When I first came to this town, I was amazed by all the beautiful and colourful hanseatic buildings in and around the downtown area. I loved discovering any tiny bit of the city I hadn’t discovered before. But after a while of working and studying here, I lost that interest among the everyday hassle.
I still try to keep that travel spirit and discover new areas though. As we have a lot of fluctuation in our flat, the influence of flatmates from all over the world helps me keep the eye of an amazed traveler – which is about what I will write here, in light of the fear that my favourite and secret spots will be more crowded as soon as this article is released.
So, whenever I have a new flatmate, I bring her/him not to the places the tourists would usually go but rather to my favourite places. On a usual welcome tour through Rostock, we stroll along the harbour by night (yes, by night!*) and then turn right to the playground at Gerberbruch where you will find some of the most amazing swings ever invented! It is advisable to go there during the night though, so you don’t have to battle the space with children or their parents playing there.
After that, take your time and stroll through the small cobbled streets of the historic centre. With the medieval looking lanterns which enchant this part of town with a moony light, you might as well feel like in a fairytale. When you’re done there, head towards the town hall. At Neuer Markt, you take your stroll further through Kröpeliner Straße. By day, it’s a crowded shopping street, but by night, it is just very pretty and calming to walk there because you avoid the crowds and can take your time enjoy the views of the old buildings that are illuminated in a great way to see the Hanseatic kind of architecture.. Keep an eye out for the city library. It looks like it would belong in Harry Potter’s Diagon Alley. Head in the direction of Kröpeliner Tor. While you are passing along Universitätsplatz, have a quick stop at the fountain next to the huge university building at. Among Rostock’s young people, this fountain is called the ”porn fountain”. Look at it closely and have a guess why. It is definitely worth a laugh. Its actual name translates to ”fountain of vitality” (Brunnen der Lebensfreude).
After enjoying the magical views of the city harbour by night and the nocturnal enchanted flair of this beautiful old town, have a Rostocker Zwickel beer at Peter-Weiß-Haus. It is a place where young people and students go and a lot of rather alternative events and activities take place. Until the end of April, you can end up there at Café Marat which is inside the impressive old brick building whereas in summer, they have a beautiful outside area called ”Freigarten” (the free garden) which is kind of like the beer gardens (Biergarten) that you more commonly find in Southern Germany. In summer in particular, you can just sit at any of the tables and start chatting with the locals. Often it is students who are more than happy to talk to and exchange stories with foreign people. So head out and explore the town by night. Enjoy!
*It is notably safe here compared to the bigger German cities.