Zitadelle

I can't nurse my sore foot forever, so today I padded it well and M and I set off to visit the Spandau Citadel. 

Truth be told, I was glad to have M with me, as the transport connections to get there are a little complicated. But that wouldn't have stopped me from going alone. I've gotten "misplaced" in Germany more than once, and I've always found my way back.

I first learned of the existence of the Citadel from this image on Pinterest, so the Julius Tower was one of the things I most wanted to see. According to my guidebook, Spandauer Zitadelle is

     "one of the most important and best preserved Renaissance fortresses in the world. With it's moat, drawbridge and arrowhead-shaped bastions, it is also a veritable textbook in military architecture."

However, it has evolved through the years and was used as recently as WW2 as a munitions depot.

I also learned that the Citadel is home to about 10,000 native bats, with a viewing room open to the public. So, of course, I also wanted to see the "bat cave". 

After an early lunch at home, we set off via U Bahn and bus. Either is an easy walk from the fortress, with the bus stop right outside the gates and the subway a short walk down the street. The bus ride was rather long, so we chose the subway for the trip home.

The bridge leading to the fortress has railings that
depict the history of helmets, from knights to 1939.

The bridge crosses the moat.

After buying our tickets, we failed to notice the door to the left that told us to start our circular route there. It turned out to be the only way into the Julius Tower, which is wrapped in scaffolding. 

This is not the door. A door, but not THE door.

We didn't find the door until 15 minutes before closing, so I never made it inside the tower; by then my legs weren't interested in one more set of stairs.

Instead of the door, we passed through the archway into the courtyard. Other than being inside a curtain wall, this could have been any German town square. The architecture, for the most part, did not look Renaissance, and reflected the various centuries of use. 

This was where we came into the courtyard

Building 4, the larger building on the left side of the courtyard as you enter, houses artists' studios and the bat cave viewing room.  

Building 4 is the taller of the two connected buildings.

None of the artists were in residence today. However the bat viewing room was open. It's accessible, in the basement, through the center entrance of the building. No one was in attendance, but there was an abundance of information about bats and bat behavior on display. The viewing room was small and very dark. The bats were visible (behind glass) when they flew about, but hard to see when hanging. There were a couple corners, close to the lighting (black lights?) where they were visible, but mostly not. Even sitting in the dark and letting the eyes adjust didn't help much. So... no photos were possible. 

After leaving Building 4, we climbed the ramp to the battlements. 

This ramp was probably built to accommodate horses.

We walked first to the King's bastion on the front of the fortress. In the center of the bastion was a hill planted with ancient chestnut trees. 

From the top of the hill, it was possible to see the surrounding city, as well as the water defenses. 

The benches and the low volume of human foot-traffic made this hillock a nice place to sit, and I could imagine paying the small admission price and bringing a book to while away the hours on a summer day. (Unlike most parks, the fortress has restrooms.)

It was also possible to get a view of most of the courtyard below.

From one of the defensive positions, we spotted what I've tentatively identified as a Gray Heron sitting at the top of a tree, probably guarding a nest.

A little fuzzy because I was on maximum possible zoom.

The circular path led next to the Crown Prince Bastion. This corner is topped with a cannon tower.

Unfortunately, it was not possible to go inside.

From the wall, it was possible to see the Havel River, which passes through Brandenburg. Note the swan in the lower right corner of the photo.

The circular route is not yet complete, so we had to descend from the wall and walk a ways before climbing again to see the next short stretch, in the Brandenburg Bastion, that was accessible. Other than a closer view of the Havel, there was not much to see. I think the only reason that stretch is open right now is that they use a small building at the top for a children's art school.

The rest of the wall, including the Queen's Bastion is not yet ready for visitors, but along that side of the courtyard are two museum buildings. The first, a long low building, is a cannon museum, the back part of which has a non-related exhibit on  fishing and a collection of statuary. 

Along the walls are other displays relating to the history of warfare. While wandering through, I was struck by the amount of ornate artwork that was lavished on objects of destruction.

The second building is a museum, which was the only place they asked for our tickets. M spent some time wandering through, but I was more comfortable sitting outside and reading while waiting for him. 

The building on the right is the museum; on the left is the cannon display.

From there we made our preparations for departure and noticed the door we'd missed upon arrival.

My overall observation is that some day this will be a wonderful attraction. Right now, they're still in the development and restoration stage, with scaffolding and construction everywhere. 

The barracks, at the far end of the courtyard. Note the scaffolding.

What is accessible is still worth a visit, but it was a bit of a disappointment, since there was so much we couldn't see.

Parting shot, because I like it, of
the sun getting low in the sky over the moat.