An island in the sun

Here we are in very sunny Rugen,  a large island on the north coast of Germany.  After our busy days in Berlin, we decided to move north for some R&R.  We stopped over near Furstenberg/Havel on the way, which turned out to be very close to the memorial and museum on the site of the Ravensbruck concentration camp.  There are a lot of such sites in this area, which feels somewhat at odds with the main industry nowadays being tourism.  Well, we went to have a look, and it is as sobering as one might expect.  We were shocked that the site was so near to the town, clearly visible across the lake and not exactly hidden away.  Benefice book club members might remember that this is where Corrie ten Boom and her sister (who died here) were interned.
On a more positive note, we moved on to the island of Usedom, which had been recommended by some Dutch campers we met in Berlin.  Possibly looking for a campsite by the sea on a Friday afternoon in the only sunny bit of Germany wasn't the best idea, but they were all full - a shock as we have never had a problem before.  It turned out for the best though, as we were able to blag some fresh water from one site and park up on a beach carpark for the night, with the beach and the Baltic sea only about 100 yards away. Next day we moved on to a lovely seaside 'stellplatz', just behind the dunes. Bits of Usedom were very nice, somewhat reminiscent of the North Norfolk coast  with long sandy beaches backed by pine forests. But it was a bit more Great Yarmouth/Margate than Gorleston/Broadstairs though with very unusual deckchairs. We also visited the museum at Peenemunde, which was the research centre where development of the V2 rockets used to bomb London took place.
On route to Rugen, we stopped at Stralsund, according to our trusty guidebook the second most interesting Hanseatic town on the German coast.  Not sure we would bother with the third most interesting, but it is a pleasant place and a good source of smoked fish in bread rolls, a local fast food,  served from converted fishing boats in the harbour. We are also becoming experts in 'back stein gothic' or 'brick Gothic' architecture, many churches and public buildings in the area were built with very fancy decorative brick features.
We have ended up in a lovely wooded campsite on Rugen, in a very quiet undeveloped area of the island.  We have been walking, cycling and bird watching for a few days and enjoying really warm sunny weather.  We will be here till Friday and then move on again, with less than two weeks left we will point the van west and slowly start the journey towards Calais.

Smoked fish roll boat

Wild flowers on Rugen

Deckchairs and Baltic sea on Usedom