Only a train away from Berlin is the Baltic Sea. Windy beautiful Northern Germany. I woke up missing the sea, so I booked a direct IC train to Rostock with a first stop in Warnemünde. Next trip and good idea was the city of Binz in island of Rügen, german biggest island. In fact some 50 islands in the North Sea and Baltic Sea belong to Germany.

Warnemünde

I started the day in busy harbour, Warnemünde, taking a walk on the Alter Strom promenade, with typical old fisherman houses turned into restaurant or hotels. Alte Strom (Old Channel) leads to the oldest Warnemünde Lighthouse and to the 15 kilometers long sandy beach.

My only souvenirs from the trip are photographs and the memory of drinking a cup of coffee while listening to the sea. A direct train takes around 2 hours and can be booked from the Deutsche Bahn website.

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Rostock

Rostock is the capital of the German “land” or federal state with the longest possible name – Mecklenburg Western-Pomerania. Used to be an important trading city of the formet East Germany and was part of the Hanseatic league of the North and Baltic sea.

The city has one of the oldest university in Northern Europe and a beautifully preserved old town. I enjoyed visiting the Baroque Neuer Markt, University square, church Marienkirche, the Gothic Town hall, and former gates that remind you of its past as a fortress – Kröpeliner Tor and Steintor.

Rügen island

Rügen is Germany’s biggest island, very popular in summer, with sandy beaches, popular resort in the cities Binz and Sellin, with spa architecture, and white chalk cliffs in the Jasmund National Park. The water is warmer than in most places and in fact, was my first time swimming at the Baltic Sea, even though I visited it so far also in Estonia and of course, Denmark.

Seaside resort and windy harbours made me remember once again my hometown, my childhood, those summers, the sunsets, concerts on the beach, the Black Sea.