08/12/2015

Exploring Places XXIV: Frankfurt, Germany

A new postcard has arrived from FRANKFURT.

Frankfurt
WHERE IS FRANKFURT?

Frankfurt am Main is the largest city in the German state of Hessen and the fifth-largest city in Germany.

Location of Frankfurt

FRANKFURT IS FAMOUS FOR...

being the birthplace of Germany's greatest writer, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832).

J.W. Goethe
...its sausages

German sausages
...its Christmas market.

Frankfurt's Christmas market
PLACES TO VISIT

The Senckenberg Museum
The Senckenberg Museum is the largest museum of natural history in Germany; it showcases thousands of exhibits, ranging from fossil amphibiens, and Egyptian mummies.

The Senckenberg Museum
The Romenberg
The Römerberg ("Roman Mountain") is the historic heart of Frankfurt and home to its City Hall.

The Römenberg
Cider Taverns In Sachsenausen

Sachsenausen Taverns

The signature drink of Frankfurt is "Apfelwein", or "Ebbelwoi" as the Frankfurters say; a light alcoholic apple cider that is produced in the regions around Frankfurt.

The Old Opera House
In the heart of Frankfurt's Opera Square (Opernplatz), the Old Opera House (Alte Oper) was constructed in 1880 in the style of the Italian High Renaissance. Although destroyed during WWII (it reopened in 1981), it remains one of the city's most important concert venues.

Frankfurt Opera House
St. Bartholomew's Cathedral
Roman Catholic St. Bartholomew's Cathedral (Frankfurter Dom, or Dom St. Bartholomäus), was built of red sandstone in Gothic style between the 13th and 15th centuries, and at 95 meters, still manages to stand out in this city of skyscrapers. One of only a handful of churches in Germany to be designated as an Imperial Cathedral, it was here from 1562 to 1792 that the coronation of Emperors took place in the Election Chapel. Beneath the tower is the magnificent Crucifixion by Hans Backoffen, sculpted in 1509, while in the Marienkapelle is the Maria-Schlaf-Altar from 1434. Other highlights include the grave-slab of King Günter von Schwarzburg who died in Frankfurt in 1349, as well as numerous carved side altars dating from the 15th and 16th centuries. The cathedral's most important relic is the skullcap of St. Bartholomew, kept in the Late Romanesque Bartholomew's Choir.

St. Bartholomew's Cathedral, Frankfurt
The Palm Garden

On the Bockenheimer Landstrasse is the beautiful 54-acre Palm Garden (Palmengarten), the largest botanic garden in Germany. An instant hit with the public upon its opening in 1871, it attracted some of the top performers from around the world, including Buffalo Bill who visited with his Wild West show in 1890. The gardens also offer recreational facilities such as boating, a children's playground, and picnic spots.

The Palm Garden
The Hauptwache

In the middle of the city and undoubtedly one of Frankfurt's busiest pedestrian areas, the Hauptwache - literally translated, the Main Guard - is famous for its mix of fine old historic buildings and newer modern structures. The most notable building here is the old Baroque Guard House after which the square is named.

The Hauptwache
LIFESTYLE
If you want to find out what Frankfurt has to offer to anyone living there, watch the video below.




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1 comment:

  1. Great article. I will apply for Germany visa in a couple of days, and I was wondering what the places to go to visit Frankfurt are. You gave some very interesting places, and I am really excited to go there to discover by myself the city.

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