Top things to do in Anklam, Germany

On your way to Stralsund or Usedom, before a stop to admire the Gothic architecture in Greifswald, Anklam is a relatively modest destination, that you can visit slowly. I have recently visited this Hansa city - called before also Tanglem and Wendenburg - and here is my list of top things to do here.

Otto Lilienthal Museum is definitely one of the main reasons I wanted to visit this place. Lilienthal, whose name was given to Tegel Airport in Berlin, was born here before moving to Berlin. He is the first to make gliding flights and he lost his life during one of his experiments. The museum is close to the train station, but there are no directions that could help the accidental visitor to discover the city. It is small but it has interesting rooms for experiments and the German-English explanations offer a clear image about Lilienthal's experiments and achievements. Especially recommended if you have teenage children asking lots of questions about nature and in love with airplanes.

The Steintor is one of the well preserved entrances into the city from the Middle Ages. At the museum there, you can find more about the history of the city and the area.

If you have rain as an ugly companion, you may need some alternative places. Die Andere Laden is a new local initiative regrouping creative people from the area where they present their fashion and jewelry products, plus vintage furniture and porcelain. When I visited, the nice ladies coordinating the project were just having a status meeting preparing the first anniversary of the initiative, the 22th of October. 

Am Markt is the main square where you can find the Rathaus - city hall - but also the location of farmers market. It is mostly made of modern - communist style buildings - but some remains of the typical architecture are still preserved. 

The predominant architecture in Anklam bears the mark of the communism, with its matches of boxes, the same for everyone. During the Cold War, this locality was part of the DDR, the Soviet headquarters being situated minutes away from the train station. The communist constructions were mostly erected after the WWII, when the city was partially destroyed. However, some small streets keep the air of old times, like those colourful beauties I've discovered completely by accident on Wollweberstrasse, close from the Am Markt. 

From far away, this sample of Steingothic architecture - a specific style in the Mecklenburg Vorpommers area, characterized by the use of stone and segmented roofs, looks like the local variant of the Pisa Tower. Situated at the intersection of Frauenstraße with Mägdestraße, it is the best preserved Gothic house, built in the 14th century. Nowadays is hosts the Public Records Office.

Anklam also has beautiful huge parks, where you can calmly walk for a couple of good hours. Situated close to the city center, there are oasis of beauty and quietness, with some generous areas where children can freely play. As the city used to have quite an active industrial activity - a sugar factory, among others - the trees help cleaning the air. 

In Greifswald, I've found a fascinating collection of doors. Anklam has a modest record, but if you are focused, you can find some impressive doors here too.

The river Peene creates interesting landscapes and natural retreats in this part of Germany. In Anklam, it offers to many inhabitants a hobby, as it seems to be rich in fish - proof the many fish restaurants and bistros serving fish-based meals in the city. You can walk the promenade and especially during the autumn, you can admire the beautiful colours of the foliage. 

Steinstraße is the best destination to do some shopping in the central part of the city. There are a lot of local brands to chose from or small coffee places or restaurants for a snack before you leave or keep exploring. The bookstore was one of my favourite place, with interesting German books and some special editions covering the area, both travel books and works by authors living here. 

With the green areas and the ruins of the old city walls interwoven with the modern living, you can easily switch sides and centuries, enjoying both modern amenities and some private moment of reflection in the middle of the nature. I particularly loved the Romantic ruins from Badstüberstrasse. 

When my short trip to Anklam came to an end, and I was ready to embark on the two-hour ride back to Berlin, this mural paiting on Badstüberstrasse illustrated perfectly, more than any Tourism Office, the best of the city. If you are a curious nature, you can easily find some small things to learn about everywhere, even in the most modest places.

For more inspiration, check the dedicated Pinterest board: https://de.pinterest.com/ilanaontheroad/anklam/

How to spend one day trip to Greifswald

A city with a rich university history - the student life started here in the late 15th century - where the famous Romantic German painter Caspar David Friedrich was born, Greifswald is very often off the travel radar. After some serious documentation during which I noticed the complete lack of serious sources in English, I decided to take the challenge to spend, for the beginning, a full day exploring this relatively unknown place for the usual English speaking visitor in Germany.

From Berlin, the direct train ride takes three full hours, covered by the 44 EURO Quer- durchs-land Deutsche Bahn ticket. It is quite a lot of time, but looking through the window the time went faster: enchanting yellowish plains with round-shaped ponds and cows looking long at the train. Once arrived, we crossed the quiet park in the front of the central train station. In just a couple of minutes we've found out that Greifswald used to be part of the Jakobsweg, the main pilgrims route in Europe going to Santiago de Compostela. It also has a special route covering the places connected to the history of Caspar-David Friedrich, from the buildings where he lived to some of his sources of Romantic inspiration, including an information center fully dedicated to his works and activity.  

Around Karl Marx Platz, I fell in love with the beautiful two-colour or rich decorated doors, that will be my main photographic motif during my trip. Regardless how uninteresting a building can be, a beautiful door embellishes everything. 

As an university city, Greifswald is provided with a lot of inspiration and fresh perspectives, hence, there is no wonder that the street art has its special headquarters. I discovered a yard surrounded by graffiti completely by accident, on Wollweberstrasse. 

It is the very beginning of autumn and besides the colourful doors, the vegetation is adorning the houses, ready to change the cover every single day, until complete disappearance. 

The more I was walking the streets, without a map and without a list of places to see, the more I am surprised by my discoveries, like this Romantic street art corner in the manner of Caspar Friedrich, close to Rubenowplatz, near the university headquarters. 

Greifswald is often mentioned as an example of Brick Gothic architecture, a style specific to the Northern Europe, characterized by the use of stone for the main construction works. 

Baderstrasse, for instance, offers a beautiful perspective of this style, the houses being renovated and painted in colourful pastel shades. Many coffees and bakeries are open on Sunday and if you are lucky enough to travel on a sunny day - as we were - your eyes are rewarded with a pleasant view of architectural harmonies and colours.

The apparition of Brick Gothic was dictated by the basic construction needs: the area was not very rich in other materials. In Germany, the same style can be encountered in Lübeck in many other Hanseatic cities or in Brandenburg - but in a more ugly, raw variant, without too much decorations, but also in Lithuania, Estonia or Poland. At the end of the 30-Year War, at the end of the 17th century, Greifswald entered for almost 200 years the Swedish rule whose presence is still noticeable in the architecture.

If you have a look at the buildings around the main square, you can see not only different styles, but also various historical layers and outside influences. 

So many differences but still the unity of a common local history. This area can be easily walked by, but you can also take your bike with you and explore the entire area on two-rows.

The complexely segmented facades are usually complimented by specific doors and entrances, and interior staircases which keep the balance of the volumes. 

After so much architecture, the port at the river Ryck is the natural oasis, with its stylish boats and another view into a different construction style. Many of the boats also serve as restaurants offering mostly fish-based meals and cold beers. I was curious to find some tempting Fish&Chips options, but I soon discovered that there is nothing but the usual supermarket frozen food, soaked in the oil used more than 5 times, so I better skip this curiosity. 

Although the loud music of a nearby circus was breaking the relative calmness of the day, the quiet waters are soothing enough after a busy week. Bikers can enjoy longer routes around the river, leading to an even more intimate natural environment. 

The German-speaking visitors can explore more than the architecture. There is a local theatre with a modern repertoire and the house where the writer Hans Fallada was born can be also visited during the week.

The foodie stop was at Humboldt im Logenhaus, for an average delicious fish burger served outdoors. The good fast service helped me to refuel and be ready for the last legs of my trip. 

The Pommersches Landenmuseum covers extensively different historical periods of Greifswald. In more than one hour spent there I was able to learn about the very beginning of the settlement, since the migration time, until the time of the Swedish occupation. A photography exhibition displayed the history of different buildings, and was interesting to notice local people trying to remember how it was during their childhood or school years. The painting collection is worth a look too, with an impressive overview of the Danish painting school, plus the works of Caspar David Friedrich, but also Vincent van Gogh or Emil Nolde. Shortly, in this place you can learn about the history and culture of Greifswald and Mecklenburg Vorpommern at a glance. Most explanations are in German, but there is are also English guidance, enough to understand the main aspects.

Overloaded with information, but with the happy feeling of having used my time at its best, I have a last view of some secret mews and colourful doors before returning to Berlin. It's a pity Greifswald is so less known, but lucky me to me curious enough to dedicate one full day to a completely unknown destination. The secret gems I've discovered here encourages me to keep exploring even more German destinations. Stay tuned! More to come soon!