as we take on the world. we're in the boat is the stories that matter to you to be something. good to see what ever it takes to get it all running no let me go down the. exchange but you know that w. last made for mines. welcome to this special edition of check in our final episode for this year the

coronavirus made going on holiday this summer of 2020 challenge but our check and presenters set out to try and get a feel for the mood. nichol's lish spent some time in berlin and also travel to the next car valley where she paid a visit to heidelberg a favorite destination of visitors to germany. who can't stay get made his way to the baltic sea just like lots of other germans in the summer of 2020. our tour today begins in berlin. summer. riverboats on the splay. people drawn al doors by the warm sunshine. cafes and parks in the city are full even occasionally too full according to some.

the brandenburg gate berlin's most popular landmark is pretty crowded to. almost normal and still this year everything is different. the corona crisis has changed the world and our lives including tourism after lock down and travel restrictions brought to a standstill earlier this year visitors are slowly starting to trickle back and read what kind of an experience are they in for today we'll find out. after the city was essentially closed to visitors for a couple of weeks a sense of normality is slowly returning to berlin after the lockdown people seem to want to travel again. i don't mind wearing a mask and even if it's not mandatory to wear them outdoors in germany i believe we need to look out for each other. so barbara land in the middle of a pandemic how so simple one very simple we come from hamburg we've talked with

grandma and grandpa for 48 hours and berlin's within easy reach but we wanted to see something recently. from the czech republic. here apart here just for a day and a like 8 hours or so what are you planning to see everything really we're just going to see the brandenburg gate then maybe to consistent in the tag so we've just had a look around the city center now we'd like to take in a few sites maybe take a trip on the great tomorrow. is what is your experience been like so far doesn't feel weird. it's emptier than i've seen it otherwise quite a bit more relaxed when you walk around outside on the other hand it's a little annoying with the face masks when you go in somewhere but that's how it has to be. i know it's a little bit dangerous but before like there were 3 of us who we would be careful so it was whatever we. apparently most of the tourists are just. short trip

i'll move on to. i want to take the opportunity and visit this impressive building the t.v. tower due to social distancing roles only a reduced number of visitors is allowed to enter these days so at one point too crowded at the top. the t.v. tower was inaugurated in 1969. and to this day germany's highest building the interior is listed for preservation in only 40 seconds iraq is to 203 meters. and then i've got the whole world well at least at my feet. the newly rebuilt berlin palace the reichstag and the cathedral i could stand here and look for hours. ringback

ringback ringback ringback 'd 'd and will go even higher at 207 meters there's a restaurant ringback the best part the entire room rotates a full 360 every 30 minutes i'm behind one of these windows. from my coffee in the clouds i cross over to the nearby museum island and other lens tourists highlights. the illegal. in the world war what is the. article the. full life arranged to meet with christiane 10 a visit berlin the city's tourism organization has

a history tense what's open right now in berlin and what's not but the month a very good thing to visit at the moment would be the museums the restaurants are open again too and the hotels are ready to open what's not shown yet are larger events all the trade fair activity is still on hold and other events are of course very very limited because it's common are tourists coming to her land or is there some has a tense and there are far fewer visitors we're not a level between 10 and 20 percent of what we have this time last year but they're coming mainly from within. germany because there still aren't many flights many of them come by car so there are a completely different type of people. and. we've heard what would be your tip for a perfect summer day in berlin. is that more i would hop on a bicycle in the morning and take a nice bike tour it's easier to do that now firstly we have a list traffic than usual and secondly we've got pop art or temporary bike trails

but i hope they'll stay where they offer a very relaxed kind of ride especially for people who aren't used to riding bikes we have lots of parks and gardens and great bike trails you can use rudolph around noon i'd be sitting in a beer garden on the proprietors have had some fantastic ideas and the senate's been very generous about allowing tables on the sidewalks in the afternoon i go to a museum and in the evening i'd most like to take in a movie at the couture forum and enjoy the panorama of the illuminated potsdamer platz. that sounds like a lovely day thanks for the chat my pleasure. not all museums have reopened yet and for those that have visitors may have to buy tickets in advance for a certain time slot. out stroll a while longer among the history rich buildings of the museum island which by the way is listed as

a unesco world heritage site. the over bound bridge connecting the free time and crowds bird neighborhoods is a good place to wind up my corona summer day and berlin but. sometimes berlin makes it hard to believe that we're in the middle of a pandemic the city's unique spirit remains unchanged. our next destination was heidelberg. a centuries old bridge below. and enchanting old town in between. and a romantic castle altogether they make for one of germany's most popular destinations. i start by climbing the

so-called philosopher's power following in the footsteps of long gone students and scholars from heidelberg university today local people and visitors alike to this town. from the top to get the best view of the city. however it is very high up on the to do list for anyone visiting germany this summer though 2 the coronavirus pandemic has kept many travelers away what does that mean for locals and for tourists who like me do manage to come what's the city like without the masses of visitors let's find out. highly very palace is a must today it's a ruin but it's the ghostly air of mortality that makes up its charm. the castle was closed for 3 months in spring because of the lockdown now it's open

to visitors again. but to make sure our cameras didn't slow them down we got a special tour. and it started off with an important announcement because i'm afraid to guess we'll have to when mosques doing the tool i wanted to ask if it's alright with you if i take mine off. i'll keep my distance and you'll be able to understand me much better if the after hour shore no problem. of that yes then i'll take it off as just and off we get the nose out of the current. the arrows and point the way for visitors because again a bag of gives me a quick rundown of the highlight castles history. starting in the 13th century it was the residence of the prince a letter of blackness each successor renovated and expanded it according to his own taste and wishes. it was

destroyed again and again the last time by french troops in the 17th century in the 19th century preservation work on the ruins and a partial reconstruction commenced the palace of prince a letter frederick the 4th normally some of the inside chambers are open for viewing but now they're also closed due to the virus. that if one of my favorite occurs to have had a lot fewer visitors to heidelberg most of the ones we do have come from germany and we can out of that but the americans in the stations aren't coming. so it's picking up now we've noticed. when we don't give nearly as many tours as we used to . but what's a real shame is that normally the heidelberg castle theatre festival is held here in the casa leon they were hers here and that's always nice to watch for us to encompass all that's being cancelled out and it's really

a shame on the story and it's a seshat a. kind of birds old town feels almost deserted maybe it's the rain but perhaps it's also the corona crisis. to answer that question i meet up with my ts she my managing director of hydra back marketing. mr sheen or a walking across the squares here and. heidelburg how would you say the numbers of tourists has changed compared to this time last year that. in january and february we had 14 percent more overnight stays even though the pandemic was already known to be on the way but the figure struck rapidly in march and april we had cancellations of up to 100 percent in the hotels and restaurants were devoid of

life they closed up as required and it was eerie but what i think it's a yes how does a visitor figures look right now looking around we can see there are some activity of course many germans are here but how many visitors have come from abroad. and we won't leave people out in the rain we've allowed the restaurant owners to expand their outdoor seating with no extra charge for patrons are supposed to sit inside and fairly close together like some of these toys. and you can see the effects by the increase in tourists. and we profit from it hyderabad is a hot spot and we've always benefited from domestic tourism and. 70 percent of our overnight guests are domestic tourists so of course that's a nice little bonus. interest and voiced in fear that in the absence of the international tourism the whole atmosphere is a bit more relaxed and isn't that nice for the visitors coming here now that they

can take it. and enjoy the city. yes and no we're missing the international visitors title bags always been an international city that comes from the university and many of the students haven't returned here yet just because the borders are close to the international element is missing now in hyderabad. their aims finally let up at least for a little while and right away the old bridge over the next livens up a bit. and front of heidelberg university i mean historian christian villain behind the university as germany's oldest founded in 1386. the university museum is closed due to the corona crisis but the biggest tourist attraction is still open.

although where have you brought me for heaven's sake. looks a bit like a squat with graffiti all over but in fact we here in heidelberg student jail the old students prison famous at 1st the cells were a thorough really serious matter but they turned more and more into a bit of fun they were meant for misdemeanor such as public drunkenness so everybody wanted to sit in this fabled student prison at least once. after $879.00 of sentences range from 3 to a maximum of 14 days and you see there's graffiti everywhere that you can sum it up the door stood open i had to pay rent if i wanted to stay in here so it became a kind of privilege i could bring paint and get creative if i was hungry i could have food brought to me and from a fine restaurant all you want as if it was the university knew full well that that set up a kind of parties own at the late 19th century you. there's no other place

like it in germany. it's easy to get the impression that high leg is all about old historical sites not so just across the river everyone gathers on the neck of greens to enjoy the summer . even ng has fallen in heidelberg the day trippers have moved on but the tables in the restaurants and bars are crowded anyway it's a welcome piece of normalcy in the summer after crises.

and finally to find the moon our 1st trip after the initial lockdown ended in early summer. fresh air a short trip somewhere like to the baltic coast it's something i've been missing these past months just like many of us the coronavirus been demick has disrupted travel worldwide my 1st trip after being using a frist richie's germany took me to bottom and in the state of mecklenburg western pomerania. here from the lighthouse you can get a good view of the baltic resort. travelling in coronavirus times how does that look like with all the social distancing in hygiene rules it's summer in germany so it's high season and that means it can get really crowded on the beach in restrooms in hotels and i would like to know how all

those people in charge and the tourists are dealing with this situation here in volume and. holiday makers are back here involved in the end and the baltic coast and of course i'm curious to find out more about what's brought them here. where you're from cologne what brought you here and it was like baltic sea coast is the nicest coast we know we've been coming here for years. or do you still get that holiday feeling despite the coronavirus and them. salut restrictions like putting on a mask in stores aren't a big deal apart from that there aren't many restrictions we go biking swimming and jogging so for us it absolutely feels like a holiday just to a place takes good to get out again after the long lockdown. looked down as one to notice a few restrictions. but by and large when you're outdoors you don't need to sit at

all. comply with social distancing and hygiene rules. yeah yeah but not between the 2 of us. give me a kiss. rainsford have a lovely holiday. time to pay a visit to the beach and i'll rent the beach chair. it will protect me from the wind and help with social distancing. hello i'd like to rent a beach chair went to hello and welcome no problem but what do i need to do. nothing we send 2 people along who will make sure the beach chair is disinfected all you need to do is sit down relax and have a nice time. or the. beach chairs like this has been a fixture by the baltic and the north sea since the 19th century there especially

popular in germany. now all that's missing is a quick given the water. and i have to admit dives. into this chilly water it is just 17 degrees celsius is a bit daunting at 1st but once you're in and swimming it's wonderful. it's clear that the tourists are back despite the coronavirus but how are the people who live here fairing.

i'm off to meet a man with a woman who works here as a lifeguard. but what do you need to be a lifeguard. this is what you have to be athletic team player know how to swim and like the beach. that's it. but that is then what did the coronavirus mean for you as a lifeguard in that yeah at the start of the season we introduced various safety measures and restrictions. we have protective equipment for the lifeguards for the swimmers who need 1st date we have mass and so forth anybody gets that he called and we hand over the bandits rather than sticking them on ourselves. but overall we haven't had all that many covert cases in this part of germany and there aren't all that many restrictions. but. you can see that at the bench when they come through the difference in the thickness of the tunnel the muscles what about an emergency if you have to do mouth to mouth resuscitation. we're lucky because we have manual

resuscitator we're trained to use these handheld masts with self inflating bags which require no direct physical contact. so what do you like about the baltic as a minute and i'll see. the view the waves but it's always different in every kind of weather you never tire of it. the sun is really nice this year so don't forget your sunscreen. there's also a big clear this year so the view is really nice and if i had here because. all right thank your mom wouldn't. my next stop is a tour of the harbor. on board the captain bus the 1st pass along. this stretch of water that extends from

the fishing port of fundamental to the last. live on the moon to seaside resort is actually the district of the city off lost. in a hostile carver we're greeted by the cruise ship terminal normally it's busy some $200.00 cruise ships docked here and every year. the last stop shipping routes where cruise ships are built are also unusually quiet and it's still not clear how and when things will start back up again. an hour later we're on our way back to fun in the. tourism has a long tradition here the 1st hotels for tourists opened in the early 19th century . as i stroll along the probably not on this nice summer day it looks like things are

back to normal the way they were before the coronavirus trusts. you know the tourism director you're probably happy to see how packed it is here absolute of reform on sides from once when we're very happy as a regular got since the 25th of may have been able to welcome visitors again from across germany got a month and there's nothing nicer not so especially compared to the weeks before that was was very few but now we can go back to doing what we're best at providing hospitality when we go. you don't want to provide feeling guess that there are lots of tourists but the truce ships aren't here do you notice they are missing. this is what the courts want to hear yes we're missing the cruise ships and. normally we have close to $200.00 docking here which bring an international crowd to rostock environment also. into knots and this international element is missing there's

that's a shame because it adds to the flare. and the cruise ships are important to our economy. our investments in what are your hopes for vandeman in the coming months. as we hear when on 1st we hope that we'll get through the summer well with the preparations we've taken and that our vacationers enjoy themselves against would who doesn't and that the locals can see us practicing safe tourism so that we can come through the situation stronger than ever. and of course we hope that we won't have to shut down our hotels restaurants and businesses for 2 and a half months again. best for her because that would be a shame and a disaster you would hope to see you were a holiday destination and we want to be able to provide that for i guess it's. done thank you and all the best but you know.

everything's pretty relaxed here involved in the tourists are happy they can travel again and enjoy the baltic and so all the people who make their living from tourism .

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her closely. her own small. plane. this is d w news live from berlin as the pandemic costs a shadow over the christmas holidays there are signs of heart mexico chile and costa rica some of the 1st countries to begin rolling out the file and take pfizer coronavirus vaccine to day to day communities as other nations around the world get ready also on the program police say an explosion in nashville tennessee waltz and

intentional bombing 3 people injured and suspected human remains are found when the marshall holiday exploits damaging the.