Girls' Weekend Part 1: Vienenburg

I have to make a confession. It’s kind of embarrassing. So I’ve been living in Germany for almost a year and a half now and although I’ve done a lot of travel, I do concede that I haven’t seen a whole lot of the country I’m living in. In fact, I’ve only ever traveled to two places in Germany. One of them is Berlin, where I live (that counts, right?) and the other involved a two hour stopover in Munich for an Oktoberfest brew this time last year on the way back from a roadtrip through Austria. Yep, that’s the extent of it.

And the honest reason for this lack of exploration of my adopted country? It’s quite simple actually. When there is so much to see and do in Europe, all of which is unbelievably accessible, why not jet off to Paris or Rome for the weekend? How about Amsterdam, London or Barcelona? These were places whose voices simply called to me louder. Tough competition, Germany.

But when my friend suggested a girls’ trip over the long weekend to a small German spa town a few hours from Berlin, I do admit that I was unexpectedly excited. Firstly, I had never been on a girls’ only trip in Europe before. Secondly, I adored all of the nine fabulous women that I would be going with. Thirdly, a spa weekend? What’s not to love about that?

Overnight essentials packed, we met at the Berlin Hauptbahnhof early that morning. Armed with coffees, overloaded with wine, and carrying with us a spirit of adventure, we boarded our train (the first of three connections) which would eventually deliver us to the northern region of the Harz Mountains in Lower Saxony.

Vienenburg was our destination: a tiny, quiet settlement nestled on the lake where we would base ourselves.

Upon arrival we went wandering, naturally. We were also in desperate need of food. Stumbling upon a tranquil, little, lakeside restaurant, we turned our faces towards the sun, sipped wine, nibbled on cheese and salads and felt as if our weekend escape had officially begun.

That’s a great group of girls right there.

The afternoon called for further exploration of course. This was just the beginning. Read about the most pretty, UNESCO World Heritage listed medieval town we discovered in Part 2!