Rügen - City Countryside Sea - Germany 2022 - 5
Stage 5 - Rügen
Since we didn't sleep well last night, we lie down again after breakfast. But just as we are dozing off a fire alarm starts. So we quickly take our backpacks, leave our luggage and go outside. Fortunately, it is a false alarm. Someone made too much smoke in the kitchen. Now that we are awake we want to leave. With the suitcases, we walk to the parking garage Alexa and drive out of town.
The way to Rügen is not too far, but Jürgen has a nice idea for a side trip: Plau am See [↗]. This is the western end of the Mecklenburg Lake District, where Freya always wanted to go. We take a look at the nice little town. Old half-timbered houses, beautiful old church in brick Gothic. At the idyllic river arm, we first have a fish sandwich and then ice cream. We walk to the jetty and lighthouse. Then we move on.
We arrive in Sellin on the island of Rügen shortly before 5 pm. At check-in, we get enough info for a three-week vacation. We buy two bottles of water at the supermarket next door, Jürgen washes his shirt, and then we want to have dinner early.
We are hungry and so we end up in the restaurant "zum Smutje", where already the Aperol is a bit thin. Freya eats a Schnitzel with Ragout Fin and Jürgen decides for Zander. Not really bad, but not good either - all in all more of a fried fish stall than a restaurant.
When paying, we learn that only cash is excepted here. Freya slips out that they are really lucky that we have just drawn money. Somehow the waitress gets the wrong idea and reacts slightly stroppy. "After all, it wouldn't be a legal obligation to allow cashless payment." She's right, but the tone in which she means it is strange. We pay and give the place a wide berth in the future.
Sunset is approaching and we make our way to the pier [↗]. The mixed weather means that we have a nice cloudy sky even if it is not enough for a classic sunset. Jürgen starts on the beach with the beach chairs in the foreground. As it gets darker and the lights are turned on, we go up to the bridge to photograph the restaurant itself. Most of the visitors are probably at dinner at the moment and those that are still there are moving around and not standing on the railing. Although you still have to have some patience, with long exposures they are no longer visible in the finished picture.
Finally, we drink two black beers at a nice Italian restaurant and notice that the cocktails at the neighboring table also look quite good.
The next day Freya wants to go to the sea, but only after noon because in the morning it is a bit too fresh for her. So we drive together to Lietzow to have a look at the Hexenwald [↗]. In the village, we find a parking lot at the train station and walk from there into the forest.
The witch forest in the forest park Semper is a relatively small area within the forest park. It consists of cripple beech trees, which in summer form a canopy that reaches down to the ground. In the beginning, you can hear quite a bit of traffic, but then it slowly becomes quieter. If we had been here in early summer, we could have admired the blooming rhododendron. But so we continue walking on the well-maintained hiking trails. The witch forest is signposted and easy to find.
Luckily, no one is there right now and Jürgen can shoot some pictures for a panorama. Unfortunately, it does not take long and a family with children appears, who thinks they have to use the trees as a jungle gym 😠.
We take another walk through the forest to the steep bank. From there we walk past the former water tower in the shape of a castle ruin back to the car.
In the meantime it is noon and it has started to cloud over. So Freya decides that today is no beach day after all. After a short break, we walk through the forest to Binz. In the meantime, the weather has changed for the better but Freya doesn't like to permanently change her plans back and forth. The trail through the forest is going up and down a little bit. There are more cyclists than hikers on the way, but it is still quite pleasant to walk. We take a look at the former rescue tower [↗] on the beach, which is now used by the marriage registration office, and continue to the pier.
To Binz, it is just under 8 km, but maybe we walked a bit more. So as we arrived there a break is due.
Afterwards we look for the bus stop to go back by local transport. The bus comes, mask on and Freya does not find her 9-Euro ticket. The bus driver pushes, Freya should get off and wait for the next bus. She doesn't, pays 3.40 Euros, and then finds the ticket on the way to Jürgen. We have to change buses on the way and the already well-filled bus is packed.
For dinner, we walk only a few steps to the Italian around the corner. The service is nice, but the food is not so good. Jürgens pizza almost burnt and Freyas noodles okay. After Leipzig and Berlin, the food here on Rügen is so far rather a disappointment.
Speaking of food: The hotel here is not really to be recommended, but the breakfast is really good and diversified. Different cold cuts, cheese, but also pork meat with onions, cereals, fruits, eggs, and so on.
Today we go to the north. We skip the beacon Cape Arkona because of tourist rip-off, but we want to go to the Fairy Tale Forest [↗], a beautiful beech forest. We are not the only ones who go for a walk there. We encounter a guided group of horseback riders no less than three times.
Relatively nearby are some groins, which do not lead parallel into the sea as usual, but are cross-shaped. Of course, we have to go there too. While Jürgen is taking pictures, Freya is watching the beach visitors who are looking for amber at 12:30 noon. During her treatment at a health resort in Bad Doberan, she once heard that only the early bird finds the worm, or rather the amber.
On the way back we pass a pretty church and have a look at it and the churchyard. Unfortunately, there is no more room in the nice restaurant across the street.
In a brochure, we saw photos of replicas from the Bluetooth [↗] treasure and the museum is within walking distance of the hotel. So we buy some sweet pieces in a pastry shop and eat them in the hotel room. Afterwards we walk to the museum in the Seestraße [↗].
The man who is supervising the museum is a passionate hobby archaeologist. We chat and learn that as a hobby archaeologist, you only have a very short time window to explore. Only after plowing and before sowing one can go with detectors to the fields.
The silver treasure of Bluetooth was found in 2018 during such an operation. First, there were only 1, 2 silver coins, but the next day they found so much that it became clear that there is more and they notified the National Office. It took almost a week until the "emergency excavation" took place, during which all those involved had to maintain the strictest silence, even within the families.
Replicas of the original treasure can be seen on the ground floor of the small museum. On the second floor, you can find stones and ammonites, and some household goods. All in all a nice, small museum, which one would not expect in such a small village.
After that, we walk to the harbor. Our guest card includes a ride on a boat from here and since we might want to do that tomorrow if the weather is right, we want to check it out.
Dinner is at the Italian restaurant on the way to the pier where we had a beer the day before yesterday. And finally, there is nothing to complain about.
After a delicious breakfast, we go to the beach. It is cloudy and foggy - a bit like autumn.
First, we walk a bit on the ridgeway through pine and beech forest, but we want to go to the sandy beach and that's what we do now. Jürgen has rolled up his pants, Freya too, but in no time we are both quite wet.
We walk as far as Göhren, always with our feet in the water. Once there, we both eat a tarte flambée, briefly visit the medieval market that is taking place here at the moment and take a look at the well-attended miniature golf course [↗]. There are two different theme areas, everything is nicely decorated and well-maintained. Neither of us has ever seen such a beautiful miniature golf park. Nevertheless, we do not feel like playing.
We walk back along the promenade and take a shortcut through the forest at the end, which is not a shortcut after all. Then quickly to the supermarket nearby, to buy a few small souvenirs.
But then off to the room and under the shower. Everywhere is sticky sand. After a short break, we walk in the direction of the pier and eat plenty of delicious food at the Mexican restaurant.
The next morning we enjoy breakfast and then go back to the room. It has rained during the night and the weather is not really better now. So we lie down a bit and read or play on the tablet.
Around noon, however, we are tempted to go outside. We go for another walk on the beach. This time, however, only to Baabe. Today there are more waves than yesterday, but we pay a little more attention - and we don't get as wet as yesterday. In Baabe we eat delicious ice cream, walk down the main street and then up again, and then it starts to rain again. Anyway, we want to go back. The rain quickly turns into drizzle. Today we don't try to shortcut, but walk up to the pier. Before we go up to the bridge, Freya sits down to remove the sand from her feet and legs. Great, the bench was wet and so is she now!
For dinner, we go again to the street to the pier, this time to the "Old Post Office". Here you can sit outside under large umbrellas and so the next rain shower does not bother us much. Here, too, the food tastes good and so we are finally happy with the cuisine on Rügen.
