Life in Graal-Müritz

Hey guys,

I will be moving to Graal-Mueritz on the Baltic sea in a few months, and was just wondering if any of the helpful folk out there would be able to describe the place a little for me? Any good info would be greatly appreciated. Cheers,

Best,

Daniel

Graal-Müritz (Wikipedia)

Thanks, I have already seen it though. I was thinking about ppl who had had first hand experience of the place.

I haven't actually been there but I live about 15kms from there. It can't be much different from Rostock, smaller yes...

Any specific questions?

Just wondering what it looked like, what type of buildings, place it was - I saw some pictures and some of the houses look like a victorian seaside resort, which it was I think.

What is the baltic coast like in general, if you don't mind me asking? Is the sea cold? There's no tide right?

Which town do you live, do you mind me asking?

The houses on the sea generally look like that and are nice. Or block flats, refurbished from the old DDR days or like mine Nazi days.

The coast is beautiful. Whitish sand, some pebbles and sea rocks, as well as mussels. Plenty of sea birds too. To me the sea is cold. Just got up to about 16 C as of my walk last week to the beach where there is a lifeguard station. There is a tide. The beach gets a lot smaller when the tide is in.

I live in a village...or as we like to call it an incest nest, we swear it was started by one family. I am near Hohe Düne but I don't live there.

Thanks . That sounds really cool. I think I read in a rough guide or something that it was tideless, but that must have been wrong.

I've got lots of questions, you might get sick of me . Is the Rostocker Heide nice? Or is it just a big area of forest, but nothing special? What is there to do in the area? What is the area like in general? Flat, lakes?

I was talking to a teacher from the school I am going to and he told me winters are cold, between 6 and -10!

Only a couple of centimeters ... not worth mentioning

Its not comparable to what I have seen, but the difference is a meter to a few meters. Or at least from what I have personally seen. You can tell from where the water was earlier to where it is at the time you are on the beach.

I run in the Rostocker Heide. It is normally full of people biking. It is basically just a big forest but there are plenty of trails to walk or bike ride, or ever run. There is an owl sanctuary in some parts. It is pretty flat. If you go to Schnatermann, that is right on the Warnow. It is a pretty site. I have been there and done a couple runs to there. There is a hotel but also a restaurant. A small beach...it is pretty nice to me. More if you like walking and being in nature.

The winter sounds about right. Though I will say it is not often below 0. With the wind chill yes...ok I am speaking from the last 2 full winters I have been here. It ranges. Winter 07/08 was mild...08/09 we had snow and it was pretty cold, stay at around 0.

thanks a mill, that's been really helpful . I'd like to get some idea of the place before I go, you know, as I will be spending a year there. Unlike most of the comments you usually get from the cranks on this chat forum, this was very helpful. Thanks!

I am not on here so often. I have been researching about a jobs and interviewing so I popped up. Maekel usually has great advice about Rostock but hasn't popped up.
I have no reason to be a crank, plus you are asking questions that really haven't been asked before. This area has so few people on the forum and it isn't easy to find info in English. Feel free to ask away, I will help as much as I can.

cool, thanks. Do you speak german? Do you know what type of German is spoken there? Is it close to hochdeutsch or is it a strong dialect?

it is a very general question, but how would you describe the germans there?

I speak some German. I can conversate, but I have a lot to learn. Hmmm I would guess hochdeutsch, but like all area's in Germany there is slang. Either norther German slang or plattdeutsch. I find the northern German dialect fairly easy to understand. I don't think there is really a strong dialect, but then this is the only place in Germany I have lived and the area I have stayed in (weekend holidays) other than Berlin.

My impression is, of course, my impression. I am white and look European, and yes that makes a difference. I hate to say it. I find them to be friendly most of the time. This area is pretty touristy so it is important. This is mostly with middleaged folks, and at shops. Getting on and off busses is still a pain becuase they insist on trying to get on the bus before people have gotten off. Imagine trying to get off the bus with a Pram, and everyone standing in front of the door! I will say I am rather dismayed by the youth here. Kids will be kids, but I have found them to be rude and unhelpful. They also don't pay any attention to their surroundings, but maybe that is a kid/teenager thing. Old folks can be weird and interesting. They freak when they find you are not German and/or can't speak German...especially when you sort of look German. Some can't believe foreigners are here. I think my neighbor (82 years old) totally freaked out when she found out I was American.

I have also found out when I frequent a place, like for food shopping, the people who see you a lot start to get more friendly. I love getting a hallo or guten tag, that sounds more friendly then the normal..hallo, I hate my job why are you standing there.

I have read and talked to a few people who are of color (I am not going to be PC) and they have had harder times here. There are times when I watch my English since there are people who just hate foreigners period. I won't like about the neo nazi's/NPD here. They are here, it is sad, because they are sooo ignorant. Sigh...MV has high enemployment and is the poorest region in Germany, so you will find mixed opinions from people. Personally, I feel good here. I haven't had any problems to date. I enjoy the area and find it nice and its people. Ok, I am married to one of them, but still.

Ok, that was a lot...but sometimes a lot needs to be said to give a complete picture. I have found most people have a love hate relationship with this area and/or Germany.

cool, that's really great, thanks. yeah, i'm white as well so I won't appear foreign until people start talking to me. IMO there's no need to be pc about it - it is not saying anything bad that if you are of a different skin colour to the natives you look different/foreign - like if I went to japan the same would apply to me. How you look does have a bearing. I lived in spain for a year with a few chinese girls, and while I had zero hostility or experiences of racism, they had quite a few - solely because they were obviously foreign, while I was not at all.

Thanks a million for the info, its great to get it.

Is there much to do in the area? Is rostock nice?

I was looking at pictures of the Graal-Muritz train station - it looks VERY rural.

Rostock has a big Uni so there, in my opinion, is plenty to do when you are young and unattached. During the summer there is a lot going on in Warnemünde. Right now is Warnemünde Woche, and then in August we have Hanse Sail. Also with all the cruise ships, plenty of tourist right now.

The great thing about here is that Hamburg and Berlin are just about 2.5 hours away by train. There are also ferries here you can take to Denmark, Sweden and Finland.

Winter time things die down a bit and life becomes slower. There is the Christmas Market.

As I said I ahven't been to Graal Müritz but the sign up the street says it isn't far away. The train station is probably pretty small too. The main station around here is Rostock Hbf. That is where all the trains to the bigger cities are.

anything in particular you are wondering about?