This year, James and I were lucky enough to be able to spend 16 days in Germany visiting my family and shopping and exploring different parts of the country. If you want to see a vlog about it, part 1 is live on my YouTube already. You can see that via this link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f7OrD31LfJE&t=15s.
To listen to the playlist I was listening to while I was away, click here:
Day 1: We arrived in Hamburg on our first day, and went to see the lovely church 'Der Michel' before heading into the city centre to do some shopping. I have seen a lot of the famous sights of Hamburg before, and James and I both did a tour last time we visited so it wasn't so crucial to us to do something 'cultural' while we were there this time. We also only had half a day there as our flight only landed at lunch time.
Day 2: We weren't in a rush to do anything as we had 16 days of holiday, so on the second day we spent some time getting settled in and unpacking before heading into the local town (Bad Bevensen) for coffee and cake in this cute little riverside cafe.
Day 3: My Oma had a doctor's appointment in Luneburg, so we went with her and went into the town after. I love Luneburg, it's one of my favourite places in Germany. We walked around the old part of the town and had lunch in a restaurant which had been built in a converted cinema. Then we went to Uelzen where my aunt works as she had a meeting and we went to get an ice cream.
Day 4: My aunt showed us this amazing cafe that had been built in an old water mill. It was a short walk through the woods to get there, which was really pleasant in the hot weather we had while we were there! We also went to my great-aunt's for a barbecue in the evening which was delicious (poor James had to cook it, but did an excellent job).
Day 5: Sundays in Germany are always a very relaxed affair, shops and restaurants aren't usually open like they are in the UK. We spent this Sunday at a pottery market in Bevensen, and then we went river walking which is supposed to be excellent for your circulation.
Day 6: Berlin!!! We got an early train into the city and after dropping our stuff off in my aunt's flat, we headed to the zoo. I love the zoo, and as the summer holidays in Germany were already over it wasn't too busy. When we were done there, we met my uncle for a drink and a walk through the Tiergarten park. He knows so much about Berlin so it was really fascinating hearing what he had to say about everything around us. After he went home, we did a little shopping and then went to dinner at a Chinese where my uncle apparently once met Barbara Streisand.
Day 7: In the morning, we took the train out to Potsdam to visit the palace. We walked through the gardens which were beautiful, but when we reached the palace itself we discovered it was closed so we had lunch and then headed back to Berlin. We met up with my uncle again, who showed us Clarchen's Ballhaus and the Hackesche Hofe (both of which I highly recommend visiting). When he had to go back to work, James and I visited the museum island and the 'Neues Museum' before going back to the flat for tea.
Day 8: We went shopping on the Kurfurstendamm before catching our train back to my Oma's other house.
Day 9: We went to Arendsee, which is a sweet little historic town in what used to be East Germany. It has a ruined monastery which we loved exploring before going for a walk along the lakeside. When we were younger, my brothers and I often swam in the lake there but James and I decided we'd rather go another time and swim in an actual pool (much less cold).
Day 10: James and I went to play mini golf. We were both completely useless but it was so much fun! We of course had an ice cream after (the ice cream in Germany is just phenomenal) and went for a walk in the park.
Day 11: We went to an event that my Oma's friend had got tickets for. It was at a riding stable, and it was a picnic followed by horse shows followed by a classical concert. The weather was lush and the horses were beautiful. Classical music isn't my favourite, but the musicians were extremely talented and the atmosphere was good so I can't complain.
Day 12: We had a family brunch and then spent the day reading, painting and playing scrabble.
Day 13: James and I returned to Luneburg to do some shopping and visit some of the sights in town that we didn't have time for last week. The highlight was having coffee and cake in a cafe that overlooked the town square with a gorgeous view.
Day 14: We went for lunch at Mr T's burger shop in Uelzen (I had a chilli cheese burger which was excellent), and then did some shopping. I also had a bright blue ice cream which tasted disappointingly of vanilla.
Day 15: We spent the day helping my aunt with some gardening jobs she had to do. After all that hard work, we decided to go for an evening swim at the local spa pool which is lovely and warm due to the thermal spring that earned Bevensen its title of a 'Bad' (Spa).
Day 16: We spent a lot of our last day at my Oma's, cooking lasagne and watching films but we also went to Deerberg which is a unique independent store which is in the middle of one of the tiny villages near my Oma's house. I got some snazzy purple jeans, and James enjoyed his free drink and free wifi from there.
We had a great time, and it was nice for me to be able to see all of my family who I normally don't get to see very often or for very long. Looking forward to my next trip already!
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