Category: Sights

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Border crossing

Alte Rheinbrücke, Vaduz/Sevelen

Liechtenstein and Switzerland are separated from each other by river Rhein. For sure there was always the need to cross the river and in the beginning ferry boats were the vehicle of choice. In 1867 first bridges were created, for example between Buchs (Switzerland) and Schaan (Liechtenstein); three years later the connection between Vaduz and Sevelen was created for the very first time. As a pedestrian and cyclist you can use it still today – the last preserved wooden bridge crossing the Rhein.

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Red sandstone

Rathaus des Kantons Basel-Stadt, Basel

The town hall building of Basel is a very decorative one, very playful and especially absolutely colorful. It is located at the market square in the city center and not far away from river Rhein. It was built from the year 1504 on and has a height of 47 meters. You can enter the inner courtyard and walk up through a staircase that reminded me much of the architecture at Verona, Italy. The entire buildings contains many beautiful paintings, including those of Hans Holbein der Jüngere.

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Spalentor

Spalentor, Basel

Gates of German cities were really beautiful in the past. A good example for that is the Spalentor, the oldest of the three still standing ancient city gates of Basel (the others are the St. Johann and St. Alban gates). It was finished in the year 1400 CE and is one of the most beautiful in Switzerland with its two side towers and the decorated roof. The name is probably derived from the Latin word palus meaning pile – the Spalenvorstadt which the gates protects was in the beginning only protected by a fence of wooden piles.

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Gipsabgußsammlung

Gipsabgußsammlung, Göttingen

No time to visit the Louvre, the British Museum, the Prado and the Musei Vaticani? Fortunately the university of Göttingen has the oldest collection of replicas of statues of the classical era – and still today it is one of the largest collections in the world. The 2,000 plaster casts stored by the archaeological institute show works exhibited in 150 museums around the globe. 1,000 of them are permanently on display, including the Venus de Milo, the Winged Victory of Samothrace and Laocoön and His Sons. The collection of mostly Roman and Greek statues was started by professor Christian Gottlob Heyne in the year 1767 for his own lectures.

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Römerlager

Römerlager Hedemünden, Hann. Münden

During the Roman campaigns in Germania (12 BC-16 CE) the Roman Empire tried to defeat the Germanic tribes, secure the border at the river Rhein and extend its reign to the river Elbe in the east. Germanic people had crossed the Rhein several times and invaded Gallia which the Romans had declared their territory. To prevent this in the future Nero Claudius Drusus, stepson of emperor Augustus, commanded the Roman army and took control of Germania for nearly ten years.

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Karlspreis

Rathaus, Aachen

The town hall of Aachen is a Gothic style building created in the 14th century as a replacement for the Grashaus. It was built on parts of the former Kaiserpfalz and includes the Granusturm, a tower that was raised by 14 meters. Still today you can see the difference between the older and the newer parts of the tower. A requirement for the design of the town hall building was, that a special room had to be included: a hall for the coronation feast of the Holy Roman Emperors. The coronation happened at the cathedral close by, the feast was held at the town hall – and this hall is still there, used today for the awarding ceremony of the Internationaler Karlspreis zu Aachen.

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Aachener Dom

Dom, Aachen

When in 1978 the UNESCO published the World Heritage Site list for the very first time there was only on entry from Germany: the Kaiserdom zu Aachen. It was created by the order of emperor Charlemagne from 795 on and it was part of his Kaiserpfalz at Aachen. Emperors by that time were continuously travelling and had different palaces in their territory. The most favorite palace of Charlemagne was at Aachen and you can still see that in the beauty of this cathedral.

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Zentralflughafen

Main hall, Flughafen Tempelhof, Berlin

The Tempelhof airport (THF) at Berlin was one of the earliest public airports at Germany operating between 1923 and 2008. During this time it was continuously extended and was ahead of its time: with hotels, restaurants and a subway stop directly next to it. Today it is replaced by the new Berlin airport (BER), the historic building is used for offices and the former airfield is now a vast park known as the Tempelhofer Feld, larger than the country San Marino. Additionally you can book guided tours at the former airport to experience the special architecture.

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Canary Wharf

Canary Wharf, London

Within the Docklands in the East of London you can find the shiny modern city quarter Canary Wharf, named like this because it was once used for trading with the Canary Islands. On the Isle of Dogs surrounded by river Thames you can find some of the highest towers of the United Kingdom. Many banks are now settled here, making the area a rival to the historic financial center at the City of London.

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