Passages
by IceBear7
Actually I'm not sure if the word for the title is correct English... What I'm talking about is something like a connection between two streets, roofed, with shops and galleries and cafes and restaurants. And there are some wonderful old, restored passages in Leipzig! Lovely art-deco surroundings, cofy cafes, little shops...
You can't miss them they are all over the city center. Have a look at Specks's Hof and the Mädlerpassage (see picture) - it's a wonderful experience just to walk around and look here and there, have a coffee, watch people walking around, looking here and there, having a coffee ...
Schillerhaus
by IceBear7
It's a tiny house, dedicated to one of the greatest Germans every, poet Friedrich Schiller. He lived in Leipzig only for the summer of 1785, at that time the area where the house is located wasn't even part of Leipzig but the little village of Gohlis. He just had a little room in the house you can see in the picture, and during his time in Leipzig he worked on various "projects" we would call it today, plays and poems.
I didn't visit the museum, but kept it for my next visit. The little house itself is beautiful!
Location: Menckestraße 42 in Gohlis
No stop in Gerstungen
by Nemorino
Even now, after twenty years of German unification, it still feels eerie to sit in a train as it barrels through the town of Gerstungen without even slowing down.
Gerstungen used to be the border stop between East and West Germany, and every train had at least a one-hour stop there while the GDR People's Police checked everybody's passports and searched the entire train with dogs to make sure no one was trying to sneak out of the country. They also did this on the way in, for whatever reason.
Now it only takes a little over two hours to get from Frankfurt to Erfurt on the train, and you don't even have to change money.
The hourly ICE trains from Frankfurt to Dresden all stop in Erfurt, which is usually the third stop after Fulda and Eisenach. After Erfurt, the trains go on to Weimar and from there to Leipzig.
In some of the newer InterCityExpress trains (ICE) you can look over the driver's shoulder at the tracks ahead. Or look at the tracks behind, if you are at that end of the train.
Impressive!
by King_Golo
The Völkerschlachtdenkmal commemorates the Battle of the Nations which took place between the Prussians, Austrians and Swedes on one side and France on the other back in 1813. The violent and cruel battle left 100000 soldiers dead and Napoleon defeated. Exactly 100 years later, in 1913, the massive Völkerschlachtdenkmal was built. Its main purpose was to mourn the dead, but during this age of extreme nationalism, the idea was quickly forgotten and the monument regarded with different eyes. Naturally, the Nazis (mis)used it for showing how powerful the German people is. Similarly, the socialist GDR government propagated its world view using the monument. Interesting facts about this can be found in the so-called Ruhmeshalle, the huge inside room.
Back to the monument itself: It's not really beautiful, rather massive and impressive. Looking like a giant black rock, it is visible from nearly everywhere around Leipzig because of the flat terrain of this region. Coming nearer, however, you'll be able to discover some rather beautiful aspects. First of all, the arrangement around the Völkerschlachtdenkmal - an artificial lake is situated in front of it, a park surrounds it. Everything is really symmetrical, and this looks quite appealing (at least to me!). Second, the Ruhmeshalle - it's very impressive: a hardly lit room with giant stone figures symbolizing the "German virtues" bravery, power of the people, the preparedness for sacrifice and strength of belief. The atmosphere in here is gloomy with so little light coming in and so much seriousness radiating from the figures. You can easily think of how this could be misused for nationalist purposes. Third, the view from the platform on top of the monument. In a height of 91m, visitors can enjoy great vistas of Leipzig and its suburbs.
The Völkerschlachtdenkmal is open daily between 10am and 6pm (summer) respectively 4pm (winter). Entrance tickets have to be purchased at the left side of it - don't climb the steep stairs before or you'll have to go back down.
Barthels Hof
by Kathrin_E
The prettiest of Leipzig’s backyards. 500 years ago a merchant had the main house built, in the 18th century it was redesigned. The ground floor and cellars contained the stores, the upper floors apartments. Horse-drawn carriages entered and left through the two gates of the courtyard which was busiest during the trade fairs.
The historical buildings including the restaurant have been restored. Fashion boutiques, arts and crafts galleries attract visitors. Access from Hainstraße/Market Square and from Fleischergasse next to Arabischer Coffebaum.
Monument and the 'sea of tears'
concert in the Grand Hall
Thomaskirche
Mädlerpassage on a December evening
