Stralsund has one of the best natural harbors in the Baltic. The town is separated from the island of Rügen by a narrow sea channel, the Strait of Bodden, and makes its living mainly from shipyards, fishing fleets and, to an increasing degree, tourism. Stralsund boasts a picturesque network of canals, coves, and lakes, as well as more half-timbered 19th-century houses and a more intact sense of history than many other cities on Germany's Baltic coast.