, I came across the Neues Tor, the other city gate hosting those cryptic figures. This is the youngest of the four gates having been built in the 15th century, but only the inner gate has survived with the outer one and semi-circular ringwork having been destroyed during the 17th and 19th centuries. Not too far ahead following the walls, I came to the next gate, the Friedländer Tor. The best preserved of them all it features an inner gate, an outer wall, and the semi-circular ringwork totaling 90m in length altogether. In the 18th century, two half-timbered gatehouses were integrated into the ramparts for the tax collector and gatekeeper. Following the walls once again I got to the other side of town, on the west, where I then saw the last gate, the Treptower Tor. This one too featured an inner and outer gate connected by a wall. Built in the 14th century it is also the most beautiful with the inner gate reaching a height of 32m and double the height of the outer one which had beautiful gothic gables. In the 18th century, a gatehouse for the watchmen and tax collector was integrated into the ramparts. Once I made a nice round of the town it was time to head out. I passed through the Stargard gate and headed out of the city and into the Lindetal a forested valley along the Linde river. I followed the river, enjoyed the nice walk, and then came out into the open countryside. I followed the trail which took me once again through the forest and after a few kilometers eventually reached the next destination, the town of Burg Stargard named so after its main monument, the castle. I walked through town, passing the town church rebuilt after a fire destroyed the older medieval one in 1758, and headed uphill to reach what is considered Germany's most northern hill castle. After reaching the structure I paid the entry ticket and started touring the castle grounds. Standing on top of a 90m hill, this castle was built in the 13th century in a typical brick gothic style. I entered through the outer ramparts and lower gate and reached the open area where service buildings were erected around the main keep. Once the stables, prison house, and barn now they host a museum, cafè, and hotel. Through the upper gate, I then entered the inner bailey where the main keep is located. I first climbed to the top and admired the nice panorama, The keep was built in 1250 reaching a height of 29m with 4m thick walls and a diameter of 12m. Once back down I walked over to the nearby building, the so-called crooked house once housed the magistrate's offices but burnt down completely on 18 December 1919, due to arson and still remains in ruins. Next to it, another building, the old mint, was erected in 1250. It served as a brewery until 1500, and after the castle's modernization during the 16th century, it served as a kitchen and storehouse and turned into minting use at the beginning of the 18th century before then being used as a stable, corn loft, and more recently youth school, youth hostel, and then restaurant. Next up was the castle chapel which once formed part of the upper gate. In fact, the gate was inserted into the inner bailey's walls and a chapel was built in its upper storey. In 1520, the drawbridge was dismantled, the gateway and the middle window were connected and then bricked up, and the building was refurnished as a chapel, sixty years later, it was expanded towards the inner courtyard. Once out of the inner bailey I toured the rest of the castle grounds admiring it from different parts and perspectives. I then completed the round by visiting the museum inside the former stables where there were exhibitions on country life. After having visited the castle I headed back into town and to the train station where I took a bus to the last stop of the day, Neustrelitz. The town consists of a well-planned baroque town center in an octagonal form around a central square. Here stands the city church from the end of the 18th century and the town hall from 1841. The city was also known for the Neustrelitz Palace, a baroque 18th-century palace that served as the main residence of the Grand Dukes of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. However, unfortunately, the palace was destroyed during World War II and was not reconstructed and instead fully dismantled. Nowadays a park remains on site and plans for its reconstruction are being discussed. Surviving from the castle complex are still the18th-century Orangerie, the palace church built in the 19th century in neo-gothic style, and the Louise Temple, built in 1891 in the shape of a Greek temple to house the tomb of Queen Louise of Prussia, born Princess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. Right next to the park was the Zierker See, a large lake bordering the city to the west. I walked along its shore for a brief part and then headed back through the city, After a final walk around I eventually reached the train station from where I took a ride back home to Berlin. 

The entrance to the regional museum in Neubrandenburg

The former church of St John

The Marienkirche

The Stargarder Tor

The medieval walls

The Neues Tor

The Friedlander Tor

Another view of the medieval walls

The Treptower Tor

A street in the old town

Through the Lindetal

A view from the top of Burg Stargard's keep

The Burg Stargard castle complex

Another view of the complex

Neustrelitz's old town

Neustrelitz's Schlosskirche

Hike from Schwedt to Angermünde (09/05/2024)

On a sunny September weekend, Ania and I decided to do a hiking trip in northeastern Brandenburg close to the border with Poland. We first reached the town of Schwedt on the Oder River, which right next to it forms the Lower Oder Valley National Park. The city had once an old town that was though bombed during WW2. Furthermore, after the war the city grew because of its oil refinery, one of the largest in the country, and many typical plattenbau buildings were built all around. Once there we saw the few traces of the old city left, the Berlischky-Pavillon in a rococo style from the late 18th century, a few townhouses, and the church of St Catherine, originally built in the 13th century but rebuilt in the 19th century in neogothic style and again after the war. From the city, we headed southeast and left it behind us following a path and cycling road parallel to one of the main canals of the Oder River. The way was really nice and the sun pleasant. To our right the canal and to the left the marshy land all the way to the river. After a few kilometers, we crossed over the canal and reached the village of Criewen. It had a small manor, the Schloss or Gutsanlage Criewen, originally dating to the 18th century but rebuilt a century later. Around it was a nice park and to the west the village church, originally built between the 13th and 14th centuries but refurbished during the 19th century. At the site, a small church gathering was taking place where locals were having a small potluck. One could donate something and then get food from a couple of stands. We sat among them and ate our sandwiches and then took some tea and dessert from them after leaving some coins. It was quite a nice and enjoyable break. Back on track, we followed the trail that headed through a forest and on a hilly side to the village of Stützkow. Here we crossed once again the canal and rejoined the main cycling path. We met a small herd of sheep along the way and after a few kilometers crossed once again the bridge to reach the village of Stolpe. It featured a street and a single row of houses and above a solitary red brick tower dominating the landscape from its hilltop. This tower was once part of a castle complex that dominated the hilltop. Begun as a Slavic rampart from the 7th/8th centuries, its current form comes from the 12th century when the area was under Danish rule as the rest of the Duchy of Pomerania. In fact, most probably the masonry and bricks used for its construction were probably transported from southern Sweden by ship across the Baltic Sea and the Oder. With an external diameter of 18 m, the tower is considered the largest keep in Germany. Once up there we enjoyed a beautiful view of the Lower Oder valley stretching all the way to Poland. We then left the hill and headed along a main road before following once again a path through the countryside. We passed several early and green wheat fields and here and there some wind turbines. After a few kilometers so, we entered the town of Angermünde, traversing its old town and eventually reaching its train station from where we took our ride back to Berlin. 

Schwedt city center

The church  of St Catherine

A view of the Oder River valley

One of the waterways

Schloss Criewen

The Criewen church

The village of Stützkow

Stolpe and its medieval towe

A view from the tower

A field with wind turbines

Villa dei Vescovi and Valbona Castle (05/05/2024)

On a sunny day, we decided to head to the Euganean Hills and visit some sites. Our first stop was the Villa dei Vescovi, a Renaissance-style, rural palatial home initially built for the archbishops of Padua and now owned by the Fondo Ambiente Italiano (FAI). Once we had found parking nearby we headed inside after paying the ticket. As it's part of the monuments managed by FAI both my brother and mom had their cards granting them access while for me they bought another yearly pass. We entered the beautiful garden and from there admired the building in front of us. The villa was erected between 1535 and1542 by the architect Giovanni Maria Falconetto as a summer residence for Padua's bishops but it is believed there was some intervention by the famous Giulio Romano as well. The building initially contained a rectangular courtyard with two wings and an open loggia on the ground floor, while the piano nobile had an open loggia looking down to the valley. In the second half of the eighteenth century, the distribution of the interior spaces of the piano nobile was changed: the inner court was closed and four side rooms with a central hall were created according to the classic floor plan of the later Venetian villas. The interior was frescoed in late 1543 by the Flemish painter Lambert Sustris. From the Italian-style garden in the back, we then went around the main building and headed down the valley where the rest of the villa's park is set. Here are many rows of vineyards which give the site an even more idyllic view. Back at the villa we entered it and started exploring the rooms at the piano nobile. We first walked through the eastern loggia with its beautiful frescoes and an amazing view of the countryside around. From the loggia, we then went to the hall which was a result of the 18th-century refurbishment as it replaced the central courtyard and featured stuccoes instead of frescoes. Next up were the antechamber and bishop's chamber, two rooms set up using some of the furnishings already present in the villa with the aim of evoking the domestic environments of the bishop's domus. The next room was the dining room, originally two separate rooms it was then turned into its current purpose by the Olcese family who owned the villa in the 20th century. It features large parts of surviving frescoes representing the myth of Orpheus and the myth of Apollo and Marsia. From the room, we walked over to the western loggia and after admiring its frescoes and beautiful view we entered another small room. The putto's room featured beautiful illusionistic frescoes on marine horizons and landscapes with ruins, country houses, and small figures and obviously the fresco of a putto in the bottom left corner as a foreground contrast to the rest of the views. Next up was the larger ancient figures room, with the most intact wall decorations in the villa. There are figures in ancient costumes and oratorical poses as well as the upper frieze featuring trophies, vases, armor and weapons, and landscapes. Next door were the fireplace room and the study, originally combined into a single space. It featured furniture used by the Olcese family but the frescoes were those from the 16th century featuring faux-tapestries motifs and festons held by naked figures, birds, and other things. Finally to complete the round were the room of the pisan lions and the bathroom. The name is due to the rampant lions appearing repeatedly on the upper part of the wall and in the coat of arms of the Pisani family, whose member Bishop Francesco Pisani commissioned the construction of the villa. Along the walls are more frescoes of landscapes, faux niches with statues, and trophies, and on the frieze more garlands and sacrificial scenes and scenes with divinities. The bathroom features old furniture which the Olcese family used including two commodes from the 18th century. After the visit to the villa, it was time for lunch. We headed to the Trattoria Pizzeria Liviana, right across the gardens, and there I had a tasty bigoli with duck sauce. Heading back to the car we then drove across the hills and reached the Valbona Castle.  This mighty medieval fortress dominates the plain west of Mount Lozzo, one of the volcanic hills of the Euganean hills, and was probably erected in the 13th century. Rather than an actual castle with a court, this was a fort designed to house a garrison of ten or twelve armed men: four knights, eight foot soldiers with a captain, and a certain number of servants for the normal operation of the structure. Today the scenic castle with its hexagonal towers, main tower in the center, and crenellated walls all around, represents one of the best-preserved structures in the area. There is now a restaurant inside and once we arrived we also saw a small gathering of stalls and music was set in the garden surrounding it. To our surprise we also saw a group of musicians singing country music, doing line dancing, and with a flag of the confederate states of the United States of America. After that surprise, we entered the castle and checked out the small inner courtyard. We then headed upstairs to the battlements to admire the nice view of the surrounding landscape. Then back down we circled the structure and admired it from the west side where it even features a drawbridge and was a great scenic spot. It was then time to go so after reaching the car we eventually drove home. 

Entrance to Villa dei Vescovi

The annex building

View of the Villa from its garden

A bedroom of the villa

The dining room

The main building

The loggia

Landscape near Lozzo Atestino

The Valbona Castle

The castle's keep

View from the top of the keep

View of the castle

Bicycle and canoeing trip around Comacchio (04/05/2024)

For my bachelor party, my brother had organized a trip to Comacchio where we would be doing some cycling and then canoeing. In the end, there were just three of us, my friend Alessandro, my brother, and me. After taking the car we drove southwards towards our destination and on the way stopped briefly to take a picture of the Villa Nani-Mocenigo in Canda. Built during the 16th century by either Vincenzo Scamozzi or Baldassare Longhena, two famous architects of the time, it then received its current southern facade in the 17th century. However, today the villa is abandoned, and that is quite a shame too. After some driving we reached Comacchio and immediately the other two went to buy a pack of beers for me to drink throughout the day. We then walked over the town's main monument, the Trepponti Bridge, consisting of actually five bridges together. On the other side, we then reached the bicycle rental shop where we managed to get bicycles for the three of us. We left the town and headed on the path along the canal that led us towards the sea and the town of Porto Garibaldi. Once there we crossed over the canal and continued southwards until we reached Lido degli Estensi a seaside town like many along this part of the Adriatic. Here, my task was to take a swim naked in the sea. The water was still quite cold and luckily there weren't many people around. I then downed my first beer and we got back on the bicycles to continued further. We passed another of the seven beach towns of Comacchio, the Lido di Spina, and then reached a nice section of path that went along a canal and small lagoons. Here we came across a flock of flamingoes, some of them quite pink too. We took several pictures and then continued onwards. We eventually reached the Valli di Comacchio, a series of contiguous brackish lagoons situated south of the city and once expanding six times what they are today. Comprising nowadays of four basins, they were once formed around the tenth century due to subsidence of the soil and silting of the coastal zone. Back then they featured fresh water from the recurrent flooding of the rivers but from the sixteenth century on, they gradually were filled with seawater resulting in the modern appearance of brackish water-filled basins. Famous for being the site of fishing eel today they are but a fraction of what they once were. We followed a beautiful path that shot straight through the major lagoon, called the Angels' Embankment. It was like cycling right into the sea with water all around us and just this tiny path ahead and behind us. There were several cyclists coming from both directions as well as the occasional hikers. One thing that we weren't prepared for was the millions of gnats flying around the area. It was impossible to speak or even open the mouth and even with sunglasses on we were getting thousands of them in the face as we went. Reaching over halfway down the path and finding ourselves in the middle of the huge lagoon we then decided to head back as we were still planning to have lunch somewhere and then later go canoeing. After downing my second beer, on the way back, we stopped once more to see the flamingoes and then got back to Lido degli Estensi. Here we stopped at the Friggitoria Treponti and had a large and delicious mixed fried seafood dish and down my third beer. Once full we got back on the bicycles and continued on this time bordering the lagoon to the north. We passed the old saltworks, once a thriving business in the area, and spotted more flamingoes. Then we cycled past the place where we would need to meet for the boat ride but still had to go all the way back to Comacchio to leave the bicycles. Once there, we got in the car and drove to the starting point where we met up with our group. Our guide showed us the basics and then let us sit in our canoes. There were the three of us in one, plus another group of three, and then another three plus the guide. He told us the history of the basins and then we canoed through the one directly south of the city, the Valle Fattibello. We passed through a beautiful area admiring different birds including more flamingoes. Then he showed us the canal that connects the lagoon to the sea and where people still come to use the fishing lodges mounted on poles in the water set along the bank in order to fish and eat directly there. He also showed us how a type of crab, the blue crab, has been menacing the ecosystem of northwestern Italy as it proliferates very quickly and eats all clams, mussels, and smaller local crabs. Having come from other seas, it has no predators but humans so it is hard to eradicate. A little further down the canal, I first downed my fourth and last beer, and we disembarked from our canoes and went in the Agriturismo La Vallesina where our guide had arranged an apertivio. We had as much wine as we wanted plus bread, fries, and a large platter of mixed fried seafood. I was a bit tipsy by then, with four beers, and at least three glasses of wine. But that was still enjoyable, and back on the canoe, we headed back to the starting point, taking our slow time. Our guide told us more about the place and then let us paddle silently telling us to enjoy the silence and beauty around us. That was a really nice moment and really bliss. We also managed to see the beginning of the sunrise before finally disembarking. On our way back home I thought that my brother had chosen well and it ended up being a really great day.

Villa Nani-Mocenigo in Canda

The Trepponti bridge in Comacchio

The beach near Comacchio

The Angels' Embankment

Flamingos along the way

A close up of the flamingos

A view of the landscape

Canoeing through the lagoon

Canoeing into sunset

Sunset over the lagoon

Müritz National Park (01/05/2024)

On the first weekend of May, Ania and I decided to go on a day trip to hike in the Müritz National Park, north of Berlin, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. After taking the train we got off at the station of Kratzeburg where we would start our hike. We began by heading through open countryside, siding the Käbelicksee, and then a bit later another lake, the Granziner See. From there on we officially entered the national park, starting to head through the typical pine forests of northern and eastern Germany. After a bit of walking through the forest we passe yet another lake, Pagelsee, and then started heading northwards following the main trail. A few kilometers later, we bordered the Priesterbäker See and halfway up its length took a slight detour to climb up the Käflingsberg lookout tower. This 55m high tower stands on top of the 100m high hill of the same name. From the top, we could then admire an amazing 360-degree view. All around a vast endless green of the forests that cover the national park. Here and there the glistening blue of the many lakes dotting the landscape shimmering in the sunlight. Heading back down the tower we rejoined the trail and continued further through the forest. At one point we took another small detour this time reaching a platform on the Priesterbäker See where all alone, had a beautiful view of the lake with its shimmering water and the sound of birds all around us. Heading back to the trail we reached a small hamlet, called Speck, where an 800-year-old large-leaved linden. Nearby we reached the Hofsee where I had a refreshing naked swim. Continuing on and bordering the Specker See we spotted a large herd of cows and finally, the more apt deciduous trees were taking the place of the pine ones. As we continued we passed by some smaller lakes, Rederangsee and Warnkersee, and even spotted a large hare right on the trail. Finally, we came in sight of Waren the largest town in the area, and the immense Müritz which we had constantly kept to our left in the distance. The lake is the second-largest in Germany, after Lake Constance, and the largest located entirely in the country. After reaching Waren, we walked through the old town and then headed to the train station 36km from our starting point where we eventually took our ride back to Berlin.

The forest near Kratzeburg

View from the Käflingsberg lookout tower

On top of the tower

View of the tower

The forest of the national park

The Priesterbäker See

Old houses along the way

Cows grazing

Along the trail

View of Waren

The old town