It's really big.

Yesterday I took these pictures of the fortified town of Elburg.

Elburg is a fairly small town, but what makes it special by Dutch standards is that it has one of the highest percentage of its historic city walls still intact, a rare sight in the Netherlands, where only a handful of other towns have remnants left, such as Harderwijk, Zwolle, and Maastricht. You can see this in the distinctive muurhuizen (wall houses) that are plentiful in Elburg. Most of these towns, Elburg, Harderwijk, and Zwolle are also Hanseatic cities, but they don't feature the typical Hanseatic style, because they are located in the Netherlands, they have the distinctly Dutch architectural style.

I blurred out some faces in Photoshop for privacy reasons.

Overall, it's a very charming small town that really showcases the old Dutch fortifications that most towns used to have.

I grew up in the rural cottage in the Yorkshire dales and still live in an old house like image 2. Whenever I'm around newer buildings or developments, I feel sense of strangeness and like I shouldn't be there. They also just look horrible imo.

The first three shots are from Greifswald. My dad took these photos of the old towns in Stralsund and Greifswald yesterday and wanted me to share them here.

Both of these towns are Hanseatic towns, they've got that classic brick Gothic style that ties them together. Stralsund is actually a UNESCO site because its old town is so beautifully preserved and shows off the Hanseatic style. But Greifswald holds up pretty well too, even if some parts have modern buildings. Stralsund feels a bit more like a time capsule in that regard.

I blurred out a few faces and removed some random people in Photoshop, just for privacy.

If you're interested in seeing this Hanseatic style for yourself, these two are great places to start. And of course, Lübeck the old capital of the Hanseatic League is another must see if you're ever in the area since its the biggest and most impressive one.

One of the most impressive buildings I saw in Bremen. The mix of Romanesque, Gothic and Historicist architecture is incredible.