Dresden 2011

Our friend, Mark, visited for a week in October. Mark had visited Koblenz in the past and so wanted to see some other part of Germany while he was here. The facts that had seen some pictures of Dresden while watching the Women's World Cup games that took place in the "Florence on the Elbe" and that Dresden is the sister city of Columbus, Ohio, our hometown, made Dresden a logical choice for a visit.

Dresden is almost exactly a 5 hour drive from Koblenz. With Mark arriving on a Monday, returning the following Sunday, spending a day at BUGA, and another day on a hike around Koblenz, that left 3 days to drive to Dresden and see the city.

On a rainy Wednesday mourning, we got into the car and started off to Dresden. Driving east from Koblenz in not the easiest thing. The autobahn system is much more geared to North-South traffic. There is a good autobahn traveling southeast to Limburg. East from there are a combination of  an two lane highways and limited access highways (autobahn "want-a-be"s) that seem to be under continual construction but that does take the traveler through the farmlands of Hessen and the "dead zone" around the former border to the DDR. Then a few kilometers before the former border, the highway becomes a wonderful new autobahn. So new that for a large part of the remainder of our journey, our two year old GPS showed us racing across the green fields of Thuringen at 130 km/hr while it kept trying to correct our route to some abandoned road to the south.'

Dresden's Frauenkirche

We arrived in Dresden in the early afternoon and found our hotel, a newly opened ETAP conveniently located near at the Altmarkt. ETAP is one of the budget chains that is a part of the Accor hotel group. They have opened a number of new ETAP hotels in  major cities across Europe. While these new ETAPs have the ambiance of a youth hostel, they are inexpensive, clean and located near the tourist attractions. Obviously if  you feel that a part of traveling is enjoying drinks at the hotel bar or relaxing in a plush hotel room, ETAP is not for you. The Dresden ETAP had been opened just two months, was clean, had helpful staff, was in walking distance of the major attractions and was quite cheap. While it suited us just fine, I have to agree with the review I read that suggested that the room designs are such that you would only consider sharing a room with people that you are very close to.

After checking in, we took off, map in hand, to get our bearings and to visit at least one museum. The majority of the Baroque reconstructions in Dresden are centrally located in the Altstadt along the Elbe. The reconstruction of the buildings destroyed during the Feburary 1945 bombings started during the DDR time and continues today. Reconstruction of the 18th century Frauenkirche, a symbol of Dresden, took 13 years and was completed in 2005, one year before the 800th anniversary of the city founding.

A large part of Dresden's Altstadt (Old City) is pedestrian only, so it is great for strolling. As I mentioned, the areas is fairly compact, but big enough to have a lot of interesting buildings packed into them. Included in this area are the Frauenkirche, the Opera, the Hofkirche, the Fürstenzug, the palaces containing the major museums, and the river front.  The fact that there is a similarity in the architecture style and construction materials, seems to make it seem like there is more. There are open areas with interesting sight lines, and small streets. There are unexpected and elaborate fountains. The river front is dramatic. There is a thriving restaurant and bistro scene with tables spilling on to the streets and filled with people, even on a cold day. Or if warmth is desired, you can sit behind the large glass windows enjoying your favorite drink and a bit of people watching. The only negative thing about the restaurants in Altstadt is that a number of them seem to be parts of larger restaurant groups as a lot of the names are recognizable if you spent any time in Munich or Berlin.

Most of the Baroque buildings in Altstadt have been built with the same stone. That may not be obvious at first as a number of the buildings are black, while the the newer ones are a light brown. Our first thought is that some of these builds just need a good cleaning, but that is not the case. Rather the stone contains iron that oxidizes when exposed to the air. Over time, all the building will take on this blackness.

After strolling around the Altstadt, it is possible to continue across the Augustus Bridge to Neustadt (New City). The "new" here is relative. This part of Dresden dates back to 1732. There is still a neighborhood of Baroque builds that survived the bombings, although it is necessary to pass though a block of post WWII soviet style buildings to get there. There are a number of small antique shops (most selling Meissen) and other small shops that are interesting to visit. Also a number of restaurants that seem locally owned and are a bit less expensive than in Altstadt.

For centuries, Dresden has been a cultural and artistic center. Through its Brücke artists, Dresden was a very important city in the development of expressionism. For this reason, our first museum we headed for was the Galerie Neue Meister (the Galley of New Masters). Unfortunately, the expressionist collection was not as large as we had hoped. In retrospect this may have been more a problem with our expectation. Expressionism was after all considered "decadent art" during the Hitler years, and likely had little following in the post-WWII authoritarian government. There was a handful of paintings from the Brücke artists, and a number of seldom seen impressionist and post-impressionist to make the trip worthwhile.

Probably the most interesting collection at the Galerie Neue Meister was a special exhibition called the Neue Sachlichkeit (the New Objectivity). During the 1920s, Dresden, Hanover and Karlsruhe became centers for this new artistic style that attempted to depict the emotional reality of the post-WWI life around them. The pictures were of unemployed people, war invalids, as well as working women and children. Some were hard  to look at, others beautiful in their elegant depictions. All showed the wide-spread depression of life in Germany at this time, the Germany that gave birth to Hitler.

The surprising highlight of the visit was the Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister (Old Masters Picture Gallery). In honor of the 500th anniversary of Dresden's most famous painting, Raphael's Sistine Modonna. Well you might not be familiar with the painting, I'm guessing that most people have seen a part of it. That is the two angels at the bottom might be the most famous two angels ever painted. In honor the this anniversary and the pope's visit to Germany this year, the museum had a special exhibition of Madonnas from a number of famous painters. Included here was another Madonna that Raphael painted at the same time. Since this second Madonna is owned by and has never left the Vatican, this was the first time the two painting have appeared together since they were in Raphael's workshop 500 years ago. 

The Gallery also a wonderful collection of Dutch School paintings that include a number of impressive Rembrandts and delightful Vermeer (Girl reading a Letter at an Open Window). 

Visiting Friends in Normandy

As the son of a history teacher who grew up in the shadow of WWII, when we decided to accept the invitation from a couple of friends to visit them in Normandy, there was little choice about one part of our literary. We did visit Omaha Beach and the American Cemetery near by. It was an emotional experience, but only one of many highlights from our trip.

Two of our neighbors in Columbus were working in France. Jim is a medievalist and Ann is an expert in Gothic art, both former professors of art at the Ohio State University. Jim has spend part of the last 20 years studying the Abbey at Jumièges. So when we got an invitation to visit them and perhaps see a bit of Gothic France through the eyes of these experts, we jumped at the chance.

Tympanum of the central west portal
Amiens Catheral

On the way to Jumièges, we stopped in Amiens to see the Notre Dame Cathedral there. This cathedral, started in the 13th century, has the highest ceiling  of all completed cathedrals in France, and also largest interior volume. The exterior of the cathedral is famous for the quality of the sculpture on the north and west entries, and for the tall central spire. The interior is surprisingly light, with large nave and chancel. The ambulatory around the choir provides access to a number of richly decorated chapels. The floor of the nave features a large labyrinth (walking the labyrinth was equivalent to a pilgrimage to Jerusalem) and swastikas that in the 13th century symbolized the triumph over death by Jesus.

Jumièges is a small town on the Seine. It one major tourist attraction is the ruins of the Benedictine Monastery that was founded in 654 AD. The monastery operated up until the French Revolution (which was as much a revolution against the church as against the monarchy). At the time of the Revolution, it was one of the largest monastery complexes in France, containing two churches, cloister, library, walls, and a number of other buildings made from the white limestone quarried in the area. But after the revolution, it was closed and sold off. The owner used the complex as a quarry, tearing down the buildings and selling off the stones. What is left is impressive and beautiful, but gives only a hint at the former glory, as the slide show below indicates.



On the second day, we made it to Omaha Beach, but not before stopping off in Bayeaux to see the famous tapestry from the 1070s that illustrates the story of William's conquest of England. It is wonderfully displayed    behind glass, but at eye level. The audio guide that is provided as a part of the admission fee explains the illustrations as you walk along the 70 meter tapestry. Afterwards a short film tells a little more about the history of the tapestry.

Cliffs above Omaha Beach

Outwardly, Omaha Beach now appears for the most part to be just another a beach. But there are a few hint to the events of June 6. Most visibly are the two memorials on the beach dedicated to these events. Then is the museum that you pass just before arriving at the beach. And, of couse, there is the constant flow of tour buses, even on a an October day, bringing Americans, mostly my age or older it appears, on their pilgrimage to this hollowed ground in American history. Seeing the cliffs above the beach, you have to wonder how the US troops were able to over come such a disadvantage (and why such a spot would chosen to send these troops). The American Military Cemetery not far away is a reminder of the exactly what it did cost. It is a beautifully manicured cemetery overlooking the ocean and is deeply respectful of the sacrifice of these troops and a reminder for anyone that visits. I wanted to weep. It was only a couple of hours, but it was emotional.

The third day was spent in Rouen. Maybe it was that I didn't really have high expectations, but I as blown away by this city. It has a incredible wealth of 5-6 story, half-timbered medieval buildings. It just seemed like street after street, on both sides, we were fascinated by one building after another. Then there is the cathedral. You know the one that Monet painted in various lighting. The interior isn't much, but the exterior is pretty special. We were particularly intrigued by the reliefs and sculptures of the north portal. The following slide show contains pictures of some of these carvings that we found interesting.

Discoveries on the Way to Meck-Pomm: Lübeck

The first time that I saw Lübeck was returning from a trip to Copenhagen in 1991 (the year that I worked in Germany). I remember seeing the Holstentor (the main gate to Lübeck) from the train. It was impressive, but not impressive enough to make me go back to visit. Boy was I wrong. Walking through the streets of Lübeck is a delight. Perhaps my favorite city in Germany. Certainly on any short list of favorites.

The Lúbeck Altstadt (old town) sits on an island in Trave. It was the capital of the Hanseatic League, the cartel of German and Dutch cities that controlled north-south trade routes in the 13th to 17th centuries. It has maintained much of the medieval character as befitting an important harbor town during this period. The preferred building material was brick, red or glazed black (stone quarries don't exist in the low lands near the ocean), giving the city a feel of architectural unity.

The Hostentor on the west side of the city, was build between 1469 and 1479. It was the second gate of the main entry through the city's perimeter walls (it actually predate the building of the walls). Now it stands in the middle of a small park at the end of the main bridge into the city. Like many of the medieval brick buildings in Lübeck, the Hostentor has quite a lean to it today. Still it is among the most famous buildings in Germany, and so use to be on the 50 deutschmark bill.

The Rathaus (city hall) dating from 1250 sits between the Markplatz and Breite Straße, the main pedestrian shoping street in Lübeck. On Breite Straße across from the Rathaus is Cafe Niederegger, a Mecca for lovers of marzipan (like me).

Marienkirche is the largest, and oldest brick Gothic churches in Germany. It was started in 1250 and was used as a model for 40 some brick Gothic churches in North Germany. The church was bombed in 1942, starting a fire that burned the supports for the bells. This caused the bells to soften by the heat of the fire and to fall from the bell tower.The partially melted bells remain today where they fell in 1942 at the base of the south tower, a reminder to the horror of war.

Next to the church is the Buddenbrookhaus. This house was owned by the grandfather of Heinrich and Thomas Mann. The brothers were frequent guests in the house in their youth. Thomas Mann used the house in his famous book Buddedbrooks about the rise and fall of a patrician family in Lübeck.

Henry the Lion laid the corner stone of the Romanesque Cathedral in 1173. The cathedral was finished in 1230. Henry the Lion was the Duke of Saxony from 1140 to 1180 and Duke of Bavaria from 1156 to 1180. In addition to founding Lübeck, he is credited with the founding of Munich, Lüneburg and Braunschweig. The 'Paraise', the Gothic entrance way to the north trancept was added in 1260. In the interior of the church is a large Gothic Crucifix made between 1470 and 1477. The south tower has a noticeably southern lean to it. Two large steel beams connecting the north and south towers have been added to prevent further leaning. I haven't found anything that explains to the reason for this lean. My speculation would be that it is connected with the bombing of 1942 that damaged east and north sections of the church. Reconstruction was delayed several years because priority was given to Marienkirche. It was finished in 1982.

Two other churches worth noting are the Katharinenkirche and Petrikirche. The 14th centruy facade of Katharinenkirche contain rows of niches that hold statues. The first three left of the lowest row of niches hold statues made by Ernst Barlach, a late 19th to early 20th century expressionist sculptor, printmaker and writer. Petrikirche has an elevator that takes the visitor to an observation tower in the top of the tower, offering fantastic views of the city.

But this list of sights does not do justice to the feeling one gets just meandering the small winding streets of this ancient city with their brick row houses. Or setting at a table in an outdoor cafe along the Trave, watching the boaters while the city towers are reflected off the still waters of the river. It is a truly beautiful city.

Frannie's favorite thing was the park that had been created where one of the city wall use to stand. The city invites people to let their dogs run off leash in this park, a rarity in Germany.

Interestingly, shortly after we returned from our vacation, the New York Times Travel Section had an article about Lübeck. Click here to take a look at their advice.

Discoveries on the Way to Meck-Pomm: Bremen

A little over a week after returning from Switzerland, we took a second trip during Magda's school summer break. Friends of ours have a vacation apartment in a "castle" in Meck-Pomm. Meck-Pomm is short for Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, one of the former East German Bundeslands (sort of the German equivalent to a State in the USA) that were incorporated into German Republic after the collapse of East Germany.

It was about an 8 or 9 hour drive to the castle. For a couple of reasons, I have grown to prefer making such longer drives on a Sunday. The biggest reason is that there are very few trucks on the autobahn on Sunday. On the other days of the week, there are so many trucks on the autobahn that the right lane is often unusable by regular autos. As Sunday is a national day of rest in Germany, most workers (including truck drivers) are not allowed to work. The second and related reason is that because the businesses in a city are also closed, it becomes easy to slip into a city to walk around for a few hours and see the sights (restaurants, museums, and other tourist related businesses are allowed to remain open).

So looking for a way to break up our drive, we noticed that Breman and Lübeck, two cities that I had never visited  were on our route. Lübeck is one of the 3 star cities according to Michelin Green Guide (Michelin's highest rating for a town or attraction). It and Bremen (two stars) are two of German's Hanseatic League cities. The Hanseatic League was a alliance of cities along the North Sea and Baltic Sea that controlled north-south trade routes from the 13th to 17th centuries. The drive to Bremen would take about 5 hours and Lúbeck would take an additional hour, a pretty good chunk of the anticipated 8-9 hour drive to the castle. The idea was to visit Breman on the way to Lübeck, staying two nights in Lübeck before heading on to Meck-Promm.

After a pleasant 5 hour drive one Sunday morning in late July, we arrived in the Bremen Markplatz. Bremen is a relatively large city, the 10th largest city in German with approximately 550,000 inhabitants, on the banks of the Weser river. It is Germany's oldest maritime city with market rights from 965. Trade with the USA started in 1783. If you have German ancestors that immigrated to the USA in the 18th or early 19th century, they most likely came on a boat from Bremen.  In 1358 it joined the Hanseatic League. You can see the early importance of the city in the large Markplatz surrounded by historical buildings. The Rathaus (i.e. City Hall, "Rat" is the German word for "advice", not a reference to the animal), that was originally a Gothic brick building built between 1405 and 1410, dominates the north side of the square. However,the facade with many decorative gables in the Weser Renaissance style was added in the 17th century.  In front of the Rathaus is the 10 meter high statue of Roland holding the sword of justice. On the west side of the Rathaus is statue of the Bremen Town Musicians made famous in Grimm's Fairy Tales.

Next to the City Hall in one corner of the square is the Cathedral St. Petri. Construction on the Cathedral started in the 11th century in the Romanesque style. In the 13th century, additions to the Cathedral in early and late Gothic were built.

On the south side of the Markplatz is the Schütting, an elegant 16 century building with a Flemish inspired facade that use to house Bremen's Guild of Merchants. East and west are pubs (serving Becks beer, of course), cafes and restaurants.

Off the south side of the Markplatz is the Böttcherstraße was transformed in 1923–1931 by the coffee magnate Ludwig Roselius. He commissioned local artists form the near by artist community of Worpswede  to convert the narrow street into a mixture of Gothic and Jungendstil (i.e. the German equivalent to the French Art Nouveau). It was considered degenerate art by the Nazis. Today, the street is one of Bremen's most popular attractions.

Not far from the Marktplatz is the the Schnoor. This is a small, well-preserved area of crooked lanes that in the 17th and 18th centuries was occupied by fishermen and shippers. It is now occupied by cafés, artisan shops and art galleries. Reminded a lot of German Village in my hometown of Columbus.

After spending a couple of hours in Bremen, we headed to the village of Worpswede, 20 km north. In the late 18th century, this village began attracting artists, many of which made important contributions to the Jungendstil movement in the early 19th century. Still a center for artists, we happened to arrive on the week-end of the annual open house where artists open there workshops to visitors. The most interesting artist for me was an man in his 70s who worked in wood inlay in the way that "his father and grandfather taught him". Using different types of woods and stains, this gentleman recreated photos and drawings in unbelievable detail. One that I could not take my eyes off of was the recreation of black and white photo of a tree. My eyes kept moving back and forth between the photo of the tree and the wood inlay next to it. It was hard to believe the detail of the photo that he was able to capture  in the inlay.

We would have liked to stay longer among the thatch-roofed houses of Worpswede, but we needed to get to Lübeck, the subject of the next blog.