Today, Rostock
Though Mariner was berthed in Warnemünde, alongside the Aida Diva, a large, German cruise ship. A walking tour with guide Kati took us through the city centre, which made for a good inroduction.
We began on the edge of the city centre, where Kati explained that most of the city had been destroyed in WW2, so most of what we’ll see today has been reconstructed. Rostock was also in the DDR, so reunification has also brought many changes.
During a short stop where St Jakobs church had stood, Kati pointed out the health centre which now stands in its place. Originalyl named after the street on which it was built, a decision was soon taken to change that to a more popular name, because for some reason (!) people didn’t like going to a hsopital called “Heavens Gate”.
Our next stop was in the park adjacent to the grand University building. Sadly, we were too close to get anything like a decent picture, but we learned that today the university attracts students from all over the world and lectures are mostly delivered in English.
Kati herself had studied there and had plenty of stories to tell! That deep blue sky set off the terracotta details so beautifully and I was happy to stand and stare.
My history was put to the test by this stature however: General Blücher. Sadly, all I knew was that he’d been at Waterloo with Wellington but not much more.
Born in Rostock, the panel beneath his statue depicts the events on the Waterloo battlefield where he fell from his horse but was protected by his horse’s body. There alongside, his guardian angel is shown - this monument was placed here by the people of Rostock, who now rub the angel in the hope they will also be in the angel’s care.
From time to time, I remembered to look over my shoulder, from where there might be an interesting view. Here was such a place where we had a grand view of the buildings along the main shopping street.
From here, we could also see one of the old city gates, of which there used to be seven, we learned.
We strolled into the gardens surrounding the old convent, now a city museum. There in the background of the garden are the old city walls, with a wooden stepladder for those who wished to climb them.
We were headed back into the square with the university, where Kati pointed out the numberplate of a local car. In common with other Hanseatic ports, the RO identifier for Rostock is preceded by an H for “Hansestadt”. The Hanseatic Port status is still cherished here in Germany, with cities such as Hamburg and Lübeck always referred to with the prefix “Hansestadt”. My home city of Hull was also a member of the Hanseatic League, but I very much doubt that many there would know of it at all.
We gathered at the fountain, from where wee’d have half an hour to explore independently - or as in most cases, to run and do a bit of shopping for this and that. I hit the street running to DM, my favourite drugstore for one or two bits and couldn’t resist the Lübecker Marzipan store too! Kati asked us to be back for 1140, and said that any Germans in the group could interpret that as 1145, “because they are always so punctual”. Hmm.
Walking along the main street, we noted the one facade that had survived the war damage: the library.
Opposite there, we were to have a break for - not coffee and cake but beer and pretzels!
It felt a little more authentic inside than we’d feared!
Suitably refreshed, we worked towards the last stop of the morning.
The Neue Markt - which today had a large fairground set up for children, as part of the Hanse Sail celebrations that are ongoing here all weekend.
It didn’t make for the best sightseeing, but never mind. Everyone seemed to be having fun!
We did, at least see the Rostock snake, about which there are several legends. This one is a relatively modern replacement for an earlier version. Kati suggested that it was important to have seen the creature, as proof that we’d really seen the city.
With a a glance back at another of the city gates, it was time to return to Warnemünde, where things had hotted up a bit since we left!
I had a small mission here, to find the Ostbär shop and buy some more of those yummy gummi bears we’d found in Heiligenhafen last year. We decided to head straight out once back from Rostock, so joined the world and his wife (and their many children too!) to walk into town. It appeared that the AIDA Diva was on changeover day, so many people were carrying or pulling luggage along on their way to or from the railway station nearby.
The Hanse Sail event meant the harbour was filled with small boats too.
Thankfully, we soon found the shop we were looking for and made our purchases!
Things seemed to have eased off a little and the one way system over the bridge made things rather easier.
Having achieved our objective, we thought we’d take a break in the beer garden where we spotted our favourite German beer was being served. A happy half hour then, people watching, raising our glasses to friends and crew members as they passed by and noticing that, whenever a train arrived, there’d be a wave of hundreds of people coming through - surely they can’t all be headed for the AIDA ship?
But maybe they were? Who knows?
It was a warm afternoon and we were ready for a peaceful couple of hours in the cool of our lovely ship, which was there waiting for us just around the corner. We’d had a good day, but for now, most certainly “an elegant sufficiency”!
