Dresssssssden

The train arrived and I got to Dresden. I heard varied things from, "oh its boring and strange and depressing," to it's the "Florence of Germany" to " It's sort of strange but it's worth a trip". I got in to Dresden not knowing what to expect. All the Germans I met spoke about it with great respect and awe, but the others, not so much.

Dresden, as you all know, was completely leveled during the war. It was one of the most devastating bombings of the War and thousands upon thousands of people died and numerous treasures destroyed. Since then, a massive rebuilding project was underway, building it brick by brick by brick, and now you really couldn't even tell there was one bomb let alone thousands.

That gives the city a sort of eerie feel about it, since it was rebuilt, for the most part, just like it was before. It feels like a brand new old city, kind of because it IS new. A sort of darker, more gothic epcot. I walked past a vast friendly shopping district full of people and sunlight and brand names, until I got to the Rathaus (town hall) and took a view of the city. It was quite grand, and pretty beautiful. But it was nothing until I got to the town center. Literally old buildings and castles spaced out beautifully, it was a city built to accomodate glory, and though there was a strange out of whack feeling about it, one cannot help but feel its immenseness and its absolutely gorgeous architecture. There was the Frauenkirche, rebuilt finally in 2003 and bright pink on the inside, a sort of strange cheery Dresden-like artifact. A large medieval terrace featuring more classic works. And of course the Zwinger which was the old castle, bearing a magnificent art gallery I was too tired to see. The city is cut between the River Elbe, bordering new city and old city, new city looks just as nice, with a very sort of Mediterranean feel. I even got to eat Gambas al Ajillo. Quite delectable served in the standard Spanish way, with the pan of boiling hot oil served next to you. There really isnt much else to say about Dresden, I can go on about how pretty it is, but its true when they said its like the Florence of Germany, in the sense that its gorgeous sure, but theres nothing much else to it, and it's teeming with tourists. After a nap across the zwinger, I headed back to the much uglier, but so much cooler, and a place I kind of call home, Berlin.


- J