Lübeck, Germany is a superb gem to visit on the Northern coast of Germany. After spending a great day on the beach in Lübeck, I spent the next 2 days sick in bed. Finally, I thought I could risk being out and about, without a bathroom on call each minute. Our friend, Andrea, was more than happy to show us the beautiful city in which she lives! With 5 kids in tow (her 2, and our 3), we were off to seek out the towers and brickwork of downtown!
We started at the famous old entryway into town. Now it is only a walking path, but perhaps once you could imagine riding your horse or horse-drawn wagon through its entry!
Jared had a to-do on his list, however, so he left Maiya and I at the gate and ran over to a nearby electronics store called Saturn to buy a new GPS. Pictures followed…
Can you see her new freckles? I thought our redheads would be the only ones with freckles…but no…now the blondie, too!
Jared managed to find the perfect GPS by a German company called BECKER. Task done–adventure next!
The backside of the gate…
This is the old salt storage building. Ships would come directly up to this building to load the salt that was stored here (but mined further inland).
The city itself had fabulous little winding streets and alleyways. Many of these buildings feature the false-front facade with graduated steps, like this one. A very classic Lübeck-look!
We decided to jump on a boat tour that circles the city on the waterway. It cost 30 Euros for our family (family pass includes 2 adults, and 2 children)–a whooping $40 USD.
There was a tour given in German, which our friend translated for us on occasion.
It was a pretty boat ride, and the kids were well-entertained!
The clan!
I was told these are summer cabins/homes, which since they are located directly on the water, they probably still come with a hefty European price tag!
Not to mention the standard homes…
Half-timber homes are very common in Germany!
One hidden treat was found in the little mini-alleyways found throughout town. You’d be walking along on the main road circling town, and suddenly there would be a little arch leading under someone’s home, to a public alleyway.
I felt like I was in people’s backyards (which I was)…but apparently it is public property.
Don’t you love Ella’s face in this photo?
Andrea watched the kids at the park while Jared and I went to look at some of the local chapels.
The church was closed 🙁 I hear it’s beautiful!
I just liked the sign…
We returned to the playground, and found many happy little girls playing in the water and sand. We’ve found this kind of exposure (of kids) very normal here, so far! We didn’t let our kids join in that fun…
But they found some water to run through in the main downtown area!
Up and down, up and down, up and down!
I love the buildings here…
T. K. Maxx, anyone? I wonder if it is owned by T.J. Maxx or a copy cat…
GORGEOUS!!
Lubeck was one of the first places in Germany that was bombed in WWII by the Royal Air Force. A lot was destroyed, which perhaps explains why there is such a variety of buildings and styles. These 3 clearly different styles were juxtaposed on each other…making for an interesting flavor in this public square!
1400’s??!!!
We took advantage of having a friend with us so we could get more family photos!
The most famous chapel in Lubeck requires a fee to enter. Fees in churches admittedly bother me, although I completely respect them putting up signs disallowing photos. This chapel does not discourage photos…so at least I could get a photo from the entry!
Randomness…
Maiya on the devil…
Outside of the chapel…
Cool building across the street…
Love the door handle!
Classic style in Lubeck!
A day well spent. I snapped this photo as we left town…
I was surprised to learn about Lubeck’s WWII history only through Wikipedia. Everywhere we go in Germany, no one wants to talk about the war. Perhaps that is different in places like Berlin, and where you can visit Concentration Camps. But in Hamburg and Lubeck alike, we would ask, “Is there any significance to any of these buildings from the war?” The answer was, “Yeah, probably.”
I suppose it is a history that many people here would prefer to forget. And I can understand that…
But it still surprises me…
(p.s. sorry to kill you with photos…)
6 Responses to “Exploring Lübeck, Germany”
I do believe that (most) Germans are well aware of that part of history and try not to forget it and make sure to stand up that something like that never ever happens again. That would include trying to be openminded to different cultures, backgrounds and try to be kind to all different kind of people. I guess trying to forget might be true for quite a few of the old folks who had to live during that time, but it is not for many of the younger ones. In many cities they are putting up “stumbling” blocks for every person who has been deported. There a still quite a few exhibitions, documentaries on tv etc etc.
That part of history is a big emphasis in history lessons in school. For my part I elected a “3rd Reich” class for a whole year in 12th grade at school to learn more about it. (means 3 extra, not compulsory hours, per week for a whole year). At university I worked (unpaid) for a department of medical history project which went on for almost 2 years depicting the story of the Freiburg university hospital during that time. We made an exhibition, including topics like enforced sterilization, kids under foster care, killing of the disabled, resistance, and many more. I also wrote an article for a book that was published in addition to that exhibition. That was quite some time I was spending trying to to forget. Also I have watched quite a few documentaries and read books about the “3rd Reich”.
So, not being able to answer a question which buildings might have been destroyed in a city, where I haven’t been living for too long might not necessarily mean that one is not interested in that part of history, or even trying to forget it. Sorry, I just felt the need to clarify that.
I guess we just didn’t get around to talking on that topic, so when you’re back in Lübeck and interested, I’m happy to.
Thanks for your response, Andrea! It is wrong of me to make a generalization based on my experiences. I in no way wanted to infer that German don’t KNOW the history, but perhaps that it is just isn’t emphasized in a tourist-way. I also in no way wanted to infer that Germans don’t KNOW the history, but perhaps that it just isn’t emphasized in a tourist-way, as I would have expected. I bet a lot of the old-timers know a LOT about the specific buildings and locations of things…simply because they lived it (or closer to it)…but I wonder if the younger generation does? I couldn’t expect you two to know the history of towns you weren’t even raised in!
We just haven’t seen anything in any of the cities about anything war-related (not just in Lubeck or Hamburg…but since I’ve only gotten that far in posting, that’s what I referred to!). I guess we just assume there would be more! I don’t know what we were expecting?
In the US, there are markers all over the East and South for the Civil War…monuments, cemeteries, signs, etc. If anything big happened there…they will let you know! I imagine there is sooooo much history around here, but it seems tourists would have to dig for it, rather than have it put in their face. The only thing I’ve had “put in my face” is the Eagle’s Nest, so far.
I can respect that perhaps it’s not something that many people (yes–especially the older generation) would really want to bring attention to. Or maybe the government here would rather put its money towards its programs, rather than historical markers, etc? The US does like to “throw away” more money! Or perhaps it might just be a time thing? The US has had a LOT more time to recoup and put together historical markers on Civil War stuff…so maybe it is just something that will someday come to pass in Germany as the years pass? That historical stuff is good for tourism 🙂
I would have been fascinated to pick your brain about everything! Next time!
You’re right with that, compared to many other countries historical locations aren’t advertised too much, no matter if its WW2, WW1, middle ages or whatever related. Interesting that you mention that, I never thought too much of that difference before, it was just normal to me the way it is here. I don’t really know what the reason is. Of course there has been so much history going on for centuries and centuries. Just look about Lübeck or many many other German cities, there are historical buildings, museums etc everywhere. And especially during WW2 nearly every German town was severely destroyed, with a big proportion of the buildings gone or heavily damaged. But I know what you mean, Germans don’t put too many historical signs up. I think the closest thing to that are the stumbling stones I mentioned. For example in Lübeck, Hamburg and many other German cities and towns each one of those commemorates a person that has been deported by the Nazis. There’s a web page in English you might be interested having a look at. There are war related monuments and cemetaries, but it is true they are not hugely advertised. I think many people don’t want everything put right in their faces because guilt is still a big thing in Germany, even in my generation. Of course what happened didn’t have anything directly to do with me, but my grandparents lived during war time and all 4 of them were not too comfortable talking about it, even though I tried on a lot of occasions. They mainly told how the cities were badly destroyed (my family is from Ludwigshafen, lots of chemical industry and therefore lots of bombings there) and how often there was a alarm going off and they had to rush into the next bunker and hide, and how their homes were badly damaged, and how still many people moved in with them, how difficult it was to get enough to eat or stuff to live, but I was never able to find anything out about anything going beyond that / underneath the surface. I think it is much easier to talk about bad stuff that happened to you than about bad stuff that happened to other people they c(w?)ouldn’t prevent. Very dark chapter of German history. And I think time matters as well, it still feels very recent because everyone knows (and loves) people and has close relatives who were living through that time. Here is the website to read about the stepping stones:
http://www.stolpersteine-luebeck.de/n/en/main/homepage.html
You’re right about history having taken place here for centuries and centuries and centuries! There are certainly many more historical moments to publicize as well (for tourism and history enthusiasts), besides the darker side of history (even though of course it is the most famous). Europe is rich with history! Also, I can totally understand why your grandparents would only talk about their own personal experiences, as opposed to events that happened to others, that was out of their control. Thanks for your comments–it helps bring perspective to our experiences and perceptions in Germany. Thanks!
I loved Lübeck also. Your pictures are simply stunning! How are you able to afford this life style? Wish I could! 🙂
Thanks, Krista! We afford this lifestyle by giving up the other lifestyle that is possible (we sold our stuff, don’t have a home we pay rent or mortgage for, etc). Here’s an interview we did on another blog that shares how we do what we do: http://www.familytrek.org/living-outside-the-box-interview/