Where is Osnabruck

Sometimes the smaller cities in a country can be just as worth visiting as the more well-known larger cities. For instance, when I recently traveled to Northern Germany on a Historic Highlights trip and visited the historical city of Osnabruck, hiding just a quick 20-minute train ride away from the biking capital of Germany, Munster, I was taken aback at how much Osnabruck had to offer. With approximately 165,000 people who are lucky to call this “city of peace” home, this city made me feel so welcome as a solo female traveler.

Getting In

I flew from SFO to Zurich, then onward to Dusseldorf. From the airport train station, I took a train to my first stop in Duisburg, just a mere 10 minutes. Here I transferred onto a second train to Munster, just an hour away. As a result, I spent about 3 days discovering Munster and then moved on to Osnabruck for two days.

10 Reasons to Visit Osnabruck

Visit a non-touristy small town:

•   Osnabruck’s historic center (Altstadt) with its tiny alleys is the perfect place to get far away from the bustling crowds of the bigger cities like Munich and Berlin. My favorite part of walking around this town was exploring the side alleys and discovering the small boutiques and cafes with unexpected backyard patios. Don’t miss strolling through the historic town hall, St Mary’s Church (the Marienkirche) and the Gable houses (where the Hanseatic merchants used to live) toward the marketplace, including St Peter’s Cathedral. The city centre is small and cozy and as a result, I felt extremely safe and welcomed as a solo female traveler.

Tip: You’ll mostly hear German speaking tourists and maybe other European tourists. English is spoken mostly by the younger generation. You won’t have trouble ordering food or getting around town – use hand gestures and an online dictionary if needed.

Tip: Try and read up ahead of timeabout some of the artwork so when you’re strolling through the museum you’ll be able to connect deeper with what you’re seeing.

Experience a museum like never before

• For the first time, the architecture of a museum gave me the jitters as I walked through it. The Felix Nussbaum Haus is a museum designed by NYC’s Ground Zero architect. It houses the works of Felix Nussbaum, persecuted by the Nazis and eventually murdered at Auschwitz. When I saw his Self Portrait with Jewish Identity Card and his final painting Triumph of Death, I had goosebumps. The museum has three sections. The first one houses Nussbaum’s prewar art, the second section made from concrete displays his paintings while he was in hiding from the Nazis. This section is meant to evoke the cramped quarters in Brussels from where he painted his last few works of art. Walking through the narrow corridor with minimal lighting, I could feel the oppression and felt as if I may never exit the museum. Because this feeling of fear in a museum is foreign to me, I call this a powerful experience of architectural dialogue. As a solo female traveler, I enjoyed taking my time reflecting over the architecture and Nussbaum’s own mental state evident in his art.

Try a Spaghetti Ice

• I kept walking by Fontanella Eis Café in the historic center, hoping to nab a seat outside facing the street. The weather was too warm to warrant sitting inside. But alas, this place was always packed and as a solo female traveler I refused to be intimidated and thwarted from my attempt at sitting outside. Then one evening, armed with fellow blogger Janna Kamphof we embraced our destiny, grabbed a perfect spot street-side and settled in excitedly for the spaghetti ice that I kept seeing people eat. It’s a huge portion of what looks like spaghetti with red sauce. Except when it arrived and I dug my spoon into it, I realized it was a big blog of vanilla ice cream in the SHAPE of spaghetti!

Tip: Order one and share, the portion sizes are huge.

Have a taste of heaven

• Really. Walk into Leysieffer, the 108 year-old confectionary shop where you can try a variety of different chocolates, pastries, and marzipan. One of my favorite things to do is grab a pastry, a drink and sit out in their patio watching the world go by. Their signature chocolate is the Himmlische, a praline with a very special filling. The pralines are dipped into a whole milk chocolate and refined with a sugar crust. Legend has it there was priest in Osnabruck who visited this café and loved the round pralines which he found simply “heavenly”. Hence the pralines got their name “Himmlische”. I spent a good amount of time confused and trying to buy every single chocolate. You will hear me say jokingly that this is one of the perils of being a solo female traveler as I can shop for hours with no one to steer me away from all that sugar!

Tip: Shop around a bit before you frantically start gathering every single unique chocolate you find here. Taste the samples and ask for recommendations.

Experience a Hanseatic city

• Osnabruck today is a modern city perhaps, but it’s steeped in historical values and traditions. Imagine walking the footsteps of the merchants that formed the Hanseatic league, a trading group for merchants who traded along the Baltic coast. Visit the town hall where the Peace of Westphalia, along with Munster, was signed. It took five years to negotiate these peace treaties, and it’s this slice of history that has created present day Osnabruck.

Tip: Check timings and walk up the steps of St. Mary’s Church for a view of Osnabruck from the top. It’s stunning.

Visit the Botanic Garden

• The Botanic Garden is part of the Osnabruck University and was established in 1984. I don’t know why but I didn’t expect Osnabruck to have such an extensive Botanic Garden. Mainly used for education and research, the garden is open to the public as well. I even saw an insect hotel as I walked around with blogger Janna. One quarry houses the outdoor display gardens as well as the glasshouse, while the second quarry is a conservation area and home to rare plants. The outdoor display areas show different plant communities from all over the world and there are also collections of medical and aromatic plants. When we spotted the insect hotel, Janna described that many people in Germany have these in their homes as well. I realized then how green friendly Germany is.

Tip: Know that the greenhouses are super hot and walking to the Botanic Garden involves an uphill path.

Attend a Wine Festival

• Attending the local wine festival this August left me feeling like I had stepped back in time into an episode of Game of Thrones. How can you not feel that way, when the festival is right smack in the middle of historical buildings such as the town hall and St Mary’s Church, framed by the picturesque Gabled houses? I know what you might be thinking: isn’t Germany more of a beer country? True but there seems to be a growing interest in wines from the surrounding regions. There’s even a dedicated wine shop in the historic center called Das Wein Cabinet. As a solo female traveler, I was apprehensive about attending the wine festival, but it was so easy to go up to one of the stalls, buy a glass of wine and find an empty table to sit at and listen to the live band.

Tip: You have to buy a glass and once you return it you’ll get a euro back.

Visit a UNESCO Global Geopark

• Osnabruck is the only major Germany city located in the heart of a nature park. The TERRA.vita UNESCO Global Geopark has award-winning long distance hiking routes and cycling trips. Imagine an itinerary that involves a 2-3 day cycling trip?! This is a great activity for a solo female traveler as this region is also super safe!

Tip: Don’t have time to see the park? The view from the top of St Mary’s Church gives you a glimpse of this park.

Stay in one of the few remaining, half-timbered historic houses of Osnabruck

• There are just a handful of the half-timbered houses left in Osnabruck and I feel like I strolled every alley in an attempt to find them, because they are simply so charming and unique. The Hotel Walhalla is one of them as are a few more on Krahnstrabe. Germany in particular is famous for the decorative panels and timbers with figures and patterns that have their own meanings and symbolism. Staying at the Hotel Walhalla, I felt like I had stepped back in time.  They have a terrace that’s perfect for an evening drink, a spa, and rooms that are huge for Europe. Even my bathroom could have been a separate room. Above all, located in a small alley, staying in an old historic house is more personal and helps me connect deeper with the essence of a town. The author Erich Maria Remarque wrote in his novel: “Let’s have a first-class meal….let’s go to the Walhalla.” And he’s right, if you have the time indulge in a meal at their restaurant, it’s worth it. I would highly recommend this restaurant if you’re a solo female traveler.

Tip: Mix it up and venture out to have dinner at Weinkruger, another old historic house/restaurant

Discover surprisingly good food

• I would highly recommend places like Henne for their watermelon feta salad and the overnight bowl of chia pudding with white chocolate chunks. Don’t miss the pastry truck for the Maracuya macarons (passionfruit) located in the historic center. The ART Elier Thomas Jankowski café has the best décor, outdoor patio seating and the best glass of gin with elderberry. The gallery also features a rotating list of local artists’ works upstairs. The Buddha bowl and the iced mango matcha cocos latte at Redlinger’s Deli and Café is delicious. Don’t miss Schlecks for a chance at making your own ice cream. Lastly dinner at Weinkruger, another historic building, is a must for the atmosphere and the food, on a quiet alley in the historic old town. Try the beef on a stick (Steck’l Wick’l) one of their signature dishes or the spinach crepe if you feel like eating vegetarian food. One thing that surprised me consistently was the availability of at least one vegan dish on any menu. As a solo female traveler I went to many of these places alone and felt so comfortable, unlike some places where eating alone makes me cringe.

Osnabruck is still unknown amongst international tourists and that’s what makes this town so charming. Steeped in history and once a wealthy town thanks to the trading merchants along the Hanseatic route, the town has a welcoming vibe for even solo travelers. The people are friendly and it is easy to get by even if a lot of the locals don’t speak English. Put this on your bucket list of historic cities to visit in Northern Germany, you won’t regret it.