Barbecue Across Countries: My BBQ Experience Across Germany, Mauritius, and Canada

I am privileged to have barbecue experience across cultures and continents. I have observed that at different places the barbecue style vary, though the essence of the barbecue remains the same. Read more…

Places to See in Potsdam: Potsdam in a day on Bicycle

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Little did I know about Potsdam in three months while staying in Berlin. Situated just 25 mins away from Berlin, Potsdam boasts its architectural beauty. Below is the list of places that I covered in a single day on a bicycle in Potsdam.

I and Shayan took an S-Bahn from Charlottenburg to Potsdam and Got down there. Then, we decided that we would rent a bike (Europeans often call the bicycle a ‘bike’) and explore the whole of the Potsdam in it.  Once, we got down at the railway station or Hauptbahnhof, we rented a bike for 10 Euro per day to explore the city of Potsdam on a bicycle.

I don’t remember it clearly but I think we were asked to submit our passport as a security deposit. The Bike guy also gave a cycling tour map of Potsdam which we were supposed to follow. Below is the list of places to see in Potsdam which we covered in a single day on a bicycle.

Sanssouci palace:

Sanssouci palace is a world heritage site because of its marvelous structure. Sanssouci was the former summer palace of Frederick the Great, King of Prussia, in Potsdam, near Berlin. Sanssouci palace has a very interesting architecture and structure. More about Sanssouci palace can be read here.

There are around ten rooms in the Sanssouci palace which include bedroom, entrance hall, marble room, dining room, study room, library, gallery, guest room etc.

Also read: Berlin Attractions: What to see in Berlin? Top 25 Must See Places

sanssouci-palace-2

sanssouci-palace

Sanssouci-palace

Sanssouci park and Vineyard:

Sanssouci park is actually a very large park within many other places to see in Potsdam are located like the New palace, Sanssouci Palace,  Sanssouci vineyard, Chinese house, dragon house, Roman baths, marble palace etc.

One of the most amazing places to see in Potsdam is the Sanssouci vineyard. There is a big garden type vineyard just in front of the Sanssouci palace on the terraces.

There are water pools, flower lawns, flower beds, hedges, and trees. It is said that in the hedge quarter, 3,000 fruit trees were planted. There was also a greenhouse which had numerous nurseries contained oranges, melons, peaches, and bananas. The goddesses Flora and Pomona, who decorate the entrance obelisk at the eastern park exit, were placed there to highlight the connection of a flower, fruit and vegetable garden.

flower-beds-sonssouci-park

flower-beds-sans Souci-park

goddess-of-flora-sanssouci

goddess-of-flora-Sanssouci

sanssouci-vineyard

Sanssouci-vineyard

sanssouci-park-green-house

Sanssouci-park-greenhouse

New Palace, Potsdam:

The list of places to see in Potsdam is incomplete without the New Palace, Potsdam. Situated on the western side of the Sanssouci park, the New palace boasts its beautiful architecture. It was badly destroyed during the second world war, you can still see the remains outside in the palace premises.

in-front-of-the-new-castle-potsdam

in-front-of-the-new-castle-Potsdam

new-palace-potsdam

new-palace-Potsdam

Charlottenhof Palace, Potsdam:

Charlottenhof Palace is situated deep inside the park.  Not so much magnificent but this is known for the place it was built on. Charlottenhof Palace was built on marshy land and lies deep inside the park.

Also Read: History & fall of Berlin wall: World war facts & Division of Germany

Orangery Palace, Potsdam:

Orangery palace is situated at the peripheral of the Sanssouci park. There is a lift using which you can go up. From the top, there is a very nice view of the entire Sanssouci park. It is another a must places to see in Potsdam.

sonssouci-park-view-from-orangery-palace

Sanssouci-park-view-from-orangery-palace

Chinese House, Potsdam:

Chinese House, Potsdam is small yet one of the most beautiful places to see in Potsdam. It is located deep inside but it has one of the most beautiful architectures. The Chinese house was made to adorn the beauty of the flowers and vegetables grown in the Sanssouci park.

chinese-house-sonssouci-park

chinese-house-sonssouci-park

Historic Mill of Sanssouci:

I still remember this mill when I was cycling on the roads of Potsdam. I was touched and fascinated by this windmill. Though I could not go inside the windmill, but all the time, while riding my bike, I was mesmerized by the beauty of this place.

wind-mill-potsdam

wind-mill-Potsdam

Babelsberg park:

If you think that the Sanssouci park houses most of the places to see in Potsdam then that was only half of the story! If you enjoyed the medieval architecture and royal stories of the king then Babelsberg park would take you away from the history towards deep into Nature.

Babelsberg park is a really big park. Such big park that often while cycling, we felt lost in this park, can you imagine? Sometimes, we felt lonely seeing no other people around. Many local people come here to spend a leisure time in this park. Babelsberg park, just like, Sanssouci park, houses other places to see in Potsdam.

Also Read: Berlin Ringbahn metro train: See the city on ride

It borders Tiefer See or Tiefer lake and River Havel while covering an area of 114 hectares. Now you can imagine why we felt lost.

1-babelsberg-park-cycling-road

1-babelsberg-park-cycling-road

babelsberg-park-lake

Babelsberg-park-lake

Steam-powered pump house, Babelsberg:

This pump is situated in one of the corners of the Babelsberg park. A very few tourist reach to this corner of the park. Because of less people, it is not so crowded and you can spend a lot of time sitting beside the pump house there.

steamhouse-babelsberg-park

steamhouse-babelsberg-park

Potsdam place to see: More pictures:

 Cycling in Potsdam video:

A visit to Nuremberg Castle: Opening hours, Entry fee & Photos and Congress Hall

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Nuremberg Castle is one of the most beautiful places to see in Germany especially if you are in the south of Germany, also known as the Bavaria.

Nuremberg Castle History:

The Nuremberg castle has been one of the most important imperial castles of the Holy Roman Empire since the medieval times. During the middle ages, the Roman emperors would travel a lot. So for their comfortable stay at most of the famous places which were a part of the holy roman empire, they made castles called “imperial castles”.

One of those famous imperial castles was Nuremberg castle. Nuremberg castle still houses the imperial artifacts and weapons. Once can still see things like the imperial stick, imperial throne, weapons including swords, cannon balls, different kind of rifles and pistols. These are all housed inside the castle, the most part of which has turned into a museum.

The whole of the Nuremberg town in the middle ages used to have a fort wall surrounding the city. There used to be towers also along the fort walls also known as fortified city walls. You can still see the walls around the city.

Google map view of fort wall around Nuremberg

Google map view of fort wall around Nuremberg

Nuremberg castle facts:

  • Nuremberg Castle was built up of sandstone. The underground rock cellars were used for centuries for fermenting and storing beer.
  • All the Holy Roman Emperors stayed at Kaiserburg Castle for a short period at least between 1050 and 1571.
  • Excavations on the site have uncovered remains of fortifications dating back to before 1000 BC.

Nuremberg castle parts

Castle courtyard

Castle courtyard is the front yard that you see on the entrance. There is a nice aerial view of the city from here as well.

Deep well and Sinwell tower

The Deep well is famous because during the middle ages deep well was the main source of water for the imperial castle. You can also climb using a staircase inside the sinwell tower and from there you get a very nice view of the whole of the Nuremberg town.

Imperial gardens

There are two imperial gardens called castle gardens and Maria Sibylla Merian Garden as a part of the Nuremberg castle premises.

Nuremberg castle timing

Like most of the visiting places in Europe, Nuremberg castle has its own timing as well. Here are the details:

  • Nuremberg castle timings from April – September: Daily 9 am – 4 pm
  • Nuremberg castle timings from October – March: Daily 10 am – 4 pm

However, the castle is closed for visiting during Christmas and new year timing. Also, the outside area like two gardens called castle gardens and Maria Sibylla Merian Garden have different timings. Here are the timings of the Nuremberg garden castles:

  • Nuremberg Castle Gardens timings from April – October: 8 am at the earliest until 8 pm
  • November – March: closed
  • Maria Sibylla Merian Garden timings from April – October: Sundays and Mondays from 2 pm – 6 pm
  • November – March: closed

Nuremberg castle entry fee

There are different entry fees for the different parts of the castle as mentioned in one of the paragraphs above. Based on these areas, here are different entry fees for the Nuremberg castle parts:

  • Joined ticket (Palas with Double Chapel, Kaiserburg museum, deep well and Sinwell tower): 7 € / reduced 6 €
  • Demonstration of the well and panorama from the Sinwell Tower: 3,50 € / reduced 2,50 €
  • Palas with Double Chapel/ Kaiserburg Museum: 5.50 € / reduced 4,50 €
  • Castle Gardens and maria Sibylla Merian Garden: admission free

More and up to date information about the entry fee can be found on the official site here.

Nuremberg castle photos

deep well and sinwell tower from nuremberg castle side

deep well and sinwell tower from nuremberg castle side

guns inside nuremberg castle

guns inside nuremberg castle

imperial cup inside nuremberg castle museum

imperial cup inside nuremberg castle museum

inside sinwell tower

inside sinwell tower

Nuremberg aerial view from Nuremberg castle

Nuremberg aerial view from Nuremberg castle

Nuremberg panorama on copper plate from nuremberg castle

Nuremberg panorama on copper plate from nuremberg castle

Nuremberg streets

Nuremberg streets

Nuremberg had always been a source of fascination for me because of two reasons. One, it was the hometown of one of my closest German friends, Sam and second, being a part of the Roman holy empire, Nuremberg is one of the most beautiful towns in the Bavaria region, or south of Germany.

Is Nuremberg really a rich city? And second world war

After visiting the Nuremberg castle and the congress hall, Nuremberg where Hitler came into the power after the famous rally of Nuremberg, I asked Sam that I was interested in visiting around the market street of Nuremberg.

As I have also mentioned in the previous blogs of mine that most of the European cities will have an old town square, so did Nuremberg as well. However, opposite to what I was expecting, the old town square of Nuremberg was very happening with a lot of shops displaying branded products.

I always thought the Bavarian region to be very mystical to me because I assumed the culture and people from this region to be mystical as well. In a sense, very silent, reserved and having a symmetry with the history, however, that was not the case. The truth is most of the famous German cities like Frankfurt, Munich or Nuremberg are located in the South of Germany. People often speculate that the southern part of Germany is much richer when compared to the other parts of Germany.

Some attribute this fact to the second world war. Hitler operated from the south of Germany and that’s how all the financial resources were shifted to the south of Germany. But anyways.

Nuremberg Market streets & history:

The opulence of affluent Nuremberg can be seen in the market streets. Trust me, there were so many branded shops and showrooms were there which sell high-end products. Coming from Berlin, I had never expected that. But somehow, I had to believe that. On the cultural front, Nuremberg has a lot of scope in the historical places but unfortunately, most of them remind us of the second world war and Hitler. That’s why the places have been ignored and they should be ignored.

The river Pegnitz crosses through the middle of the town and a walk along the river or inside the town would surely make you see this river. Ducks and birds swimming in the river. It is the same river which also crossed Bamberg which is also called as the Venice of Germany. There are nice restaurants along the river where you can sit and relax and have dinner. There are a lot of churches as well in this city as Nuremberg was once a part of the Holy Roman Empire.

Nuremberg Market & street pictures:

Nuremberg town hall and river pegnitz

Nuremberg town hall and river pegnitz

Nuremberg old town square

Nuremberg old town square

Nuremberg old town square fun

Nuremberg old town square fun

Nuremberg became famous in the modern era history because of the second world war and being the vantage point of Hitler. Nuremberg is known for Nuremberg trial, Nuremberg rally, congress hall etc.

Nuremberg, Hiter, and Second world war

Nuremberg was a significant city during the times of the second world war because of being the Hitler’s favorite city for planning. Also because of the city’s relevance to the Holy Roman Empire and its position in the centre of Germany, the Nazi Party chose the city to be the site of huge Nazi Party conventions – the Nuremberg rallies.

From Nuremberg rally in 1933, Hitler rose to power from here. The Nuremberg rallies became huge Nazi propaganda events, a centre of Nazi ideals. Nazi propaganda included modernization of Germany, urbanization, industrialization but there was a huge conspiracy behind it.

Congress hall:

Nuremberg, being the hometown of my friend, Sam, we decided to go and take a look at the place. Trust me, the whole building was deserted and there were no tourists there. We really felt lonely. The congress hall in Nuremberg is a grand structure but people in Germany hate Hitler so much that it has been left just like that and no one likes to go and see that place. Although architecture wise this building is a grand building.

After the second world war, many people wanted to destroy the congress hall but it was preserved because of its architecture. Later, some proposals were proposed to turn congress hall into sports complex or a stadium but that was rejected. Today, congress hall just lie deserted and no one really likes to visit.

Congress hall pictures, Nuremberg:

Sam at congress hall in nuremberg

Sam at congress hall in nuremberg

congress hall, nuremberg

congress hall, nuremberg

congress hall in Nuremberg from inside

congress hall in Nuremberg from inside

almost no tourist at congress hall nuremberg

almost no tourist at congress hall nuremberg