Dresden is a city of startling contrasts. Next to the
beautiful vistas and impressive sights in the city (most
of the famous buildings destroyed in World War II have been
restored or rebuilt from scratch) one can find several appalling
areas and depressing neighbourhoods.
Partly, history is to blame for this.
Two long nights in February 1945 were enough to annihilate the
bigger part of Dresden's architectural heritage. The city was
once an important cultural and commercial metropolis featuring
some of Germany's most impressive architecture. However,
Dresden was practically wiped out during two
nights of air raids in February, 1945. Severe bombing
turned the proud centre of the city into a heap of rubble. Even
today, the ruins of the 'Frauenkirche' (women's church)
commemorate this event. Only now, half a century later, is the
church being rebuilt using all that original materials that
can still be found.
Dresden's city centre is home to many other impressive
sights: the Semperoper, renowned for its excellent acoustics,
the baroque 'Zwinger', cathedral, and royal castle are
just some of the highlights.
Dresden's equivalent to San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge
is called the Blue Wonder ('Blaues Wunder'). The impressive
bridge is an atypical example of 19th century fascination with
steel and engineering.
