Dresden | Days 17 & 18

Days SEVENTEEN & EIGHTEEN

Dresden was a favourite of mine, even though we weren't there for very long. Our hostel was located in the Neustadt (new town) and the Altstadt (Old Town) was a few blocks away through a pedestrian area of town and over a bridge. I thought that it had the feeling of a place that would get better the longer you stayed. Reminded slightly of Oamaru, the city centre is the most historic part of town, having been harshly bombed by the British and Americans in World War II, and rebuilt thereafter, it feels like a place frozen in time. Because of the war and reconstruction, Dresden  (like many parts of post war Germany) became quite industrial and run down. However there has for the most part always been a large cultural movement here, with lots of people returning to Dresden for its architecture, music and food - giving the city a feeling of grungy-cool rather than grungy-depressive. The night-club district is a good example of this, as most of the historic buildings in this area are covered in graffiti, music posters, and are home to small interesting fast food or street food cafes -  this time reminding me of a Studentville Dunedin on steroids.

^ King/Elector Augustus the Strong

Dresden has had many floods because it is located in a valley on the river Elbe, this metal wave monument represents the high waters.

The workman in the doorway was both unimpressed and amused by our posing...

This is the Zwinger Palace, located in the Altstadt. The distinctive Rococo Style makes these buildings, now housing three of the cities museums, memorably beautiful - even in the rain. I prefer to see this style of architecture on the facade of the buildings, rather than inside, where the flamboyance can be a bit too over the top for me.

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Moving on to Brühl's Terrace, these buildings overlook the river.

I especially loved the way the gold from the statues contrasted so brightly with the black from the carved sculptures on the buildings. The blackness of the stone comes mainly from the elements, and the long term affect the air has on different building materials. When on a tour in Prague, an American goth transgender woman called Sybil (a character I will describe in more depth when we come to Prague) was very confused as to why the stones were black - where they painted? Did they use black ones for some corners of buildings? How did they get so dirty? No water-blasting around here Sybil, my dear, that's just plain old dirt.

Dresden Cathedral, or Hofkirche, in the background there. Apparently the heart of Augustus the Strong is buried in the crypt. I wonder where the rest of him went...

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Lastly we went exploring on the other side of the river (the same side as our hostel) and found a yummy burger place called Dampfschwein that specialised in pulled pork, making for a very salty but delicious lunch.

The hostel we stayed in was a pretty good one if you're looking for one in Dresden. It was called hte Kangaroo Stop and was rather alarmingly Australian themed, but it was in a good location, pretty inexpensive, good but basic communal kitchen, and we met some cool people here too! I don't seem to have any photographs of the hostel, so you'll just have to use your imagination. Or Google.

with love from Dresden