56 BACK ROADS GERMANY
Where to Stay: inexpensive, under €70; moderate, €70–€150; expensive, over €150Right Visitors enjoying a walk on the pier in
Ahlbeck, Usedom Below left Ruins of the
13th-century Cistercian monastery,
Greifswald Below right Alter Speicher – the
half-timbered granary in Wolgast7 Wolgast
Mecklenburg-Lower Pomerania; 17438
Now peaceful after being wrecked
by war for centuries, the “Gateway to
the island of Usedom” is an ideal stop
on the drive. Visitors can walk behind
the 14th-century parish church,
St. Petrikirche, which has part of an
early Slavic temple next to the rear
portal and a copy of 16th-century
artist Hans Holbein’s Totentanz frieze,
into the cozy Altstadt. Rebuilt after
being burnt down by Peter the Great
of Russia in 1713, the old town clusters
above a small harbor where grain
ships docked in the 19th century.
Other highlights include the Alter
Speicher, an 262-ft (80-m) long
half-timbered granary, one of the
largest buildings in the old town
and the family home of Philipp
Otto Runge (1777–1810), the famous
Romantic painter.
ª Continue on the B111 over the
bridge on to Usedom. Turn left after
3 miles (5 km) to reach Peenemünde.6 Greifswald
Mecklenburg-Lower Pomerania; 17489
This former Hanseatic town is
situated 3 miles (5 km) from the Bay
of Greifswald. Caspar David Friedrich
(1774–1840), the Romantic painter,
drew inspi ra tion from the town’s
Altstadt, with its gabled houses and
picturesque spires. Representations
of the Gothic merchants’ houses on
the Markt and the cathedral with its
striking twin-bulbed tower can be
seen on his canvases in the excel lent
Pommersches Landesmuseum
(closed Mon), which also has dis plays
on regional history. Drive 1 mile
(2 km) east on Wolgaster Strasse
to Wiek, a pretty harbor scented with
the smell of smoking fish,
then on to Eldena and the ruins of a
13th-century Cistercian monastery,
another favorite subject of the artist.
ª Continue past Eldena to Kemnitz,
then to Pritzwald to reach the B111 to
Wolgast. Parking is available on Platz
der Jugend opposite St. Petrikirche.WHERE TO STAYGREIFSWALD
Kronprinz moderate
This old-fashioned four-star hotel near
the cathedral has spacious but spartan
rooms with reassuringly formal service.
Lange Strasse 22; 03834 79 00;
http://www.hotelkronprinz.deUSEDOM
Villa Oasis moderate
Built for a Berlin industrialist, this is an
Art Nouveau villa with elegant rooms
and personal service. Some rooms are
in a smaller lodge in the garden.
Puschkinstrasse 10, 17424 Heringsdorf;
03837 826 50; http://www.villa-oasis.de