Campervan fails in Germany and Poland

Campervan fails in Germany and Poland

I’m a traveling spirit. I’ve seen many shores from the West Pacific to the island of Kenya. They treat me like a son anywhere I go. And even though no one can tell, I still feel that I’m alone. I’m alone. I’m alone. Is it strange the way that I look at you? You can’t turn away all the things that you make me do. Ooh ooh ooh. Waiting for a sign. Still just hanging around. Hanging around. Isn’t it strange the things that you make me do? Do ooh ooh do ooh cuz I’m waiting. There’s a feeling feeling. After a very wet and rainy drive, we have arrived in the city of Lubec, the queen of the Hansiatic cities. That was easy for you to say. I know. Also famous for Marzipan. M. So, we’re going to go and have a look at Lubebeck. Uh, the parking is €20 a night um for parking. No services, but it’s a city center car park. And there are so many spaces. You can’t get much closer than this, the gateway to the old city of Lubebeck. And to cap it all, Lubec is a UNESCO World Heritage site, which seems to make that one down there very happy. Absolutely fantastic place to stay. Easy walking distance to the beautiful Hansiatic to the beautiful queen of the Hansiatic cities with fantastic shopping. There’s Warworth and a CNA. Um, slightly nostalgic but brilliant shops and fantastic cafes, restaurants, bars, museums, interesting churches. This city has so much to offer. It’s really raining today. We are on the uh either the for either the forward um glance or the reverse glance of Storm Ben as it sweeps up across Eastern Europe. And uh today we’re on the hunt of some Marzipan. But um brought you initially to this market square and despite the rain it is beautiful. My coat has decided that it no longer wishes to be waterproof which is a pretty bad start really. There’s another drat. All right. Where are we going? Mozan. We eventually found the Naidga Mazipan shop and the museum is on the first floor. It tells of the link to the history of Lubec with Masipan becoming a product apparently invented there in the early 1400s as supplies of the precious arms and sugar from the Orient becoming a sustainable commodity due to Lubec’s position as a vital hub for the Hansiatic League. Marzipan started life as a health product only being made by members of the apothecary guild. It is said that during the famine of 1407, marzipan was created to feed the starving. It wasn’t until 1806 that masipan became the confection we enjoy today. Of course, masipan dates further back as its origin in Persia was recorded in 860, but again more as a health food than a sweet. Although masipan is made all over the world, the Lubec Mazipan is a protected product and any masipan sold with that name must be made within Lubeek to their own specific recipe. As you walk around the museum, there are some amazing sculptures made in Marzipan. And of course, in the shop, you can buy masipan in every shape, color, and imaginable form. We did buy some marzipan whilst we were in Lubec and it tasted of Marzipan. The difference being that it has a higher almond content. I think a visit to the Masipan Museum is interesting and you should certainly try some while you’re there. This is the town hall, parts of which date back to 12:30. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. backwards When the first stones of St. Mary were laid, the devil believed that the building would be a wine bar. He liked the idea because many soldiers already found their way to him after frequently visiting such a place. So he mixed with the crowd and started to help the workers. No wonder the building grew higher and higher amazingly fast. But one day the devil had to realize what the building would really be. Full of anger, he grabbed a huge boulder to smash the walls that were already standing. When a bold fellow shouted him, “Just stop it, Mr. Devil, leave what has already been erected for you. We will build a wine bar just here in the neighborhood. The devil was very pleased with the idea. Dropped the boulder besides the wall and opposite the church hall, the workers built the wine cellar of the town hall. What a happy little devil. And now with a bit of luck, we found a cafe that has gluten-free and dairyfree offerings. The Cafe Marray. We found this using findme glutenfree.com on Google. Um in Lubec there are four or five establishments that have gluten-free menus and find glutenfree.com will highlight the areas or aspects of the menus that are gluten-free. This particular place, not only does it cater for gluten-free, it’s also vegan as well. And the food looks absolutely extraordinary. It really does. This is the Holston tour, the Holstein Gate. It’s a city gate that borders the old town of the Hansiatic city of Lubec to the west. It’s the city’s landmark and was completed in 1478. It’s one of the remnants of Lubebeck city fortifications along with a burgore, the only remaining city gate in Lubebeck. For more than 300 years, it stood as a middle holen gate in a row with three other gates that were demolished in the 19th century. But the information sign says it’s the most significant town gate of the late Middle Ages in Germany and a trademark of the city. Built in 1478, it’s hard to imagine how many people have been through this gate over the years. The building of Lubec started around 1158. At that time, it was under Danish rule. The city as we see it today was built around 1226, shook off Danish rule in 1270. You hear us talk about the Hansiatic. During medieval times, the Hansiatic lead was at the heart of the network of traders. Here in Lubec, we find it at the center of Europe’s overland routes and waterways. All kind of goods were traded here from the Baltic area to and from the north and to the south and vice versa. Fish from Scandinavia, first from Russia, salt from Germany, wines from the Rhineland. Lubebeck was also a center of art and fine religious artworks were created here. From carved altars to finely decorated panels. These were both made here and traded to and from across Europe and beyond. So after leaving Lubebeck this afternoon, we came to find a washi lingerette which was located in a place called Rosstock, which is the footage that you’re seeing now. Rosstock is in the former East German Republic. So this area was in Soviet hands for about 50 or 60 years and I have to say I wasn’t prepared for what we found when we entered Rosto. The brutalist Soviet architecture made it feel quite oppressive. Now I think I’m probably being very unfair. The supermarket where the lingerette was was lovely. quite taken aback by how many shops there were and the supermarket was so big I actually got lost in it. When you’re when you’re out on the road you have to you have to live with kind of your spidey senses and if you don’t feel comfortable somewhere there was a there were there was a there are a few parkups in and around Rosstock. Um but if you don’t feel comfortable then it just doesn’t work because you can’t sleep. somewhere where you’re a little uncertain. I say I think I’m probably being unfair to Rosstock. So, we’re moving on a little way. Um, we’ve got about an hour up the road to a strange sounding stop, but we’ll tell you about that when we get there. So, after the madness of Rosstock, we really needed somewhere quiet and we decided to come here. We found on search for sites um a salt manufacturer. So we came here, we met the most wonderful person who has built and there’s some photographs coming up who has built a tower of salt. 32 tons of salt, Himalayan salt from Pakistan cut into blocks and built into a tower. They offer a variety of therapies using the salt. We opted for the inhalation therapy. 45 minutes sitting in a room with salt in suspension, in a steam suspension, and it’s really invigorating. Now, as you know, Daryl’s had some issues with her throat, so hopefully it will help to clear those airways. Um, but what an amazing place. And he makes so many different flavored salts and Himalayan salt, lamps. It’s just incredible. You really should visit here if you’re in the area. In fact, it’s worth making a detour because it’s just so unusual. And if you’re in a camper van, you can stay, too. So, there’s Claude. He had a good night. And now I’m going to go and have a shower before we move on. Are we going the right way or has Google Maps done its thing? It really doesn’t look like a road. Heat. Heat. So now we visit a mustard mill or the shop of a mustard mill. Anyway, go and see what we can find out about mustard. So there are 29 different mustards ground on a manual stone wheel. 150 years. The last remaining one. Last remaining one in Germany. No. No. In northern Germany. In northern Germany. Yeah. You’re going to give me this one, aren’t you? I am. Oh, that’s like jam. Be nice. Yeah, it is. It’s a bit like um pineappley mango chutney. Yeah. Yeah, I would eat that pineapple one. Guess the fruit. Is that the cassiss one? Mhm. This I get to see last night and tonight’s Let’s park up is a car park just outside the town of Frsburg. It It was quiet, you know, despite the fact there’s a a road there. Looked as though it could be major, but it wasn’t really quiet last night. Um the only noise was the rattling and shrieking of the cranes. Um, this part of Germany borders with the Baltic Sea, and that is a major route for the uh for the cranes as they migrate. There’s Daryl. She’s found a little house. What’s in your little house? Yeah, just a little shelter. So, we’ve got some video editing to do. other bits and pieces. It is Sunday, so we’re going to have a play at cooking some pork chops with apple in our air fryer. And we bought some really delicious apples when we were in Denmark. Apples that taste of apple. So, we’re going to see if we can make a um apple crumble or something in our Omnia oven. So, all the cooking will be done this afternoon. Sounds like something nice to do on a Sunday. And of course, we had leisurely breakfast this morning. Clocks went back and now it’s time to go for a walk. And of course, it’s raining. Yay. So, we’re going to go for a walk. We we are very much in the former Eastern Germany the or the DDR Democratic Deutsche Republic. West Pomerania, we’re looking for little dogs. Haven’t seen any. No little dogs. Not many dogs. There’s a reason for that. There’s a dog tax. Every area gets to charge a dog tax um depending on where you live. And it’s so much for your first dog in the hundreds of euros. So hundred euro, €150 per dog if you get a second dog. Some regions charge more. We’ve heard so many cranes. I was really hoping to see one. However, all I can see is ducks. There are many ducks. Well, the cranes last night were around about sunset, so If the sun actually manages to get out of bed today, we’ll go and have a look later on down. But there’s definite reflections on time’s gone past. It’s very quiet today. Not only is it Sunday, but also the smell of wood smoke in the air suggests that any sensible person is sitting inside keeping warm. Frsburg was actually part of the United Kingdom of Sweden in6005. This particular building to our left which now houses a gallery was built in 1591 and was part of a monastic complex part of which can still be seen around. We have the town church which is quite an imposing building. The subject of German history is very complicated as is all history if you try and summarize it. But really interesting that this area was part of Sweden. It was then became part of Germany. It then became part of Eastern Germany. Then after reunification back to being part of Germany. And there’s probably a whole load of other stuff in the middle. And all along people lived here because that’s where they lived. Here is the Closter Garden. A remarkable crop of apples and pears. The little building just in front of us through the orchard is called a ve house. These were defensive points built into city or town walls. It was renovated in 2009. Now houses a cafe. You might just be able to hear the cranes flying overhead. As I said, noisy Vegas. We Well, we pulled up at a place to park that was on park for night. It was a scrabby car park at the side of a lake. Would have been absolutely fine, but very busy road. And a couple who were walking their dogs approached us and said, “We have a park for night in the countryside 8 kilometers away. Follow us.” And so we’ve followed them. Um, looks really lovely. The, uh, reviews on Park for Night are all fivestar. Better than a car park at the side of a road, although that would have been absolutely fine. Well, I have to say this is an idilic spot. in 600 m. At the roundabout, take the second exit. Here we say goodbye to Germany. Hello to Poland. There we are. Still in the Shenen zone, but out of the Euro zone. Exit the roundabout with the currency continue for 4 km with the currency now in Zlotty and we still haven’t found the cash point. Okay. Well, we had planned on staying in section setting. Not too sure how to pronounce, but we were a little uncertain about the parkups. There are no specific campsites within the city boundaries, but on park for night, there are about eight or nine different car parks. They seem to be around a gyator system of roads. Most of the reviews were that they were noisy at night. And so we had a we had a look did a bit of Google earthing and it’s a huge city and it’s very industrial. Um perhaps we should have done that before we came and realized that actually it’s not for us. So we are now heading out of the city towards a towards an organic vineyard. So that’s slightly more us and hopefully that will be nice. We aren’t planning on staying on the um the Polish side of the German border for very long because we don’t have time to to do the things we’d like to do in Poland. That was a bit of a fail. The access track to the vineyard is very wet and muddy and we just had a text from the owner. He’s concerned that we might get stuck. So, we’re back to the drawing board. We’ll go and find somewhere else. Just where we didn’t do it in the dark, isn’t it? We’ve arrived at a picnic area in a forest. And there aren’t any signs that say we can’t. It’s getting off at 3:00 in the afternoon on a wet, dreary October um day. I don’t think that that will be a problem. So, we’re going to give it a shot. We’re on the on the edge of a village and we’re just going to stick ourselves quietly. The colors of autumn are stunning. And today with the sunlight glinting through the trees makes the leaves almost look translucent. So beautiful. It smells and the leaves. Every now and then we hear the planes coming over. Totally failed to get a shot of them done yet. Sound like a huge load of squeaky hinges flying past. So, keeping our eyes peeled because in this part of Poland there are wolves, there are deer, there are beavers, wild boar, and red squirrels. Needless to say, at this moment in time, animal score zero. So many mushrooms. It’s time to say not mushroom left. There you are. Had to let him do it. Sorry. I’m just such a fun guy. Where have you gone? Yeah. She’s so small. You lose her. What was that? What am I? Yeah. No comment. So, one of the um apps that we use, See, you got shadow on your face. Shadow on your face. Shadow on your face. There you go. One of the apps that we use is called Atlas Obscurer. And Atlas Obscurer allows you to look in an area and it will give you things that you might not ordinarily find. So this morning, which is obviously a themed forest day, we are going to go and have a look at a crooked forest. So we’ll tell you a bit more about it when we get there. Yeah, it might be exciting or it might not. I think it’s a bit strange. So, the area where the crooked wood is situated is um simply part of a major pipeline which runs to some chemical works. Just over the pipeline, you can see one of the Soviet style housing blocks. There are many in this area. So, we are here in the crooked forest. It’s very strange. Planted in 1925. So we’ll tell you a little bit more about them. There are three theories as to why the trees are crooked. The first one which I think we can discount immediately is that there’s some sort of weird gravitational pull. Really? But then all the trees would be crooked. It’s just silly. The second one is that um there was a snowstorm just after they were planted and it’s made them grow in a weird way. The third theory, the theory I think is most likely is that people planted them intending to use the bend in the trees to make furniture. And then just about at the time that they were going to cut the trees down to make their furniture, it was 1939 and everything fell apart. So that seems an awful lot more likely, doesn’t it? Theory four, which isn’t in any of the um on the website or anything else, is that he’s done this. Somebody’s done this deliberately and then realized it hasn’t really worked because they haven’t bent in any sort of uniform way. So, it’s not really usable. So, just abandoned it. Again, that seems pretty likely, doesn’t it? Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat up here. crossing the river Oda and the border between Poland and Germany. It’s quite the chicane. We have seen a lot of road works on bridges as we’ve been around Germany and people checking them as well. So, don’t know if there’s a problem with their bridges that they’re having to repair. I’m a traveling spirit. I’ve seen many shores from the West Pacific to the island of Kenya. They treat me like a son anywhere I go. And even though no one can tell, I still feel that I’m alone. I’m alone. I’m alone. I’m alone. Leave me stranded. I know how to handle it all on my own. on my

We are Phil and Darrelle and we love travelling in our converted Citroen Relay campervan, Claude. Join us on our travels!

Join us for this episode of our vanlife campervan trip.

We visit the amazing city of Lubeck in Germany, what an amazing place, the home of Marzipan as well as being the Queen of the Hanseatic League cities. You may remember our trip to Kings Lynn, also a Hanseatic trading port. Lubeck was incredible, and the Danse Macabre a real feature of our visit (slightly grim!).

Then we enjoyed a fabulous visit to a Salt Spa, and took a salt infusion therapy – that was an experience in itself, just what you need to find a bit of calm on a long euroroadtrip. We followed that up with a visit to a Mustard Mill, where using local mustard seeds and other ingredients they mill mustard on a manual stone mill – the last one remaining in Northern Germany.

On from there we visit Rostock, although we spook ourselves by not expecting the severity of the post Soviet housing. There was however a great WashMe facility in Rostock, so we have clean clothes again.

Then we have a couple of vanlife fails as we enter Poland, lack of planning in the first case, and weather related road in the second. However this is well balanced with a couple of lovely forest walks.

Back into Germany and we look forward to sharing our next travelvlog soon.

Find us on Facebook at @AdventuresWithClaude

We use to help us find places to stay:
Brit Stops; https://www.britstops.com/
Search For Sites; https://www.searchforsites.co.uk/
France Passion; https://www.france-passion.com/en/

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