A Rowe in Rostock

After checking out in the morning I headed to the central Hamburg train station to catch a train to Rostock. I had a little bit of time to wait at the station so I checked out the shops and I had a bite to eat before boarding. Originally I was heading to Rostock to see if I could track down a copy of my Grandma’s birth certificate, as she was born there. Turns out ordering a copy online was the easiest way to attempt to go about it but I still went to see where she was born. On this trip I have actually managed to visit the places that my Grandma and Baba were born. So it’s been a bit of a matriarchal history trip.

The woman a the reception desk of where I checked in was very excited by the fact I was the first Australian to ever stay at the hotel. Turns out Australian tourists aren’t a very common thing it seems in Rostock. I really liked this hotel’s decor. It had pastel Jetsons vibes going on. It was already dark (it gets dark by 4:30pm) but I went for a bit of a walk to find a supermarket and pick up some room snacks and check out where I was. It started raining a bit so once I picked up some things I just headed back to my hotel room for the night and did some work.

The next morning it wasn’t raining so much but there was a bit of hail so I chilled out for a bit. When there was a break in it though I went for a wander to check out Rostock and find somewhere to eat. There is quite a lot of street art and graffiti in Rostock, with lots of houses and buildings with murals. There was even a Sea Shepherd house , so I assume there have been other Australians in Rostock too. I found somewhere to eat and just as I had finished my meal and paid for my food I noticed that it was back to raining out side. Well snow raining and it was a bit more hailish but not like Melbourne hail. This was a new thing for me and I much prefer it to actual rain. The frozen rain just bounces off you, doesn’t hurt, and is kind a fun to walk in. So I just enjoyed getting to have another first time in my life experience.

I decided to go check out the Rostock cultural history museum and on the way bumped into also exploring some of the Christmas markets. It’s actually taking place all across the town in different spaces. After checking out the museum and finding out a bit more about the local area I just went Christmas market exploring.

I found the more amusement park fair type part of the market that was filled with all the rides and skill games. I even had a go on a good ol’ crane game and dammit I had the prize in the hooks the whole time and then it missed the chute! I was only letting myself have 2 goes too and it was on the second shot this happened. So annoying, I didn’t let it take any more of my change as I went into it playing knowing that I can’t play and win lots as I don’t have room in my suitcase for stuffed toys. So really it was the universe letting me have spare room for the future.

It was starting to get dark so I was heading back towards the hotel and it started to rain. So I decided to stop for a mulled wine and wait for a break. It perfectly timed itself with me finishing my wine, so I started walking again and figured I would grab a bite to eat again on my way back to the hotel so I didn’t have to come out again later on. I then just went back, did some work, and chilled out.

The next morning I woke to snow covering cars and buildings. It was time for another first in my life. Waking up to a snow scene. I’ve had lots of firsts on this trip to Rostock. Coming to North Germany during winter has been a pleasant experience. It was to be my last day in Rostock and as I knew I was not going to be working for the next few days I had planned to just stay in and get some things done. I headed out to eat and that was about it.

The next day everything was still covered in snow (video below). The hotel had organised a taxi to come get me from the hotel and take me to the train station as I needed to catch a train back to Hamburg and then onto Kiel where I was going to meet up with Malte for the weekend! (Another backpacker from almost 10 years ago.)