Now, Berlin is nice and all, but there are a number of smaller cities and towns that can easily be visited in one day. Recently, I went on two trips with my husband and his parents to Leipzig and Lübbenau.

Leipzig is approximately 2 hours away by bus. Here, we visited the Zeitgeschichtliches Forum, an exhibit that focuses on the political history of the GDR, and the Stasi Museum, which is housed in the former Leipzig headquarters of the Stasi. Both were really insightful. We also visited two churches. First we visited Nikolaikirche which was built in the 1100’s and we were lucky enough to arrive as the organ was being played. The second church we visited and the highlight of the trip for me, was Thomaskirche where composer Johann Sebastian Bach is buried (the story of his burial is quite interesting). We stayed to hear the St. Thomas boys choir sing in the church and it was a beautiful performance.

Lübbenau is about an hour by train from Berlin (Tip: if you are travelling anywhere between Berlin and Brandenburg, you can purchase a single ticket called the Berlin-Brandenburg-Ticket, which allows up to five people to travel together for one day and it costs 29 euros). We headed to Lübbenau to see the Spreewald via a two-hour trip in a traditional wooden punt boat down the rivers in the forest. It was exactly like what you would imagine if you were in a gondola in Venice! Our ferryman pushed the punt down the rivers while talking about the land and its history. We even stopped halfway through the tour to get a sausage at a restaurant in the middle of the forest. Of course, our ferryman only spoke German, so it’s good listening practice for those learning the language! It’s amazing that people still continue to live along the water today. The old small houses along the edge of the river banks and the surrounding area were so charming. It was definitely a trip worth taking.

Cheers,

Sara