Germany (Lonely Planet, 6th Edition) - Andrea Schulte-Peevers [576]
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SLOW TRAVEL IN EAST FRISIA
Train connections are pretty good in parts of the East Frisian region, but to really get out and explore it, you’re better off walking, riding a bicycle, paddling or, if the legs are too tired from walking the Wadden Sea (see the boxed text, Click here), taking a bus. During the season from mid-March to October, the Urlauberbus service allows you to travel on any bus, no matter how far it’s going, for €1. Each time you change buses, you pay again, but if you’re in no rush, you can go, say, from Oldenburg to Emden (€3) and via the ‘dike country’ along the coast down to Jever (from Emden, €4) on a slow jaunt over a few days. Pick up a free copy of the Urlauberbus für’n euro map from Jever, Emden or another of the local tourist offices, or check out the website www.urlauberbus.info (in German). This is one region where you might have a good time getting stranded.
If you want to combine kayaking or Canadian canoe paddling with cycling in East Frisia, the easiest way to do it is by using some of the 21 ‘Paddel und Pedal’ stations (www.paddel-und-pedal.de, in German). You can paddle to one, hire another kayak there, or switch to bicycle, and choose your next destination/station, making for a varied and environmentally friendly way of getting around. To give just one of many options, from Emden (Paddel- und Pedalstation Emden; 0160-369 2739, 04921-890 7219; Marienwehrster Zwinger 13) you can hire a single kayak (€17), paddle about 11km (three hours) to the quarry lake Grosses Meer (Paddel- und Pedalstation Grosses Meer; 04942-576 838; Langer Weg 25, in Südbrookmerland), which is in parts a nature reserve, then change to a bicycle (€6.50 per day) and ride back, or further into East Frisia. Local tourist offices can help if you need planning or language help.
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Orientation
Emden’s train and bus stations are about a 10-minute walk west of the city centre. As you exit, take the road heading right, which will lead to Grosse Strasse and the small medieval harbour and centre called Ratsdelft.
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Information
Tourist-Information Emden im Pavillon am Stadtgarten ( 10am-6pm Mon-Fri, 10am-2pm Sat) Just north of the central Ratsdelft harbour, near the car park and taxi stand.
Tourist-Information im Bahnhof ( 974 00; www.emden-touristik.de; Bahnhofsplatz 11; 8am-6pm Mon-Fri, 10am-4pm Sat, also 11am-3pm Sun Apr-Oct) Main tourist office, with an efficient hotel and private-room booking service.
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Sights & Activities
Most people visit Emden for two reasons: either business with its mainstay, the local Volkswagen factory, or en route to the East Frisian Islands. Emden, though, has an unusually good Kunsthalle ( 975 050; www.kunsthalle-emden.de, in German; Hinter dem Rahmen 13; adult/concession €8/6; 10am-5pm Tue-Fri, 11am-5pm Sat & Sun), thanks to local boy Henri Nannen. The founder of the magazine Stern (a glossy news weekly à la Time or Newsweek), he made his private collection available to the town when he retired. Focusing on 20th-century art, its white-and-exposed-timber, light-flooded rooms show off a range of big, bold canvases. There are some works by Max Beckmann, Erich Heckel, Alex Jawlensky, Oskar Kokoschka, Franz Marc, Emil Nolde and Max Pechstein, although most of the artists are more obscure. Several times a year, the museum closes its doors for a week while exhibitions are changed. Follow the signs from the tourist office.
The award-winning Ostfriesisches Landesmuseum (Regional History Museum; 872 058; www.landesmuseum-emden.de, in German; Rathaus, Brückstrasse