6-7-14

6-7-2014

Mark, Betty, Jim, Jan and Karen, had all booked a tour into Rostock, Germany.  But Roger decided to try and rent a cab into town, which was inland and too far to walk.  When we exited the ship, we met a German couple who had just ordered a taxi.  They invited us to join them and would not let us pay our part, when we arrived.  They said it was a gift to us, as we were visitors to their county.  Before we parted, the man suggested that we try to visit the smaller coastal town of Warnemunde, if we have time.

The central square of Rostock was only a block away from where the taxi dropped us off.  We went straight to the visitor’s information center, where we were very pleased to find a “hot spot” (free wi-fi internet).  Roger spent quiet a while checking his e-mail, then we downloaded part of our trip diary to the blog, along with a couple of pictures from the last couple of days. 

Next we found an ATM machine.  We had to ask a couple of people before we figured out how to use it.  I have been very disappointed to discover that Germany does not have English translations on most of their directions and displays. 

We were able to obtain an English city map form the information center, which noted the interesting, sights around town.  The first site was also the best:  St. Marien Church was built in 1230.  It is most significant because it contains an astronomical clock behind the altar.  The clock was built in 1472 and shows not only the hours, but the day, month, year, phases of the sun and moon and the Zodiac.  It contains a computation of the dates of Easter up to the year 2017.   A daily highlight is the Apostles Procession, (figures that move across the top of the clock) which occurs at 12:00 noon.  We were so sorry to have missed it by about 20 minutes.

Also inside the church is a bronze Baptismal fount that was forged in 1290. The churches information sheet describes it as a medieval masterpiece.  It has “pictures that express the Creed in God Triune as Creator, Redemptor and Spirit.  The 4 carriers (Earth, Water, Air and Fire) represent the elements of creation.  The walls of the basin show the life of Jesus in whom God came as redeemer. The lid shows God’s work of man’s sanctification in the Spirit of Baptism, Ascension and the biblical parable of the wise and foolish virgins.”  Also inside the church, Roger photographed the beautiful stained glass window and an unusual sarcophagus, with a skeleton above the opening to the tomb. Unfortunately we did not find out who was buried there.

 

Just a block away is the Town Hall, which is a doubled-gabled house with seven spires on the front.  This and many of the structures in the town had to be rebuilt after World War II, because of the extensive destruction from constant bombings.  It seems a great tribute to the German people that they continued to strive for beauty of design in these “new” buildings, giving each its own special “flavor”.  Next we strolled to the “magnificent”(as described in their brochure) stone gate with the inscription, seal and coat of arms of the city council.  After walking several more blocks, we found the Gable house with beautiful terracotty.  It was built in 1470 and is currently the home of former Mayor Kerkhoff.

We returned to the visitor’s information center, where Mary Jo purchased three post cards with great pictures of both the town of Rostock and the seaside resort of Warnemunde.  After checking with several of the locals, we were finally able to find the correct train station (#5 or 6) to get us to the central station.  There were switched trains to Warnemunde (#1 or 2). 

When we first got on the second train, we were not certain if we had made the correct choice.  Yet, there were three young teenage girls sitting across from us.  One of them spoke excellent English.  She told us we were definitely in the right place.  She and her friends were headed for the same place, hoping to go swimming in the sea, but not sure if the water would be warm enough yet.  We discussed each of our counties for while and learned that she has relatives in California.  Also, she spent a semester as an exchange student in the state of Missouri.

When the train arrived at Warnemunde, we walked straight to the canal and purchased an order of fish and chips.  It turned out to be mostly chips (fried flat round sliced potatoes) But we were hungry so it tasted fine to us.  We proceeded down the crowded walkway toward the beginning of the beach.  There we photographed the lighthouse, which was called a teacup lighthouse.  I’m not sure exactly why.  We could not see any significant teacup design.  We discovered that the fresh fish markets were all on the other side of the canal.  Roger checked out several of them, and then selected some smoked halibut from one of the vendors.  He said it was ok but not anything all that special.  

We road the train back to Rostock, then took a cab the rest of the way to the ship.

Our group met Rose at the La Bistro, where we made introductions.  Rose inquired about everyone’s background, with began

a fantastic evening for us all.  Rose kept us all laughing the entire meal. In addition to the bottle of wine she ordered, she had also brought a bottle of champagne.  She had the waiter serve a glass to each of us, then we had a toast to Roger and Mark, whose birthday was last month and Jim, who retired from Baptist hospital two weeks ago.  Again, Rose made the night so memorable.  She and our friends thoroughly enjoyed one another.   

After dinner, as we were leaving the restaurant, the couple who was sitting next to us, stopped Roger. They wanted to thank us for “entertaining” them during dinner.  They had truly enjoyed watching our “family” dinner and wondered how old our “grandmother” was.  They could not believe we had just met Rose.  The women also thought it was strange that no one accompanied Rose to the bathroom.  Roger explained that regardless of her age, Rose is a very independent woman and did not want any assistance. 

We all went to our separate rooms until it was time for the dance band to start playing in the Spinnaker Lounge.  As soon as the music started, Mary Jo was one of the first ones on the dance floor.  The band started with music from the 50’s and proceeded through the years, until the 1980’s, highlighting famous songs from each decade. 

Shortly after the first couple of songs, Rose arrived and began to dance right along side Mary Jo. She has great rhythm.  Shortly after she started to dance, she was approached by a young man, who embraced her.  Rose’s face lit up, as she recognized the assistant cruise director, whom she had last seen 3 years ago.  They danced several songs together, while everyone in the audience looked on with delighted expressions on their faces.  Rose has a way of bringing joy not only to everyone she meets, but to all the others who observe her from afar.         MaryJo and Rose dancing

Roger surprised Mary Jo by dancing several songs with her, a couple of which were fast songs, something he almost never does.  The entire evening was so much fun!