Hanover, Lower Saxony, Germany
Hannover, Niedersachsen, Deutschland
As you can see in the name, Hannover spelled in the German form is so similar to the English spelling that it seems ridiculous to only use one “n.” Hannover is the capital of the province of Lower Saxony. To give you a geographic idea, Lower Saxony surrounds Bremen, Bremen and reaches all the way to the north surrounding half of Hamburg, Hamburg with the province of Schleswig-Holstein wrapping around Hamburg on the north (and is Germany’s northern most province). Oldenburg, which is in Lower Saxony, is about a forty-minute train ride/car ride west of Bremen while Hannover is about an hour train ride south east of Bremen.
Hopefully, this gives you a better idea of each of these cities that I visited in relation to each other. This also makes more sense as you see that I stayed in Bremen, so I, naturally, visited cities in a circle around me first.
Hannover is the third largest city in Northern Germany after Hamburg and Bremen and is the thirteenth largest city in Germany. It has a population of over half a million and was founded in the medieval era (like many of the cities). But, this is where the kings and queens of Lower Saxony were crowned, it boasts the Hannover Medical School and University of Hannover, which focuses on environmental sciences and business. Hannover has a lot of interesting history with British monarchs as marriages started intertwining these two allowed British monarchs after the 1700s to be princes, princesses, etc., of Hannover (which is one of the many titles that gets added on to make the monarchs official title exceptionally long).
I think some of the most notable things I noticed about Hannover is that there are statues and sculptures everywhere. It really feels like a city of art. I know that most cities in Europe have statues, but it was surprising how many were in Hannover — you’ll see a few of them here to get an idea of what I mean. I also noted that Hannover is the cleanest German city that I‘ve visited so far. I walked down many areas and obviously, there might have been some trash or something on the ground. But, for the most part, there was a general lack of graffiti and trash around the city.
Right outside of the central station is the statue of King Ernst-August of Hannover (1837–1851) who was the eighth child of Kind George the Third. When George died, Victoria became Queen of Great Britain, while Ernst became King of Hannover and thus peeled Hannover away from British influence, which is why he has such a prominent statue, I suppose.
The main market square is right next to the station where you can see two statues of “Mann mit Regenschirm” and “Frau mit Regenschirm” (it just means “man and woman with umbrella”). There’s also the Schiller Denkmal or Statue of Schiller (Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller was a German poet, philosopher, physician, historian, and playwright). But my favorite sculpture was the Fountain of Leaves, which I’d love to see in spring/summer when it’s on.
Walking past these sculptures and across Schmiedestraße leads you to the primary area where they were setting up for the Christmas market all around the Marktkirche Hannover, or market’s church.
Walking not even a block south of here, you’ll discover the Leineschloss or the palace which rests upon the Leine river. Next to that is the Historisches Museum Hannover. I hope I don’t have to translate that as it’s virtually the same auf Englisch. If I had had more time, I would’ve made a trip to all the museums, but alas, it was just a day trip, so walking by and waving had to suffice.
Leineschloss Hannover
Turning directly to the right, you’ll see a big grouping of statues and a huge door. This is another fine example of how many statues/sculptures they have. It was stunning.
The string of statues above are part of Denkmal der Göttinger Sieben or statue of the Göttingen Seven. These were professors in 1837 that protested the new King of Hannover, Ernst-August, who was trying to abolish their constitution. So, these professors were trying to protect the people’s rights. Although their protest wasn’t a striking success, it’s said that they were a major influence and referencing point when the German Republic was later being formed. Among this group was Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm — so cool!
Walking south and across Friedrichswall street, you’ll see the massive Neues Rathaus or City Hall for Hannover. It dresses to impress without a doubt. The courtyard in front of it, Trammplatz, was also interesting in the way that it felt like a courtyard in Lord of the Rings with the two, huge trees surrounded by a concrete barrier, which acts as a bench.
Me at the Neues Rathaus Hannover
Right next to it are more sculptures, a park, and two museums. There was the Landesmuseum for history and art and then the Sprengel Museum for modern art. So two different museums and a park all right next to each other depending on what you feel like doing.
If you click on the top left picture, you’ll be able to see another sculpture right to the left of the picture. The top right picture is on the far left of the Neues Rathaus. Bottom left is the Landesmuseum with the Sprengel Museum on the right.
After looking at the Sprengel Museum, turning to the right will lead you right to the Maschsee — a man-made lake. The “lake” is an expansion of the Leine river and was meant for recreation and sports. It’s often called the “Leinemarsch,” where “Marsch” means “swamp” — no doubt an influencer for the English word “marsh.” The lake was finished in 1936 and on its inauguration, the Third Reich placed a 4.5 meter (15 foot) statue placed on top of an 18 meter (60 foot) column of a torch-bearer with a Nazi salute and a swastika on the column. The city officials struck off the swastika in 1945 and placed information on the column discussing the misguided ideology of the Nazis.
There was also various other sculptures near the statue like Alexander Calder’s “Le Hallebardier” (1971). My favorite thing, though, was to the left of the statue and the Leinemarsch as you can see in the last picture. There were rows of massive trees and a huge path for runners that traced the length of the Marsch. I was staying in Bremen, which is a pretty flat region with farmland. So I adored seeing a little closer to the Midlands of Germany with these huge trees and forests. I’m a sucker for forests — one of the reasons that I really want to see the Black Forest.
I like forests so much that I was searching for Hannover parks and settled on the “Eilenriede Park,” which, obviously, was covered in tall trees. When I arrived, it was pitch black and there were crows swarming the skies cawing. With that kind of atmosphere, it gave me the distinct impression that I was in a Grimm’s fairytale.
As my trip started winding down, I saw a poster for Hannover’s Winter-Zoo, which said, “Freier Eintritt.” I stared and thought, “That does say ‘free entrance,’ right?” Not only that, but it said, “Ab 23. November” or “from” the 23, which just so happened to be the day I decided to see Hannover. So what a treat! I went to the Hannover Zoo’s first Winter Wonderland day and got to see their decorations, food, and cute activities.
Hannover Zoo “Entrance Winter Zoo”
I thought that this was a great way to begin my Christmas season. I also decided to go to a bar because when your feet hurt, you’re cold, and you have a couple hours until your train arrives then leaves, it’s the perfect time for a drink. This is where I had a lovely bartender help me put on my coat. People in the U.S claim that the French are romantics, but don’t discount the Germans!
And this leads us to Ehron’s Takeaways
A Must-See: this would probably have to be the Neues Rathaus. Hopefully, if you’re visiting while it’s warm, you can have a lovely picnic at the nearby park or even in the Trammplatz courtyard.
What I Recommend: I think that if you want to go inside due to weather or something, then choose between the Landesmuseum for history and art or the Sprengel Museum for modern art. If the weather is just chipper, then you have to see the Leinemarsch and walk the paths that surround it. I know that there is a little kiosk right next to the column + statue where you can get food and maybe some souvenirs.
My Favorite Place: This would most-likely be the Eilenriede Park. Again, I think I’d like to revisit when it’s warmer and I can sit on a bench and soak in the colors and animals. But I still enjoyed it even with the cold. I just find that I’m most comfortable when surrounded by trees. Not sure why.
Thanks for reading.
Until next time, lovelies,
Ehron