Now in spring while the the rape is blooming and the herrings are coming up the Schlei Fjord the Herring Days are held in Kappeln, Schleswig-Holstein again from 13-16 May, 2010.

With the Herring Days the town is celebrating the old tradition of herring fishing in Kappeln. The herring fences in the Schlei Fjord date back to the 15th century and the one in Kappeln is the last existing in Europe or even the world.

Herring Fence©Julia Höfer-von Seelen

The fences are made of poles with wickerwork made of brushwood. They set up funnel-shaped and lead the fish into the fishing nets like a large fish trap. In former times there used to be many herring fences in the Schlei Fjord between the mouth and the town of Arnis. Most of them were owned by the lords of the manors and they often paid the day labourers with herrings.

The most important event during the Herring Days it the herring bet. You can bet on the amount of herrings being caught at that very day and the person who wins will be Herring Queen or Herring King for one year. The money will be used for the preservation of the herring fence.

Kappeln©Julia Höfer-von Seelen

During the 4 days of the event bands will be playing, you can see the old ships in of the Museum Harbour of Kappeln, go on a ride on a boat or the old steam train of the Angelner Dampfeisenbahn and have a lot of fun and enjoy yourself.

But of course Kappeln is not only worth a visit during the Herring Days. Located in the beautiful region called Angeln on the Schlei Fjord it is worth a visit all year. The town is picturesque with an old windmill and beautiful small houses. The region also is perfect for hiking and cycling and if ratehr go swimming, the beaches of the Baltic Sea are not far.

Kappeln also is a good starting point if you want to visit Schleswig, Flensburg, Kiel, Denmark or the North Sea. Even Hamburg isn’t far away.

Schleswig-Holstein

Flensburg:

Phänomenta
Here you may touch things you see and do little experiments yourself. You will learn a lot about technical and natural scientific things. www.phaenomenta-flensburg.de

Husum:

Schiffahrtsmuseum
Ship models, about how to build ships, shipyards, fishery and whaling, and the history oft he sailors and their families is shown here. www.schiffahrtsmuseum-nf.de

Kappeln:

Historisches Sägewerk

In 1900 work started in the old saw mill which now is a working museum. The saws are powered by a windmill.www.kappeln.de/workingmuseum.html

Kiel:

Kieler Schifffahrtsmuseum

Here you can see ship models of all times, learn about the maritime history of Kiel, and you can even see a model of the first German submarine. www.kiel.de/kulur/museen

Flensburg, Schleswig-Holstein is located in the very North of Germany.

The town is well know for its nationwide database of traffic violators, the beer, “Flensburger Pilsener” also called “Flens”, the handball team “SG Flensburg-Handewitt”, for being the centre of the Danish minority in Germany, the Naval Academy at Mürwik, and last but not least for the erotic mail-order companies, Beate Uhse and Orion.

Flensburg ©Julia Höfer-von Seelen

But Flensburg is much more than that; it is a beautiful town and a travel destination worth visiting. Flensburg lies at the Flensburg Fjord and on the Danish border. Because of being so near to Denmark Flensburg has its own Scandinavian flair, the old town is very picturesque and the harbour used to be very important in former times. Now only few big ships still come here, but there is still a big shipyard building mostly RoRo ships, and in the historic part of the harbour you can see old sailing ships and see how ships were produced in the past.

Flensburg © Julia Höfer-von Seelen

In Flensburg you can find nice quiet spots if you want to relax, museums like the Harbour Museum, the Maritime Museum and the unique Rum Museum of Germany, you find many restaurants offering excellent food, and you also find fantastic shopping facilities. You can go on day trips to the North Sea, the Baltic Sea, the beautiful Schlei region and Denmark. Come to Flensburg to experience the beauty of the town and the frankness of the people living here, you will for sure love it.