It was early in the morning when the Regatta pulled into the harbor of Warnemunde. The sun was barely above the horizon when we docked at the pier. We had elected not to take the train trip to Berlin because it was too far and long. Besides it was Sunday, so most shops would be closed there as well as in the town of Rostock, not too far from where we were. A trip into the country and a ride on an old train with a steam driven locomotive, the Molli train, that is what we had planned. So I wanted to get the lay of the land and see how we would proceed to the bus stop that would take us to Bad Doberan.

There is a modern terminal building where we docked. Further along I saw the ferry slip and to the left the building of the train station. When the six of us were ready to tackle this excursion, we walked around the ferry dock, entered a path and tunnel clearly marked to the left and, bingo, we were at the station. In the back I notices a sign with the i and entered. A female conductor shouted to me in German to wait outside, she would be there shortly. When she did, it was a bit difficult to converse, but she claimed not to know anything about bus stops, tickets on the bus, and could only show us how to buy train tickets. She was of no help and her demanding, authoritative attitude would be our first experience in the Baltic.

So we walked!! Not along the road next to the dreadful traintracks, but by crossing the bridge spanning the boat harbor and going along this nice section with several summer cottages. Then we turned right along the Rostock Strasse and found the bus station about 0.4 miles up the road. It had been an easy walk and we had about twenty minutes to kill before our bus 119 to Bad Doberan arrived. On the bus we purchased a 'gruppe tagkarte' for five of us for 13.80 euros plus one more single senior. The ticket was also good for the regular trains as well as the ferry system (something I made use of when we returned).

The bus first crossed through the town, then continued along the coast and through rural areas before we reached Bad Doberan. There the bus driver dropped us off and told us to just cross the street to catch the Molli train, and sure enough a few minutes later it came barreling down the tracks in the middle of the road.

We paid the conductor 10.30 euros per person for the round trip fare and relaxed as we headed for our first stop at Heiligendamm. Notice in the picture above that the locomotive was going backwards. On the way back it was going forward, like a real locomotive should. I guess there was no way to turn the engine around at the end point. It just uncoupled and went on a second track to go from one end of the train to the other.
For more information about the Molli train see http://molli-bahn.de/Home.5.0.html
Then if you want to see the train in action go to this Utube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eh_MkGle2VY&NR=1

The main attraction in Heiligendamm is the large hotel Kempinski. This was the site where in June 2007 President Bush and leaders of other industrial nations traded opposing views on how to combat global warming. We walked along the road leading to this beach hotel and soon found ourselves blocked out by a small fence surrounding the complex. Only hotel guests were allowed on the grounds. At the main gate, which was being repaired, we found a way to sneak in and visit the main lobby and several of the hotel buildings. The grounds stretched to the beach and surrounding woods. It was all quite extensive and expensive, but also very stark and sterile; not our style.

The problem was that we had no key to get in or out. We ended up climbing over the fence to get back to our Molli train. Not bad for a guy who is 82 years old. Go for it Jerry!

Our next stop was a beach resort; and it was booming today. It was Sunday, the stores here were open and the people, who were mostly German tourists, were taking in the sun and beach along the Baltic coast. We first stopped for lunch and a beer. Then we joined the crowds to look at shops, restaurants and, at the end of this street, the beach and pier.

Just before you reach the beach, there is a bronze statue of a nude man with his son. The ladies, of course, thought he should be wearing a bathing suit. What I thought was funny, was that the part they tried to cover up, was the only part of the bronze that was shiny from more hands.

It was sunny, but not warm; and I can just imagine that the water must have been very cold. Yet, kids wil be kids, and they all like being in the water. Notice the little huts you can rent to protect you from the northern winds. This is not Hawaii or the Caribbean, but better than downtown Berlin.

On our way back to the train station we had to do some shopping for souvenirs. Lani collects plates and found one with the Molli train. I was more interested in the German sausage. Lani got a plate and I passed on the sausage.

When we arrived back in Bad Doberan, we were just in time to catch bus 119 back to Warnemunde. A few minutes later and we would have had to wait two hours or take the train. Sunday may be bad for bus travel but it is a good day in Warnemunde because of the beach crowd there. When we left in the morning the town was quiet; now there were numerous stalls along the warf selling fried and smoked fish and other goodies. I zeroed in on smoked eel and bought one to have for desert on the ship. My wife and others thought I was crazy, but I enjoyed a few bites that brought back memories of days gone by.

While Sharon and the rest of our group returned to the ship, I took the ferry across (using our group ticket) to take these pictures of the Regatta.

Tomorrow we should be in Copenhagen.