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July 29, 2023August 7, 2023

Waldbühne

The Waldbühne Berlin is a fantastic open-air stage in the Murellenschlucht valley close to the Olympiastadion of Berlin. More than 22,000 persons can attend concerts and other events there; the biggest outdoor stage I’ve ever seen. It was built in 1936 for the Olympic summer games following the design of a Greek theatre. The creation was initiated by Joseph Goebbels and the layout included a VIP box for Adolf Hitler. You can still today guess in which time it was built by looking at the artworks at the entrance gates.

July 29, 2023August 7, 2023

Zitadelle Spandau

Everyone who has ever travelled by highspeed train to Berlin knows Spandau: It is the last stop before you reach Berlin Hauptbahnhof. Not too many tourists leave the train there, but there would be a good reason: the city has one of the oldest fortresses of the high renaissance period, the Zitadelle Spandau. It is located in the northeast of the historic city center within river Havel.

July 28, 2023August 6, 2023

Rosengarten

The Rosengarten (rose garden) of Göttingen is a forgotten place close to the new town hall building and the city center, just behind the Wallanlagen. Some people might walk from the Cheltenhampark via the Albanifriedhof to the Rosengarten and discover lots of beautiful roses there – but it is typically not a place you’re visiting on purpose. Younger citizens might remember that school’s out parties where once celebrated there, others might have been at this place because it is the schoolyard of the Bonifatiusschule.

July 10, 2023July 24, 2023

Sky Lagoon

When you’re at Reykjavík and searching for the right spa to relax you have a tough choice to make. You can drive by car to the Reykjanes peninsula and visit the famous blue lagoon (Bláa Lónið). They market it as one of the wonders of the world, but actually it is just a (beautiful!) lake in a volcanic environment filled with water from a geothermic plant. If you want to skip this often overcrowded place you should have a look at the sky lagoon directly in the capital city. It was opened in 2021 and is located directly at the shore.

July 10, 2023July 24, 2023

Phalluses

Icelandic Phallological Museum, Reykjavík

Don’t call it a penis museum. Yes, it contains a very large phallological collection and the museum doesn’t take itself too serious – but the museum has a scientific background and is not like this special museum at Amsterdam visited by giggling teens. The museum presents 284 phalluses and aims to have one from every mammal living on Iceland. They’re struggling a bit with conserving a human one in good shape, but they’ll probably solve this issue.

July 10, 2023July 24, 2023

Glanni

Ready for a last waterfall before returning to the capital city of Iceland? The Glanni is a smaller waterfall close to Bifröst. After leaving the ring road you’ll discover a parking area and a short walk will bring you to a viewing platform close to the waters. If you don’t only want to look from up above a tiny path leads you through the forest down to the water.

July 10, 2023July 24, 2023

Volcano climbing

Shortly before reaching the village Bifröst on the ring road of Iceland you’ll see the high Grábrók crater next to the road. It is an excellent opportunity for a rest as the former volcano is part of a nature protection zone and nice wooden steps lead you up into the crater. Well, it is a bit painful but it looks more horrible than it really is – and the views on the area are beautiful from up there.

July 10, 2023July 24, 2023

Kolugljúfur

The northwest of Iceland is a region with only a few touristic sights. Between Akureyri and Reykjavík you normally drive long passages without many stops. A good opportunity for a rest and maybe a picnic is the Kolugljúfur canyon. It only needs a short detour from the ring road on road 715. There the Víðidalsá river is running through a deep canyon and the Efrifoss waterfall (which is part of the Kolufossar) sends its waters into the deep.

July 9, 2023July 23, 2023

Hofsstaðir

The Hofsstaðir gistiheimili is a guesthouse in a remote location close to Sauðárkrókur. From the rooms you’ve got nice views on the valley and the river which spreads with different river arms pretty wide. On arrival you’ll bet at a round place with a restaurant and the reception as well as different small houses surrounding it. Hofsstaðir was one of the hotels I enjoyed most: every room has two terraces with chairs to sit outside and the armchairs inside were really cozy.

July 9, 2023July 23, 2023

Skógarböð

One of the traditions I created while travelling on Iceland was to spend the evening hours in geothermic spas. And fortunately Akureyri has a good option for that: the Skógarböð or forest lagoon. It is located on the other side of the fiord and you need to cross it on the dam. Directly when this connection reaches the other side there is the entrance to the spa. Its unique feature is that it is within a forest, letting you relax in hot water between the trees.