Dresden

(Okay, so this pic's from Leipzig...)

It's a good thing that I like pastries so much, or I'd probably weight about five pounds by now, with all of the walking that I've been doing here! The Altstadt and Neustadt of Dresden are fairly close together and many of the main sights (museums, etc) are located in those areas. Instead of bothering with the public transit system -- though the streetcars here look quite nice and efficient -- I decided to wander on foot. (Speaking of that, awesome DDR crossing signals!)

Light and dark stones

Dresden is an extremely beautiful place, with tons of (rebuilt) historical buildings in the center. The main part of the city was something like 90% destroyed in an infamous one-night bombing campaign in 1945 and that is reflected in a number of ways. For one, many of the rebuilt buildings, such as churches and palaces, are very dark and some seemingly-randomly alternate between dark and light stone. I have not yet confirmed this, but my guess is that the dark stone was burnt in the firestorm/blitzkrieg/whatever you want to call it that was caused by the bombing. The light stone, then, would be replacements for that which was destroyed beyond recognition. Hopefully I'll find out more about that tomorrow when I visit the Stadtmuseum (City Museum). (I also hope to learn about the rebuilding, part of this city that interests me.)

(Side note: I'm in the bar at the top of my hotel right now and apparently 20:00 is the magic hour for old German men to come out of the woodwork. Ten minutes ago, there were very few people in here and now nearly the entire bar area is full of grey-haired men drinking what I assume is beer.)

My hostel/hotel/whatever is about half a kilometer from the Hauptbahnhof, which is itself directly south of the Altstadt. The boundary between the Alt- and Neu- stadt is the Elbe River. The first task, then, was to explore the Altstadt (and also find breakfast). I found a number of things on this wander. (The city is also nice enough to post maps every few blocks, so I wasn't worried about getting lost so long as I stayed in one of the major areas.)

The Altmarkt (old market) area is getting ready for a festival. I saw the setup yesterday, but had been unsure as to what was going on until I saw a poster today advertising a festival. ...of course, I've gone and forgotten what it's a festival of, but I'll be sure to check it out tomorrow, on its opening day. I read somewhere recently that the Altmarkt was completely destroyed in the bombing, but restored with the same types of architecture surrounding it as was there beforehand. I have plenty of pictures, once I can upload them.

(Side note 2: Ten minutes later and most of them are leaving. Huh.)

Rebuilt!

Another major landmark in Dresden is the Frauenkirche, which is an imposing structure. The rebuilding of the church, with its unique dome, was hailed as a sign of peace between nations. It sounds as though the church was already a major part of Dresden's identity before the war, at least from current literature. The image of the dome falling, the day (?) after the bombing, is noted as important in that chapter of history. (Being an academic, I feel horrible that I'm not providing citations for these things! Gah!) Unfortunately, I was at the church at the wrong time to enter. I hope to go in tomorrow.

Also rebuilt!

Speaking of churches, I found Dreikönigskirche, a Lutheran church in the Neustadt. It was difficult to take photos of the building, as it was surrounded by trees. I went in nonetheless, and was happily greeted by a gorgeous alter, which was also rebuilt. It was a stone carving of a biblical scene, much more interesting workmanship than would be found in Lutheran churches in America. I tried to buy a postcard of the alter for my grandfather, but I managed to be there when the little giftshop was closed. Poo. It was interesting to contrast the Catholic and Protestant churches. I had been only in the former so far, large cathedrals that include features, such as the Stations of the Cross, a chapel/area for Mary, and the like, which are not found in Protestant churches. It seemed a bit...small...in comparison.

More rebuilding!

After walking through some other famous areas, such as the Zwinger, I decided to visit the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, which is located in a (rebuilt) castle. It has long been host to the Historiches Grünes Gewölbe (Historical Green Vault), a collection of treasures from the time of King August and his descendants. The entire palace is now a museum with a few permanent and a few moving exhibits. Certain floors of the building were not finished, which I'm sure has some significance. That was not mentioned, but I'd guess that it (again) has to do with the fact that it is another rebuilt building.

(Side note 3: Another twenty minutes and a few of the old men are back, sitting together at a table. They're even getting rowdy now. Awesome!)

Redesigned!

Another interesting sight, which I did not enter, was the Synagoge. Dresden's synagogue was destroyed on Krystallnacht in 1938. This new synagogue was built as another symbol of reconciliation. There are two buildings separated by a courtyard. The synagogue building rotates as it gets taller, which is quite interesting.

Since my hotel is a bit off the beaten path (read: not on a busy street), I've been coming back before dark. That means I got here in time to claim my free drink in the hotel bar and sit up here to write. I came up yesterday to take photos of the city from the (9th floor) balcony while it was still light. Now, I will go take some photos in the dark.