Johann Sebastian Bach
by german_eagle
You cannot leave out J. S. Bach when visiting Leipzig. He was born 1685 in Eisenach and died 1750 in Leipzig. Since 1949 his grave is to find in the choir of St. Thomas church.
Bach was composer, musician, teacher and leader of the Thomanerchor (a boys choir). Max Reger said once: "Bach is the begin and end of all music". There is no doubt that Bach had major influence on music.
Leipzig has some places where you can get information on Bach and listen to his music. Please see my Must See Tips "St. Thomas church" and "Bach Museum".
Colditz Castle
by antistar
Possibly the most famous German castle outside Germany, but virtually unknown inside Germany, Colditz Castle holds a special place in my childhood.
Colditz is famous for being the ultimate German Prison Camp, a place that housed the most experienced and expert escapees in the Allied army imprisoned in Germany. The Nazis boasted that the prison was escape proof, and it was unique in being the only prison camp with more guards than inmates.
But when you put the best and most experienced escapees in the world into one place, claims that the prison was impossible to escape from were guaranteed to have their makers humbled. And so it proved.
The prison became the home to some of the most audacious prison escapes ever attempted, including a home made glider, and the amazing tunnels that inspired the movie "The Great Escape". It also inspired a board game that I played endlessly with my brother and sister: Escape from Castle Colditz. I know the layout of the castle like a picture in my brain.
Along with famous inmates like British fighter ace Douglas Bader, the prison was also home to Hitler's special prisoners, the Prominente. The first of these was a nephew of Winston Churchill, Giles Romilly, captured in Narvik, Norway. Later additions included the US ambassador to Britain, the Viceroy of India, and the commander of the Warsaw Uprising.
Because the Germans care or know little of this famous castle, and because it is part of a war history most would like to forget, it doesn't feature prominently in the tourist literature, and it isn't alwasy easy to get there. The best hope of visiting is probably on a day trip from Leipzig. This can be done with the irregular Bus 931 service from the east side of the Leipzig station. The trip takes about an hour.
From Ryanair's Leipzig airport to the city
by sourbugger
If you arrive in Leipzig on Ryanair (see other tip) you will of course have realised that Ryanair's defintion of which airport belongs to which city is somewhat hazy.
At one point they advertised a flight to Copenhagen, when it did'nt even land in the same country ! (it actually went to Malmo)
Altenberg airport is about 40Kms from Leipzig, but is usefully connected by Bus 250 which goes via Altenberg and Borma to the Main Train station in Leipzig.
The fare is 12 Euro one way, or 3.50 to Altenberg where you can change onto the German Railway network.
The one bus a day leaves half an hour after the flight has landed and the return from Stand 3 at the train station in Leipzig leaves at 10.25AM
Transfer time is one hour 25 minutes.
Altes Rathaus
by richiecdisc
Leipzig's Old Town Hall was built in 1556 in the Renaissance style and remains one of Germany's largest. Located on the pretty main square of the city, it's a good orientation point and the day I was in town, there was a beach volley ball tournament going on out front!
Gewandhaus
by Nemorino
The Gewandhaus is a large modern concert hall on Augustusplatz, directly opposite the opera house. It is the home of the famous Gewandhaus Orchestra, which also plays regularly at the Thomaskirche (St. Thomas's Church) and in the opera house itself.
The orchestra was founded in 1743, and over the centuries has had such famous Music Directors as Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, Arthur Nikisch, Wilhelm Furtwängler, Franz Konwitschny and Kurt Masur. The current Music Director is Herbert Blomstedt, who was born in Springfield, Massachusetts in 1927.
The Gewandhaus we can see today is the third building to go by that name. It was built over a nearly five-year period from 1976 to 1981, and was inaugurated on October 8, 1981. The Great Hall seats over 1900 people and contains a huge organ with the inscription Res severa verum gaudium (True pleasure is serious business) -- this is a quotation from the Roman philosopher and dramatist Lucius Annaeus Seneca (who lived from about 4 BC to 65 AD), and has been the motto of the Gewandhaus since 1781.
Sign in with Facebook
beer garden
Entrance
Mendelssohn's home
Neues Rathaus
