Arts & Crafts East Germany

5crafts to try and buy in Germany

The best souvenirs tell a tale, and if you peel back the layers of East Germany’s contemporary craft scene you’ll get a glimpse into its past – and come home with a story to share

1SCREEN PRINTS The East German city of Leipzig established a printing industry in 1650, and by the mid-19th century it had garnered a reputation worldwide. Learn more on a guided tour of Leipzig Museum of Printing Arts, which is housed in a former print works. druckkunst-museum.de

2PORCELAIN The town of Rudolstadt has long been known for its porcelain, as the surrounding region of Thuringia is naturally rich in its key ingredients – kaolin, quarzsand and feldspat. Volkstedter Porzellanmanufaktur was founded in the town in 1762, and has since joined forces with four other companies to form Die Porzellanmanufakturen.

3BRASS INSTRUMENTS As the birthplace of the composer Wagner and the resting place of Bach, Leipzig has a strong connection with the music world. Today, visitors to the ‘city of music’ can explore the Museum of Musical Instruments and play brass instruments in Vogt Instruments. uni-leipzig.de

4PLAYING CARDS While the first mention of playing cards was in 1377 in Florence, Italy, the earliest known card is said to come from Germany’s Altenburg, and was dated 1509. Playing cards were originally a luxury, and the city’s middle classes are credited with inventing the game of Skat around 1810. The game soon spread across the country, and is still played today.

5CRYSTAL The town of Arnstadt, near Erfurt, has been associated with crystal since 1947, when the master engraver Heinrich Arlt founded Arnstadt Kristall to keep alive the traditions of his homeland – what is now the Czech Republic. The company has since produced tableware for Germany’s Federal Chancellor, the Sultans of Oman and Brunei and the Cocktail World Champion Mario Hofferer.

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WHERE TO BUY…

Screen prints

Take a screen-printing class at Thaler Originalgrafik, a gallery in Hall 14 of Spinnerei, a former cotton mill in Leipzig that’s now home to a hip creative community. thaler-originalgrafik.de

Porcelain

Tour Rudolstadt’s factory to learn how porcelain sculptures are made. You can create your own masterpiece and browse the shop, and buy contemporary pieces from Claudia Biehne in Spinnerei in Leipzig. Tour £8.50; tour and workshop £12.80. die-porzellanmanufakturen. de; Claudia Biehne – biehne-porzellan.de

Brass instruments

Matthias Vogt opened Vogt Instruments in 2007. Tour the shop to watch how brass instruments are made and repaired and have a go at making parts for a trumpet. Free. vogt-instruments.com

Playing cards

Altenburg Castle has been home to a playing card museum since 1923. Take a tour to see rare, miniature and triangular cards. You can also print your own set. Tour £6.80; tour and workshop £9.40. residenzschlossaltenburg.de

Crystal

Tour Arnstadt Kristall to learn how crystal is cut by diamond then polished, engraved and painted. You can attempt to engrave a flower on a glass – which is harder than it looks – then browse items in the shop. Free. arnstadt-kristall.com

UNDISCOVERED ALBERTA

How to go beyond the icons of this incredible part of Canada

Alberta is home to some of Canada’s most iconic sights including Banff, Lake Louise, the Columbia Icefields and Jasper National Park. But hiring a car and driving beyond the well-travelled road will reveal some lesser-known experiences...

EXPLORE THE CITIES

Start in Calgary, a culturally-rich city that makes a great gateway to Alberta’s wild places. Atop Calgary’s Nose Hill Park sits Siksikaitsitapi Medicine Wheel, a sacred Blackfoot collection of stones. Check out Studio Bell, home of the National Music Centre to see the Rolling Stones Mobile Recording Studio. Next, stroll Music Mile from East Village to Inglewood to hear local, live music. More culture can be soaked up at the Central Library where you can join the Elder’s Guidance Circle to ask an indigenous elder about their history and traditions.

Drive three hours north to Edmonton to learn of First Nations’ and Métis peoples’ histories at the Indigenous Peoples Experience in Fort Edmonton Park. After, tour the city’s Arts District before perusing the Art Gallery of Alberta.

MEET THE LOCALS

Descendants of Alberta’s earliest residents welcome visitors to several sights including the recently opened Métis Crossing, 90 minutes north of Edmonton, which offers storytelling, crafts and exhibits about the Métis people. See herds of white bison and stay in a luxury lodge under the stars. Further south, at Blackfoot Crossing Historical Park – where Treaty 7 was signed – you can learn about Siksika language, culture and traditions. Further south again at the UNESCO-listed Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump World Heritage Site over 6,000 years of Plains Buffalo culture is preserved.

Albertans are also proud of their western heritage. Step onto one of the country’s most famous ranches at the Bar U Ranch National Historic Site to learn about traditional cowboy lifestyles. If visiting in July, why not visit the thrilling Calgary Stampede to meet modern-day cowboys and visit the Indigenous Village?

Alberta adventures

(clockwise from this) Every autumn, Alberta’s larch trees turn the landscape golden; Edmonton is the capital of Alberta; HeadSmashed-In Buffalo Jump was designated a National Historic Site in 1968

ESCAPE THE CROWDS IN NATURE

As well as its world-famous national parks, seek out Alberta’s lesser known natural spots to escape from the crowds. Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park in the south is home to elk, white-tailed deer and moose. Spend your days hiking, paddling and biking before bedding down at the Elkwater Lake Lodge and Resort.

Around 30 minutes east of Edmonton is Elk Island National Park where you can search for the park’s moniker as well as bison and more than 250 species of birds, before sleeping at a nearby Edmonton hotel. Or why not spend a night under the stars in one of Elk Island Retreat’s geodomes?

Tiny Waterton Lakes National Park is a haven for black and grizzly bears as well as cougars and wolves. In summer, the park is an explosion of wildflowers, making for a picture-perfect ending to your Alberta adventure.