Last month my friends and I decided to leave Berlin on a day trip and head to a random city in Germany. We showed up at the train station, purchased a Schönes Wochenende and hopped onto the next available train. As it turns out, the train we took brought us to Schwerin, Germany. Located just an hour from Hamburg in the north, Schwerin is the capital of the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern state of Germany. The city sits between a handful of lakes and isn’t far at all from the Baltic Sea.
Not knowing much about Schwerin before we arrived, we did some Googlin’ on the train and discovered the city had a castle. That was pretty much enough to keep us entertained for the day. We didn’t want to pay to go inside Schwerin Castle, but we did check out their (tiny) gift shop. The park around the Schloss (castle) was pretty lovely and there were more than a handful of people walking around despite the cold weather. Schwerin Castle dates back to the 10th century and is probably one of the most scenic places I’ve been to in Germany.
Other than the castle, we also walked around the touristic part of the city, had some coffee, enjoyed a fresh seafood lunch at Restaurant Lukas and then headed to a pub.
Showing up in the city without knowing much, we relied on Foursquare and Yelp for recommendations. All together, it was a perfectly nice day. And only strengthened my love for Germany. What an amazing country this is, when you can stumble onto a train and end up in such a beautiful place as Schwerin!
What do you think? Does Schwerin, Germany look like a winter wonderland…or is it just me?
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What gorgeous shots! I love the graffiti and the framed hole in the wall, clever clever Europeans!
Thanks Tiana
Your pictures are soooo lovely!!! They make me want to go back to Schwerin… it is in fact a beautoful place. Imagine it in the summer, without the snow, but with the prospect of jumping into one of the lakes :)
Oh yes – I imagine it’s a very pretty place to visit in the summer. And yes, the thought of swimming is definitely enticing!
Between you, Andy, Alex Butts and my two cousins in Germany, I have more than enough reasons to visit Germany again…looking into flights now!
Sounds awesome Cat. Germany is a pretty fascinating country – lots of history and a lot of fun things to do. Let me know when you make it over here!
I love serendipitous travel, and this looks like a perfect example. So many wonderful things to see out there in the world :)
“Serendipitous travel” should be the new thing…though it works better for some trips than others. Thanks for the comment Larissa.
Great photos Adam. I especially love that one of the graffitti and the woman walking by.
Thanks Penny! I worked hard on the photos for this trip :)
what a wonderful day! and it looks like amazing food, good company, and a fun town to explore. i am intrigued by the art of the metal ball with the little cutout silhouette on top. tell me more!
That sculpture is in the garden grounds surrounding the castle (and by the back terrace). From what I saw, it seems the art there is contemporary pieces and serves as an outdoor contemporary art garden.
Very cool. The SchoenesWochende pass is a really great deal, especially with friends. We have talked about doing exactly that, buyign a ticket and getting on the next available train. Though with Freiburg, that usually means Karlsruhe or Basel, but maybe we will find a weekend and go a little further.
Schwerin and it’s castle look pretty. Looks of ducks though.
Thanks Andy. And yep, the Schönes Wochende ticket is an awesome deal – it seems to easily provide for random adventures as well.
Schwerin is definitely a pretty city!