When I was a child, I had very few toys. I would spend most of my time either reading fairy tales or inventing my own stories. Stories are part of my make up and part of who I am on the inside, which is why I became a writer. And I’m always on the lookout for the magical aspects of life – anything unusual or cute is right up my alley.

So when my boyfriend told me (remember, he is the one who finds all these incredible places that no one has ever heard of) that there was a steam train (the Molli, as she’s affectionately known) in the region, I was over the moon.

The Molli (German Mecklenburgische Bäderbahn “Molli”) short: (MBB) is a  narrow-gauge steam-powered railway in Mecklenburg.

It was in 1886 that she began huffing and puffing her way to Heiligendamm, carrying Germany’s elite.

In 1910, the line was extended west along the coast to Kühlungsborn.

She covers a total distance of 15,4km with a running time of 40 minutes.

So the Molli took us to Kühlungsborn (but God forgive me because I probably won’t remember that name!)

And the sandy beach between Kühlungsborn and Heiligendamm was absolutely extraordinary.

What a great place to chill out!

Heiligendamm (another tongue twister) is the oldest seaside spa in continental Europe, which is part of the town Bad Doberan.

And all these buildings below belong to the Grand Hotel Heiligendamm! You may not remember it but this is where the 33rd G8 summit took place. If you google it, you’ll see Mrs Merkel, Mr Obama or Mr Sarkozy posing in front of this luxury hotel complex.

This is the train station in Heiligendamm, which is also used as a restaurant. A very charming restaurant I must say.

And another beautiful garden…

Published by natalyadrian

I am a writer, a teacher, a translator and a digital nomad. View all posts by natalyadrian