Travel to Germany

Frankfurt is one of Germany's important cities, being the biggest international financial and trade center of Europe. It's famous for it's skyline - a line of towering skyscrapers which is mostly consisting of banks and other financial institutions. Frankfurt is better known in the country as Frankfurt am Main, since there are 2 cities which are named the same. Main is the river which flows through the city thus the source for the city skyline's nickname Mainhattan.

The metropolis of Frankfurt is not that big. You can easily tour the main attractions in 1 day. But as most cities in Germany, it's normally divided into 2 attractions, the old and the new city. Unfortunately, due to the fact that Frankfurt was heavily bombed during WW2, there's not much left of the old city, but still something worth seeing.

The Roemer - Frankfurt's city hall
One of the most important historical old buildings, housing the election of the former German kings and emperors during the early times. Since 1405, it has been used as the city hall. The area where the Roemer is, the Roemerberg, offers a surrounding of beautiful old houses, used nowadays as stores and restaurants.

The Kaiserdom - Emperor's Cathedral
As the name says, the Emperor's Cathedral. This church was used as the venue of the coronation of the new emperor or king. In front of this church is an archaeological finding of an ancient sauna used by the Romans when they were colonizing the area.

Paulskirche - Paul's Church
This church was built during the end of the 18th century. From damages during the war, it was rebuilt in the mid 20th century and considered one important attraction of the old city.

Goethe's House
Frankfurt is the home of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, one of the world's most famous poets. The house of Goethe is located in the inner city and is open for public viewing. The Goethe Museum is just right next to it, housing a very rich Goethe collection.

A Walk Crossing the River Main
From the old city, you can walk down to the river then cross a pedestrian bridge called Eiserner Steg (iron bridge). From the other side of the bridge, you can properly see the skyline. The road parallel to the river is called Museumufer - Museums on the river bank - lining up a variety of museums. You can walk more until you arrive at another pedestrian bridge called Holbeinsteg. After crossing that bridge, look for the Nizza Garden. This garden is unique because it contains tropical plants and palms in an open German climate.

The NEW CITY
This won't be that difficult to find, just follow the new buildings. Towering banks and offices is a sight you won't miss in Frankfurt. Some bank buildings are combining both new and old architecture. You would see for example Dresdner Bank having an old building and two skyscrapers next to it. Around the new city, you can see modern arts like the hammering man and the inverted necktie, representing the city's trademarks, banking and trading.

Shopping in Frankfurt
There are several good shopping opportunities in Frankfurt but probably the most famous area to shop is the Zeil. If you're going for posh shopping then Goethestrasse is the right one for you. This street is lined up with boutiques from Chanel to Tifanny & Co.

Enjoy your stay in Frankfurt!

Dortmund is a marvelous urban area with plenty of history and an important industrial tradition. It was heard of for the first time in the second half of the 12th century, during the sovereignty of the famed Emperor Barbarossa (his real name was Frederick). At that time, Dortmund was just a small village, with nothing interesting happening. In 1150 it burned in a big fire. Nobody noted if the fire was natural or intentional, but what we do know is that Frederick the 1st decided to reconstruct it and transform it into his official home. He and his close ones stayed in that town for a couple of years.

In the 13th century the settlement was proclaimed & ldquo; imperial free & rdquo;, which implied no more tribute collecting and they were done with civilian enlisting for the military forces of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation. By the way, this term, the Holy Roman Empire, must not misguide you into thinking that the Romans lived in Germany in those times. This name was chosen only because it symbolized the religious trait of the Empire and its ruler.

After that, the settlement (which had started to be called in scholars' writings as “Dorpmunde”) begun to be most attractive for the trading organizations of the Hanseatic League, which was an alliance of traders who maintained a trade monopoly on a large area of Germany, and several regions in the Netherlands.

Centuries later, in the times of the industrial age, Dortmund became a mining town, thanks to the rich coal and metal deposits in the vicinity. They delivered large amounts of coal and steel in those times, and this determined a quick growth of the town. Nowadays there are more than 500000 citizens in this place, placing it number 7 in Germany in terms of population, and no 34 om the European continent.

There are numerous things to see in Dortmund, and some say that the most important is the marvelous Westphalian Industrial Museum Zollern Colliery, which promises to accompany you on a grand excursion in the evolution of our technology. They've got lots of stuff there, including a full-sized steam train engine that was cut in the middle to display all the parts that made it work.

Of course, this attraction is for technology lovers, however Dortmund has other attractions, for other types of visitors. For instance, you can visit three, fully reconditioned, moated castles to visit in this city. First, there is Haus Bodelschwingh, originally built in the 13th century, and reconditioned in the 19th century. Also made in the 13th century, Hous Delwig, the most known of the three, preserving more authentic parts, like the whole front side, a couple of towers and two nearby buildings. The third is Haus Rodenberg, a stupendous moated castle.

The medieval buildings, the Gothic churches and the bicentennial town hall building are in contrast with the new city center, suspended trains and other sci-fi buildings you can see in Dortmund. The public gardens are tranquil and quiet, the taverns are loud and lively. This is why Dortmund is worth visiting, besides its prominent historical and industrial legacy.