#4: Philadelphia

August 29, 2022

August 22-25, 2022

When I told my friends that I was flying to Philadelphia, most of them didn’t immediately know what to associate with the city. To be honest, I didn’t know much more about Philly either, except that Independence Hall is located there and that I had a great-aunt in New Jersey. But: this city is definitely underestimated!

>> INDEPENDENCE HALL & LIBERTY BELL <<

First of all: Why is Philly a UNESCO City? As already teased in the post about Washington, Philly is actually the city of the American Declaration of Independence. It was signed in the Independence Hall on 4th of July 1776. Liberty Bell is the name of the bell that was rung when the American Declaration of Independence was read in public for the first time in Independence Square in Philadelphia. Both landmarks can be found in the city’s Historic District. There are not many UNESCO cultural sites in the USA, more natural world heritage ones. In Philly, however, American independence was declared. That makes the city doubly exciting. To represent UNESCO even more in the US, there is an important institution: The GPA….

>> GLOBAL PHILADELPHIA ASSOCIATION & PUBLIC ART <<

… My highlight was the meeting with Zabeth from the Philadelphia Global Association (GPA) (connected by Moni in Regensburg). This non-profit organization was also created to assist international cooperations, to promote the development of an international consciousness within the region and to enhance the region’s global profile. Zabeth and her colleagues Andrew and Sylta showed me around and welcomed me so warmly! First we’ve been to an offical flag raising in front of the city hall and in terms of the 31th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence of Ukraine. We also met Sheila there who gave a speech as city representative. This event was really emotionally and I was luckily part of it! Many Ukrainien people wore their traditional dresses.

Afterwards I’ve been introduced to a really impressing project. Philadelphia is the first US city to launch a campaign to promote the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In cooperation with many other partners, Global Philadelphia Association places murals all over the city to raise SDG awareness and they make the city even more colourful than it already is. Those art works are painted on canvasses so they are “movable”, which is pretty smart. The vision of the SDG Mural Project is that the murals become part of the city and the day-to-day life in Philly. Each SDG is accomponied by a research project by outstanding scholars at the top local universities. With the help of the SDG Public Art Project Map (& Anderw) I found two of the art works and I really love the idea of this project. I think it’s important to raise awareness of the SDGs, especially in the US, and the project connects different actors, which makes for a great symbiosis.

Picture 1&2 – SDG Gender Equality
Picture 3 – SDG Peace, Justice & Strong Institutions (a portait of Thurgood Marshall, the first Afro-American judge on the US Supreme Court)

Besides the project, there is a lot (street) art in this city. I’m very impressed by Philadelphia’s creativity and vibe. I feel there is so much diversity in this city. Either you find it along the Cherry Street Pier with many different art galleries, the Queen village or in the Italian District. Furthermore, you’ll find interesting and historical facts on information boards places across the city. I really enjoyed my stay in Philly and would be happy to come back one day. Pictures speak louder than words at this point.

August 23

August 26, 2022

Wismar

From Stralsund the journey continues to its Unesco brother Wismar whose old towns form together one heritage. Interestingly, both Hanseatic cities have a wallpaper room in the World Heritage House and have the addition “Hansestadt” as their official city name. Like Stralsund, Wismars old town consists of a unique mixture of Brick Gothic houses (e.g. Alter Schwede Haus) and baroque houses from the Swedish period (e.g. Zeughaus). What is special about Wismar is that the city has largely retained its harbour basin in terms of location and specific design since 1211. The landmark of the 6st biggest city of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern is the Wasserkunst: A pavilion-like, free-standing building directly on the market square which was used for water supply.

Another symbol of Wismar are the “Schwedenköpfe”, which can be found for instance on piles when entering Wismar harbour, in front of the “Baumhaus” and on the entrance of the restaurant “Alter Schwede”. Its exact purpose is still unclear.
Another interesting site is the “Grube” – An artificial watercourse through Wismar’s old town that is bridged by a half-timbered house shortly before the harbour.

Left: Grube and Gewölbe built over the waterway; Right: Schwedenkopf at the entrance of “Alter Schwede”

Besides that Wismar’s old town has three main churches: St. Georg’s Church, St. Mary’s Church and St. Nicolai’s Church. Two of them were severely destroyed during the 2nd World War, St. Mary’s church today only consists of a tower, the church nave was not rebuilt. Finally, two fun facts about Wismar: The first Karstadt was located in Wismar and the Unesco World Heritage Zone of Wismar is not only the filming location for Soko Wismar, but also served as the backdrop for the vampire film Nosferatu.

Left: Ruins of St. Mary’s Church; Right: Nosferatu was filmed in Wismar

August 20-22

August 25, 2022

Stralsund

Day 1

From Sweden to a city in Germany that was nearly 200 years part of Sweden: Stralsund. Day 1 was primarily a ferry day where I went from Visby to Rostock and proceeded to Stralsund. But even on this day the Hanseatic League has accompanied me during the trip.

Left: Logo of the ferry company; Right: Logo of Hansa Rostock, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern’s most successful football club, includes a cog.

Day 2

On day 2 I visited the “Museumshaus Mönchstraße 38” to see how a house of a hanseatic merchant looked like from inside. The house was built in the 14. century and documents about 600 years of residential history as it housed tenants until the 1970s. It still has the typical features such as multi-storey hallway after the entrance (Diele), a “Kontor” (office), a lift for the goods, as well as a cellar and 4 storage floors for the goods.

Left: Kontor (office); Right: View on the first floor

Afterwards I went to Stralsund harbour. Exactly where the Hanseatic trading port used to be, there is now an harbour island with the Ozeaneum building, a modern exhibition space of the German Oceanographic Museum. The focus of the museum is on the ecosystems of the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, the two main seas sailed by the Hanseatic League. The museum has a further focus on the conservation of marine ecosystems and for the protection of whales.

Fauna & Flora of the Baltic Sea and the North Sea

Day 3

As Stralsund acts as the gateway to Rügen, Germany’s largest island, I made a half-day excursion to see the chalk cliffs on the east coast of Rügen. Day 3 connects cultural heritage with natural heritage as the Jasmund National Park not only protects the magnificent chalk cliffs but also the largest contiguous area of beech forest on the German Baltic coast (part of UNESCO’s World Nature heritage ancient and primeval beech forests). The hike includes a compulsory visit of the prominent chalk rock promentary Königsstuhl.

Natural World Heritage “Ancient and Primeval beech forests of the Carparthians and Other Regions of Europe”

Left: Chalk cliffs in Jasmund National Park; Right: Königsstuhl

The centre of Stralsund is surrounded by water on all sides and has a characteristic mixture of Hanseatic brick gothic houses and baroque houses from the Swedish period. To learn more about the old town which ist completely part of World heritage, the World Heritage House was the first port of call. I visited the UNESCO coordinator of Stralsund Steffi Behrendt in her office right next to the main square with the town hall and Nicolai church. Steffi guided me through the world heritage exhibition, gave me tips for visiting the city and even opened the “Hackertscher Tapetensaal” especially for me, which is otherwise only accessible for guided tours. Many thanks Steffi for that warm welcome in Stralsund!

Left: Meeting Steffi Behrendt in front of town hall and Nicolai Church; Right: Hackertscher Tapetensaal

View on old town from St. Mary’s Church. The Unesco Zone is fully surrounded by water: On the one side the Strelasund which is part of the Baltic Sea and on the other side the artificial pond “Knieperteich”

Left: Wulflamhaus on main square; Right: Pitoresque residential building in Heilgeisthospital

#3: Washington D.C.

August 25, 2022

August 19-22, 2022

I left Regensburg last Friday and headed up to Washington D.C., where my US trip began. My flight from Munich was easy and the jetlag not as bad as expected. So I had enough energy to do some sightseeing on my first weekend in the United States.

A big plus in Washington is that all the museums in front of the Capitol are for free! What a pleasure! As a big fan of modern art I visited the Hirshhorn Museum and its beautiful sculputure garden. One highlight was the wish tree in front of the building by Yoko Ono. Furthermore, the museum hosted a nice exhibition of the well-known and Japanese contemporary artist Yayoi Kusama. This impressing lady worked primarily in sculpture and installation and it was such a nice experience to see her work. Afterwards, I went to the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History which was pretty crowded but worth the visit.

Before I left to Philly on Monday, I had the chance to visit the US Capitol. The guided tours there are also for free but you had to book a timeslot before the visit. The US Capitol is the national stage of the United States and the place where the country finds its common ground. Within the Congress American people are represented and even during the Revolutionary War the building continued to be built to make a statement of hope. This building is one of the landmarks of Washington D.C. and a symbol for the American democracy. Even if it is not a world heritage sight, it counts as a National Historic Landmark. The tour was really interesting and a great insight into the American history. The rotunda is the center of the building and the place where the dome can be found. There is also a painting showing the signing of the American Declaration of Independence which introduces my visit to the city, where it was signed: Philadelphia! (to be continued…)

August 18-19

August 22, 2022

Visby

Day 1

Next stop on the list is Visby, a town with about 20,000 inhabitants on the west coast of the Swedish island of Gotland. To learn more about the history of the city, I met with World Heritage coordinator Louise Hoffman Borgö at the Gotland Museum. Starting the tour with the mysterious picture stones which were probably used as memorial stones back to 1400 years .

Picture stones which were found all over Gotland

Visby lies very centrally in the Baltic Sea and this strategically good location strengthened Visby’s position as an important trading port already during the Viking Age. As a gateway to trade with the east, Visby was also of great interest to the Hanseatic League and one of the first members outside Germany. The city profited greatly from the trade of the Hanseatic League, many huge buildings were erected for the time and Visby is referred to as the medieval Manhattan.

Left: Cityscape of Visby at the time of its heyday; Right: One of the huge medieval warehouses that still dominate the cityscape today

The museum also deals with the rapid decline in the town’s importance from the middle of the 14th century onwards: On the one hand, Visby was captured by the Danish King Waldemar in 1361, and on the other, improvements in shipping and navigation meant that the merchants of the Hanseatic League no longer had to rely on Visby as a stopover in the east. What may be bad for Visby at that time is fortunate for us: Due to the peace and quiet brought about by the loss of importance, the city has largely remained well preserved to this day.

Day 2

Next day started with a continuation of the guided tour through Visby, this time outdoors. Louise Hoffman Borgö, this time accompanied by her colleague Maria James, showed me around the UNESCO World Heritage Site. We visited the Visby city wall which is one of the best and also most completely preserved medieval city walls in Europe. It was errected beginning in the 13th due to conflicts with the people of the countryside of Gotland as the Hanseatic League consolidated its monopoly and forbid the Gotland farmers to take part in trade. It is more than 3 kilometres long and 27 large and 9 small towers still remain.

Visby city wall and Kruttornet (powder tower)

Equally impressive were the many church ruins that characterise the cityscape. The wealthy inhabitants liked to invest in magnificent church buildings. However, due to the economic decline and the Reformation, the many churches fell into disrepair and are now only preserved as imposing ruins.

Left: Modell of the interior of a church in the medieval times; Right: Ruins of Saint Nicholas

Louise and Maria also told me a lot about their work and the Visby of our times: Today the pitoresque small town is well known for its sheeps which are the symbol of Gotland that can be found everywhere. Equally characteristic are the rosebushes planted in front of many buildings. Gotland is one of the most popular holiday islands for Swedes in the summer and Visby is also the venue for the political Almedalen Week, the “Stockholm Week” parties and the big medieval festival “Medeltidsveckan”. It seems that the Unesco World heritage zone today is quite a liveable place. Once again big thanks to Louise and Maria for showing me around Visby!

Left: Tour with Maria and Louise from Unesco Heritage Visby; Right: House with characteristic rose bushes

Left: Stone sheeps can be found everywhere on Gotland; Right: Visby cathedral

Left: Street in the historic centre; Right: Sunset in Visby harbour

#2: Regensburg

August 22, 2022

August 15-18, 2022

Not only Bamberg is compared to Italy. Regensburg is called “the northest town of Italy” – and when you stroll through the city on a summer night, you won’t disagree. Small beautiful streets, many restaurants, bars and a little bit of Dolce Vita. Fortunately the gorgeous old town wasn’t destroyed so much by World War II.

>> UNESCO FACTS <<

In 2006 the Old Town with “Stadtamhof” (the district across the Danube) and its 1500 monumental buildings were added to the UNESCO List. Since last year, Regensburg even has its second World Heritage title. It is part of the Donaulimes which marks the part of the Roman military border along the Danube.

Anyways, the UNESCO title is very important for the sustainable development of the city. It not only serves to preserve the Roman-influenced old town, but also makes it attractive and worth living in. With a population of around 160.000, Regensburg is also a successful business location.

>> WORLD HERITAGE CENTER & EXHIBITION <<

The Danube, as second longest river in Europe, divides the old town and “Stadtamhof”, while the Stone Bridge connects both areas. Before crossing the Stone Bridge, don’t forget to visit the World Heritage Center. It is located in the monumental building “Salzstadel” which has been the center of salt trade in the 17th century. (If you’re hungry afterwards, get a “Kipferl” next to the Salzstadel at the historic Wurstkuchl.)

With being opened as one of the first world heritage centers in Europe in 2011, it just celebrated its 10th anniversary. Therefore an interesting book was published that highlights the museum in a interdisciplinary kind of way. In cooperation with the FH Johanneum Graz, which has also been involved in the concept of the center, it highlights the trends towards world heritage transfer. Additionally the book is accompanied by an exciting exhibition designed by Elisa Wünschter. The young Austrian talent interviewed and focused on people in Regensburg and their thoughts regarding the history, present and future of Regensburg. This exhibition is definitely worth a visit!

A place I call home: Since I came back for this summer, I realized how many creative (and young) people are living in this historical city. I felt lots of energy and a vibrant creative and culture scene. It certainly won’t be boring in Regensburg!

August 15-17

August 19, 2022

Helsinki

Day 1

Arrival in Helsinki, the biggest city and capital of Finnland. Helsinki (at that time Helsingfors) was established in 1550 by King Gustav I of Sweden. His intention was to build up a rival trading town to Tallinn which was member of the Hanseatic League. So with Helsinki we are actually having a closer look at the competition of the Hanseatic League ;).

Two churches were on my bucket list on the very first day: First, the protestant Helsinki Cathedral which is impressively enthroned above the senate square. Second, the Temppeliaukio Church, which is also a protestant church but has a totally different appearance: The church was directly built in solid rock covered with a dome made of copper. Afterwards I enjoyed the view from the terrace of Oodi central library, which is not only a public library but also a public space for the whole city offering video game rooms, a sound studio, rooms with 3D printers or sewing machines, shared offices and much more. The day ended with a walk through Sibelius Park where I watched the sunset at the famous monument for the finnish composer Jean Sibelius that is assembled by more than 600 steel pipes.

Sibelius Monument – Some say the organ pipes were designed like birch bark from the Finnish forests

Day 2

Not much of King Gustav’s plan came true and Helsinki was still a tiny town in the 18th century. The region slowly grew in importance after Sweden lost the Great Nordic War and most of its fortresses in the east. Therefore in 1748 the Swedish Crown startet the construction of a new fortress to protect against the Russian expansionism. Sveaborg (meaning castle of the Swedes) was built on 6 islands off the coast of Helsinki mostly by soldiers. Although the bastion fortress seemed to be impregnable and was even called “Gibraltar of the North” Russia , however, captured Sveaborg in 1808. With Finnlands independance in 1917 Sveaborg again serves in defence for a new country and was renamed in Suomenlinna (castle of Finnland). Today it is not only a unique testimony of fortification of that time but also a lively district of Helsinki with approximately 800 inhabitants. Furthermore, the garrison buildings on Suomenlinna houses the Naval Academy of Finnland and also the unique dry dock is still in use.

left: Suomenlinna Church that also serves as lighthouse; right: Suomenlinna is a lively district and also has its own supermarket nowadays

Day 3

To get an impression how life in Finnland was in former times I went to the beautiful island of Seurasaari. It is not only a popular recreation area but also site of an open-air museum with old wooden buildings and farms brought here from all over the country. Furthermore, Seurasaari was the favourite jogging route of former President Urho Kekkonen.

left: bear-proof food storage; right: wooden church tower

beautiful nature on the island

The Helsinki experience was completed with a visit of the wooden Kamppi Chapel also called silent chapel even if it is one of the most frequently visited chapels. Next to the Kamppi Chapel under the urban square of Lasipalatsi is the museum of modern arts “Amos Rex” with a weird but fascinating exhibition.

#1: Bamberg

August 17, 2022

August 14, 2022

Accompanied by my flatmate, I started the first part of my journey last weekend: Bamberg. Almost 30 years ago (in 1993) the Old Town of Bamberg was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List. With a total of 142 hectares, three parts of the old town are UNESCO World Heritage Sites: the City on the hills (Bergstadt), the Island District (Inselstadt) and the Market Gardeners’ District (Gartenstadt). Beforehand, I talked to the team of the World Heritage Coordination in Bamberg and realised that I was particularly interested in the Market Gardeners’ District…

>> MARKET GARDENERS’ DISTRICT <<

Urban Gardening has been practised in Bamberg since the Middle Ages and the Market Gardeners’ District forms an important contrast to the otherwise densely built-up Bamberg.

Our first stop was the Market Gardeners’ and Wine-Growers’ Museum, which was redesigned in 2012 by the city of Bamberg and the Urban Gardening project. The museum shows a 19th century market gardener’s house and behind the building you find the historic house garden with regional vegetables, fruit and herbs. For example, a special type of potato is grown there (the “Bamberger Hörnle“). Furthermore, the Bamberg region is the only liquorice growing area north of the Alps.

>> URBAN GARDENING & UNESCO <<

Not only the inner-city areas are part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site. Since 2016, the gardening customs, including the culture and people, are part of the intangible cultural heritage. I find this fact particularly exciting, as the trend towards regional and organic grocery shopping is becoming increasingly important. Therefore, of course, it is not only the material cultural heritage that needs to be protected, but also the culture itself. At the same time, however, there are fewer and fewer gardening businesses in Bamberg. The areas are protected by UNESCO and cannot be operated commercially. That is why ideas for alternative agriculture/ gardening and innovative projects are becoming increasingly important. The farms cannot only follow their tradition, but have to go with the changing times. On the one hand, this is a huge challenge for the farms, but at the same time it is important in order to live the sustainability idea of UNESCO.

>> WORLD HERITAGE CENTER <<

The Bamberg World Heritage Centre is located directly on the River Regnitz. The exhibition space has a very modern design and explains the UNESCO title in a very interactive kind of way. In the same building the Bamberg World Heritage Office can be found, which was founded in 2005 and serves as the central coordination body for all issues concerning the World Heritage site.

> CITY STROLL <<

After the two museums, we strolled a bit through the old town. The island city is also called Little Venice and is really pretty to look at. This district is characterised by half-timbered buildings and by – again – tiny, pretty gardens. The cathedral and the rose garden should not be forgotten either. After all: urban gardening culture is a thing in Bamberg!

The World Heritage Site in Bamberg is also an important place of learning, or rather a source of knowledge, for young people. Hopefully, the students of the Master’s programme “Monument/Historical Preservation” (Denkmalpflege) will share their knowledge with our world to preserve places like the beautiful Franconian Bamberg.

August 12-14

August 15, 2022

Riga

Day 1

Next on the list is Riga, which became member of the Hanseatic League in 1282 which is just 81 years after its considered foundation by German Bishop Albert. To discover this beatuiful city and learn more about the UNESCO heritage in Riga I met Aigars Kušķis, who is repsonsible for questions regarding urban planning with respect to UNESCO heritage in the historic centre of Riga.

left: Aigars and me in Albert Iela which is famous for Art Nouveau buildings; right: View on historic centre from St. Peter’s Church

It was a pleasure to walk around with him as he knew interesting details and facts for every centimeter of his area of responsibility. As the best local tour guide which you can probably get he took me to places where I would never have expected world heritage: For instance, he showed me some rare remains of the original city wall in the cellar of a Hotel next to its Spa as well as one of the oldest coat of arms of the city in the courtyard behind the famous “three brothers”.

Remains of the original city wall integrated into a hotel spa

Three brothers are the oldest still existing houses in Riga

Aigars also drew my attention to where the course of the namesake Riege River can still be seen today and where houses were not rebuilt after bombings in World War 2. The tour ended in the newer part of the UNESCO core area: The art nouveau district which has one of the highest concentration of art noveau buildings worldwide. The facades offered a wide variety on various details to watch. Once again many thanks to Aigars for these fascinating insights!

Art Nouveau facade and stairwell in Alberta Iela

Day 2

To find out more about the connection between the city and trade I visited the House of the Black Heads which is situated on Riga’s main square. The Black Heads are an association of local unmarried male merchants, ship owners, and foreigners. Together with the large guild hall and the small guild hall, the House of the Black Heads impressively shows that the power in this city long emanated from merchants. Additionally, it also served also as gathering hall for the whole city of Riga and was rebuilt from 1996-1999 after it was demolished in WW 2. Today it is a museum and also served as work space for the Latvian President . Afterwards I visited the “Museum of Riga’s History and Navigation” which gave me interesting insights in the city’s changeful history that was always closely connected to trade and influenced by big foreign powers until Latvia became independant 1991.

Cog ship in the Museum of Riga’s history and navigation

The Hanseatic league and their merchants did not only influence the cityscape with their guild houses and department stores but also influenced the present. By law it was not allowed to build higher buildings than the 3 church towers in the old town: This rule has been preserved in the historic centre until today. Riga is also still very closely connected to the Hanseatic League. There is a Lübeck hall in the rebuilt House of the Black Heads and even a real estate project has also appropriated the name “Hanza”.

Typical warehouse of the merchants in the historic centre of Riga

Hanza Perons as example that the name of the Hanseatic League lives on

Day 3

To transport goods, the Hanseatic ships had to sail along the Daugava to the baltic sea. Today between baltic sea and the river Lielupe is the local recreation area of the inhabitants of Riga called Jurmala. The place is famous for its wooden houses in art nouveau style and was a popular tourist destination for Communist Party officials in former Soviet Union.