Soon come the end of "Operation Germany", and abandon this country.
I have spent almost a year here where I have traveled much of Germany (Hamburg notable exception that I have said is great but I have not had time), and in the coming posts I want to summarize a little of my experience living here.
First start talking about the tourist in case anyone wants to come to visit Germany and particularly in this post I will concentrate solely on West Germany. I have been living in Cologne, which is in the western part of Germany. In this part of the country many relatively large cities (Cologne, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Dortmund, Essen, Dusseldorf ...) but honestly, each has only a small part that is worth visiting, so it gets pretty uncomfortable for a tourist and you have to go from one city to another without anything call too much attention. Most of these cities were reduced to ashes in the second world war, and even for years that Germany is the strongest economy in Europe, seems to clean up cities not within the German mentality.
In this post I will take a tour of North and South of the things that I find interesting in each city. Essen
What is in the center of town there is nothing that is worth visiting, is a typical ride, with cafes and a church restored.
However towards the outskirts of the city is something that if I recommend to visit to anyone who passes by, the industrial complex coal processing Zollverien. Post-apocalyptic aspect, this complex is heritage industrial site by UNESCO, and now it shows as they used to process coal. It's really impressive. See photos here.
Duisburg
As in Essen, there is nothing to do with the downtown. A long walk with some fountains and statues, a restored church but little else.
However, as in Essen, the best is just outside, and is the industrial heritage of mankind Landschaftpark. Although this worst conserved Zollverein, seemed to me much more interesting because you can get you in the guts of this former coal processing plant on your own. Take a look here .
De Dusseldorf Dusseldorf and long talk. It is one of the best kept cities in West Germany. Not that I have nothing spectacular, but the whole is quite nice, and walking through the Rhine near the city center is nice.
Cologne Cologne was one of the cities worst hit World War II . And since then have apparently not had time to reform and clean up the city's neighborhoods. Cologne has good things like nightlife, the carnival and its central European location, but it's a really ugly city that only saves the cathedral and the Rhine promenade that both are precious.
This is a typical picture of Cologne, as it shows the best of the city, the Rhine promenade with restored period house, the beautiful cathedral and the railway bridge rebuilt as was before the bombing. You can see some views of Cologne here, photos here cathedral and the famous Cologne lollipop here.
If you're wondering, yes, those "clouds" in the background is smoke from chimneys of factories, refineries and power plants nearby.
Aachen Aachen
I think an exception within the cities of western Germany, is a small but really nice, one of my favorites in this area. The cathedral is simply unique. A mixture of styles that had never seen before and has become one of my favorites in the world. The historic center is lovely for walking, the town hall is perfectly preserved, and Christmas markets I think are the best in the area. Aachen also has many hot springs, and there are spas with thermal pools that are great. It is also well up on a hill adjacent to the city where there is a tower for views of the city with a restaurant at the tip to be eating while watching through the windows. Many more photos here
Monschau Monschau is a small village living mainly from tourism and that all Village houses are preserved as they were before the war. It is a town worth driving if one is close if only to walk a while through the streets and enjoy a pastry in one of its many cafes. More photos here .
Bonn Bonn
of talk in detail in this post . It is a small town where the government invested heavily to restore it as it was the seat of government until he moved to Berlin after reunification. The center is well maintained and has things beautiful as the University of Bonn, but I enjoyed the park much more nations south of the city, a huge park that hosts a UN headquarters, the headquarters of DHL, and in winter is a frozen lake where people play hockey and skating. The flickr set.
Koblenz Koblenz is located at the junction of the Rhine and Mossel, and this completely determines the distribution of the city. It has two river rides, but without doubt the Rhine is much more pleasant for strolling. The junction of both rivers is well worth visiting, both views as the statue is there. The historic center is fully restored, and I think that, having nothing unusual, as a whole is one of the most beautiful cities in the area. The set of photos here .
The castles of the Rhine and Mossel
One of the attractions of the area is to explore whether either car or boat The many castles along the Rhine and Mossel. Although the Eltz Castle is not in either of these two rivers, not far from Mossel, and illustrates some of the castles of the area.
Frankfurt Frankfurt is, in my opinion, the most international city in West Germany (though the Germans believe in Cologne Cologne is very "multicultural"). It is a city with a lot of money, and although the old town is tiny, because reduced the city to ashes in the bombing , the rest of the city in this case is also nice because there are many skyscrapers and some parks. When you ask most people tend to speak negatively of Frankfurt, but I think the opposite, is one of my favorite cities West Germany, and in my opinion in the great, the prettiest by far. It is also the headquarters of the European central bank, which in my opinion gives a "morbid" special to the city.
Mainz Mainz is a typical West German city to which I referred at the beginning of the post, which there are a couple of places worth seeing, but that does not offer much attraction for tourists, and fit only stop if it falls on the road.
The historic center is restored and well maintained the cathedral is notable for its height and the riverside walk is also pleasant. Walk there and have a drink on the terrace during the summer, is very nice, but overall no big deal from the tourism perspective. The best thing is you dig a look at the photos and I forméis your own opinion.
Wiesbaden Wiesbaden is one of the oldest spas in Europe, and was only partially destroyed during the Second World War. Therefore retains the spa surrounded by parks, and a small historic center but almost intact. I liked the neo-Gothic cathedral, but I think that if one stays in the spas, the city knows little.
Darmstadt
I confess, I went to Darmstadt poque visitor wanted to see the headquarters of ESOC, the satellite control center of European Space Agency. But the truth is that you can see little (unless someone can sneak you in), and telemetry antennas that are not there, and you can only see the buildings outside. Darmstadt is also the headquarters Eumetsat, but that I could not see. The center of the city is well restored, and there are a couple of nice places to drink on the terrace when the German inclement weather permitting. However, to me what most caught my attention was the Russian church is up a hill north of the city. Maybe it was the first I saw, but I liked the exterior decoration. Photos here.
Heidelberg Heidelberg is a small town live mainly from tourism, and therefore all the historic center is well maintained and with open arms to tourists. The main reason is that it was barely played in the Second World War. It also has one of the most famous universities on this side of Germany, and was famous for being the headquarters of American troops in Europe. Although the main attraction of the city are the ruins of the castle, to me what I liked most were the views of the city gate from the bridge that crosses the stream.
Baden-Baden
I went to Baden-Baden on his way to Switzerland (from that trip I'll talk another day) and stayed there to sleep excited about visiting the historic center of spas where all the rich spend their vacation in Europe last century . I guess that's the expectations that had me quite disappointed. Spas are still there, and I'm sure you can relax in them must be one pass, but the rest of the people has little or to see or to do (beyond a casino in which I was frankly uninterested.) Expected to be in the middle of the Black Forest were prepared routes for tourists to be in the woods, but there was nothing like that. The village is well preserved, but the historic center has little to do. A half-hour ride through the park and the center is all there is to do, so stop you here only if you walk along, or if you can have a good time in the spas.
And here ends the tour of West Germany. Another day continue to speak of Bavaria, Berlin, and what were my experiences with German society.
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