Northern Germany, Southern Italy & a couple of different valleys of the Dolomites

RB · Oct 10, 2022

Moderne Wohnung in Schwerin -Schloss & Hafennähe-

With bags in tow, this apartment was a 20 minute walk from the station-quite a few ways of getting there & we got a good look at Pfaffenteich pond-(not what I would normally call at pond when it covers a surface area of 30 acres!) as we walked to it.. It proved to be an excellent location for our exploring-lake, old town, castle, food and supermarkets all within easy flat walking distance. Instructions were forwarded to us and we gained entry via a key safe so we never met the owner. A downside was climbing stairs the first & last time with our bags but really not a bother for us at other times. It was a very quiet building with the traffic noise well blocked. The wi-fi worked well, the shower was fine and the kitchen had what we needed. I found the bed uncomfortable to get into & out of- a very low bed with the softest mattress ever but surprsied to sleep well

Pfaffenteich Pond

Excellent noise suppression

Backyard view

Sunday arvo-pretty quiet around the apartment but a very late lunch within 100metres, excellent kebab & a couple of drinks from the corner store

RB · Oct 10, 2022

Around Schwerin
We spent our first full day visiting nearby Wismar. Wismar – Travel guide at Wikivoyage
Travelled by train (still busy but not the crazy scenes of the day before) & enjoyed a general walk around. It was an overcast day & a cold wind at times. Certainly some more churches & a busy port area. The old town & port area are relatively compact & the walk is flat but the cobblestones certainly impact on the feet.
Back in Schwerin Schwerin – Travel guide at Wikivoyage we wandered to the Old Town area & then the adjoining new shopping area.
On the second full day we visited the Castle, the State Theatre, Museum (currently closed), took a boat trip on Schweriner See lake & then walked back to the apartment via the market square and general sighseeing.
We enjoyed our time at Zum Freischutz, a streetside bar, less than 5 min walk from the apartment. A group of local followers having after work drinks & picking from the small menu-we had the Wurzfleisch-butter,flour, pepper, worcestershire and mushrooms with veal in a small baking dish.

Our Day in Wismar

RB · Oct 10, 2022

More of Wismar

Start of Harbour Area

Looking back at the Water Gate-The Gothic brick water gate is the last survivor of the former five city fortifications of the city of Wismar. It was built in 1450. Today it is the seat of Club Maritim.

RB · Oct 10, 2022

Around Schwerin

Why In Schwerin

RB · Oct 10, 2022

More Schwerin

Wurzfleisch

RB · Oct 10, 2022

Without doubt the highlight of Schwerin is the Castle & it's gardens. "Schwerin Castle, is a schloss located in the city of Schwerin, the capital of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern state, Germany. It is situated on an island in the city's main lake, Lake Schwerin. For centuries, the castle was the home of the dukes and grand dukes of Mecklenburg and later Mecklenburg-Schwerin". Wikipedia

RB · Oct 10, 2022

Last of Schwerin Castle

OZDUCK · Oct 10, 2022

Enjoying the photos. Once again you have made me sorry that we didn't have the time to allocate at least a day or so to Schwerin in 2013.

If you have any interest in movies I hope that you looked down at the pavement if you walked through the Watergate in Wismar.

RB · Oct 11, 2022

OZDUCK said:
Enjoying the photos. Once again you have made me sorry that we didn't have the time to allocate at least a day or so to Schwerin in 2013.

If you have any interest in movies I hope that you looked down at the pavement if you walked through the Watergate in Wismar.

Nosferatu? Had read about the movie but looking back at my photos, the only other shots I have are these & nothing when I zoom in

RB · Oct 11, 2022

Schwerin to Hamburg
Probably not our smartest decision of the holiday but we opted for a train that also qualified for the 9 Euro scheme- it fitted our check-out time, was non-stop and we also figured we would be able to leave our bags at the Hamburg hotel prior to the 3pm check-in. The train was massively overcrowded with many apparently cramming in travel. Again the overcrowding led to delays.
One of the deciding factors in deciding on accommodation was public transport connections and our end station was Baumwall which is served by U Bahn line U3; departures are every 5 minutes.

Clipper Boarding House-Michel, Hamburg
Our choice of stay for 3 nights. We were aware of the 3pm check-in but a little surprised that there was no visible check-in desk, just a computer based terminal & 2 chairs to be seen. Admitting defeat we trudged down the road to the bars & restaurants of the Portuguese quarter while dragging our bags. We settled on a bar that gave us reasonable security for our bags while we enjoyed drinks & tried to forget the recent train trip.
Nearing 3pm we returned to the hotel & this time an employee appeared from around the corner ( apparently she had not heard us in the lobby area previously!)
Our booking was for a comfort apartment & it certainly was a pleasant stay. The upstairs/downstairs set-up has its drawbacks but it was a great modern apartment where everything worked. A supermarket was a 1 minute walk away & the bars & restaurants only a couple of minutes. The underground & S Bahn stations are less than 5 minutes walk and the waterfront area had been modernised, was busy and there was plenty of activity on the water to watch.
Clipper Boardinghouse - Hamburg-Michel, Hamburg – Updated 2022 Prices

I was hidden over at the base of the stairs behind the man in pink top ( along with other obscurred people

Street entry of Clipper

Computer based check-in. Prior to 3pm it just messaged check-in was not available

Downstairs balcony

RB · Oct 11, 2022

More of Clipper Hamburg

View from upstairs window

OZDUCK · Oct 11, 2022

RB said:
Nosferatu? Had read about the movie but looking back at my photos, the only other shots I have are these & nothing when I zoom in

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RB said:
o

RB said:
Nosferatu? Had read about the movie but looking back at my photos, the only other shots I have are these & nothing when I zoom in

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Yes Nosferatu well done. I am sure that in your photo of the Water Gate the woman with the large cream handbag on her shoulder is standing on the commemorative plaque. I don't wish to steal any thunder from your TR but attached is the, pretty poor, photo I took of it. Plus a still from the movie showing Nosferatu carrying his coffin through the easily recognisable Water Gate.

(We stayed in the Clipper Boarding House Berlin in late August. The Hamburg version seems brighter and has a much better outlook)

craven morehead · Oct 11, 2022

RB said:
We have been back in Australia since last Friday so it is time to make a start on another trip report. Since the onset of covid we have managed a few interstate trips but have been really looking forward to the opportunity to get back to some overseas travel. Our 2020 planning went out the door like it did for so many other travellers, but we used some of that planning for this trip.
Europe has been a favourite destination of ours for a long while and we were able to secure award flights on Singapore in Oct last year. Still lacking a little in confidence of whether the trip would actually happen, we primarily booked cancellable rates for our accommodation (offset a bit by Cashrewards). We are still public transport users so trains & buses were our go to and we made good use of the German 9 Euro offer.
We live on the Mid North Coast of NSW and drove to and left our car with friends who now live at Lake Macquarie. On the day of our departure from Australia we caught the train from Morrisett to Sydney International- fortunately a day before strike action was to disrupt such a train journey.

Bit of a Guide to our Journey- flew into Frankfurt, out of Milan & had an internal flight Hamburg to Bari (so ignore the driving time on the map )

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A pretty nice spot on Lake Macquarie before our trip. We also enjoyed excellent Asian food at the Rathmines Bowling Club & great fish & chips from Splash Take-Away Seafood in Toronto
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Mrs RB on the train to Sydney- we quite enjoy that ride down past the Central Coast

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Now it was getting real- Singapore Lounge Sydney.

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Dialing in now

Cossie · Oct 11, 2022

Related to Nosterafu, a few years ago, by chance we rounded a bend in Slovakia and were greeted with this:

Orava Castle - Wikipedia

No where to stay nearby so we went back the next morning. Photos on my pc which I can’t access at the moment.

Really enjoyed this TR, thanks so much, some places in Germany that are now on our to do list.

RB · Oct 12, 2022

Around Hamburg
We are not fans of visiting bigger cities but I think meeting a guy by the name of Frank sparked our interest in Hamburg. We met him in Vietnam in 2004 and he raved about his city & working in the port area.
Our visit was certainly enjoyable- food was fine, transport was excellent, general sightseeing was rewarding and the International Maritime Museum & St Nikolai were certainly highlights. I have regarded the maritime museum at Lisbon very highly but I think it met it’s match here (The building is Hamburg's oldest warehouse and is home to the Peter Tamm collection. There are 9 exhibition "decks" with model ships including some made of gold, silver and amber. The precious exhibits from all over the world tell living history and stories from 3000 years of seafaring.).
We seemed to do a lot of walking but the area covered was actually pretty compact (maybe it was the hot weather). Das Boot had inspired our interest in submarines & we enjoyed the U Boot Museum,the Elbtunnel, the Elbphilharmonie concert hall is certainly a striking building & we followed up by a wander past the restored merchant houses and canals of Hamburg. We finished up with a visit to the viewing tower and war memorial museum of the beautiful St. Nikolai. Most of Hamburg was destroyed by Allied bombing and the museum is dedicated to the victims of war and the tyranny of naz_sm in Germany from 1933 to 1945.
Our train ride out to the Winterhude and Stadtpark showed an impressive modern city lifestyle.
Our departure to the airport was a 5 minute walk to the S Bahn station, an easy to use ticket machine, a fare of only 3.20 Euro and then easy access at the airport end.

1st night port area-Attractive area for families to spend some time