Dr. Stefan Christmann

July 4, 2023July 21, 2023

Norðurey Hotel City Garden

The Norðurey Hotel at Reykjavík is the perfect motel if you’re exploring Iceland by car and want to have a pitstop at the capital city. The check-in is fully automated, you’ll receive a five-digit code upfront to your stay by e-mail. This code opens the front door of the hotel as well as your hotel room. The region around the hotel is quiet and there are parking lots in front that might be already full if you arrive late; but than you’ll easily find space to park your car in the streets surrounding the hotel.

July 4, 2023July 21, 2023

Roadtripping Ísland

The classic way to explore Iceland is by car: while the center of the island is often hard to access, especially in winter times, there is a ring road along the coast leading you to most of the important sights in the country. The Hringvegur or Þjóðvegur 1 is more than 1,300 kilometers and the first section was created in 1928. Since 2019 this most important road is fully tarred and with the exception of some bridges always at least two lanes wide.

July 4, 2023July 23, 2023

Keflavíkurflugvöllur

Close to Reykjavík you can find two airports which might be a bit confusing: The Reykjavíkurflugvöllur (RKV) is very close to the city center and flights inside the country (as well es to Greenland and the Faroes) are operated from there. For most international flights the Keflavíkurflugvöllur (KEF) 50 kilometers afar is used. It is the most important airport of the country and it is the starting point for tourists and travelers on the island.

June 28, 2023June 30, 2023

Monet, Monet, Monet

Claude Monet is a famous French painter born at Paris in 1840. In the middle of his long career he became the founder of Impressionism, starting with his famous work Impression, soleil levant. It is an art style I like very much and to see the works of Monet you should typically visit Paris: at the Musée Marmottan Monet or the Musée de l’Orangerie for his water lilies (‘Les Nymphéas‘). But did you know that you can find the largest collection of his works outside France at the Museum Barberini of Potsdam, Germany?

June 27, 2023June 30, 2023

Schlachtensee

Berlin has a lot of water in rivers and lakes. The largest lake is the Müggelsee in the East, the one most often used for swimming is the famous Wannsee. Most often considered as the most beautiful lake is the Schlachtensee at Steglitz-Zehlendorf. It has a tubular shape and is often used for swimming due to its good water quality; but you can also have long hikes along its shore or use it for diving or stand-up paddling.

June 27, 2023September 8, 2023

Für dich soll‘s rote Rosen regnen

The Waldfriedhof Zehlendorf is a cemetery in a forest belonging to the city quarter Zehlendorf (now Nikolasee) of Berlin, Germany. It was created after World War II and is one of the cemeteries in Berlin where you can find the graves of celebrities which have a strong connection to the city. The cemetery still has the character of a forest and you can enjoy long walks in nice nature; while doing so you will find the graves of personalities like Jakob Kaiser, Paul Löbe, Walter Scheel and Otto Suhr.

June 25, 2023June 25, 2023

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

The Waldbühne Bremke is located in a forest close to the village of Bremke, belonging to the community of Gleichen. It was created in 1949 honoring the Brothers Grimm and for entertaining visitors mostly with fairytales. The Waldbühne offers 942 seats, the season is always between May and September (with a break for summer vacations). They play family-oriented classics like Snow White, Rumpelstiltskin or The Magic Flute.

June 11, 2023June 24, 2023

City of monuments

The capital city of North Macedonia, Скопје, is not a destination that comes into the mind of tourists immediately. The country is a former part of Yugoslavia which received independence in 1992 but is still searching for its national identity. North Macedonia doesn’t have a coastline (only the wonderful lake Ohrid as a good replacement) and Скопје is beautifully located in a valley surrounded by green mountains. With the Romans, the Osmans and the Soviets once reigning there the city is an interesting mix of different cultures and religions – and therefore the perfect place for an extended weekend abroad.

June 11, 2023June 23, 2023

Macedonian Holocaust Museum

I honestly didn’t expect to find one of the best museums on the Holocaust at Скопје, North Macedonia. It is modern, it uses multimedia technologies and it achieves that visitors immerse themselves into the topic. The Holocaust Memorial Center for the Jews of Macedonia remembers the former Jewish citizens of North Macedonia and the Balkans. It was opened in 2011 in the former Jewish quarter of the capital city, between the river Vardar and the old city center.

June 10, 2023June 23, 2023

Matka canyon

Just fifteen kilometers afar from Скопје you can discover the Матка canyon. Here the river Treska is floating through high mountains (up to 700 meters high) and a dam for generating electricity formed a beautiful lake. People get there to take a boat tour, to rent a canoe or to simply hike through the valley. The place also offers a wonderful restaurant with good views on the lake and two tiny cloisters hidden in the mountains.