St. Nikolai, the cathedral where Caspar David Friedrich's baptism took place, belongs to the most impressive sacred buildings of Northern Germany. If the visibility is high, it may feel like you are able to touch the islands Rügen and Usedom. The church was first mentioned in a document in the year 1280. In 1456, the university's year of foundation, the church St. Nikolai was consecrated to become a cathedral. The cathedral received its current Romantic-New Gothic interior between 1824 and 1833 by the works of the painter and architect Gottlieb Giese, a student of the famous German architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel.
Those who wish to explore the geological past and 14,000 years of history, culture and arts of this holiday region, just have to plan o visit to the Pomeranian Regional Museum. From the market place of Greifswald you'll reach the bright museum area on the former grounds of the Franciscan monastery taking only a few steps. lt is embedded into the historical ramparts surrounding the town like a green belt. The charming ensemble around the monastery's library, the former town school and the former poorhouse and old people's home “Grey Monastery” hosts the permanent exhibition about the geological and regional history of Pomerania, the art gallery, the monastery gardens, regularly changing special exhibitions and a department for museum pedagogics.
