Category: Sights

If the inhabitants of Kassel, Germany talk about the ‘Buga‘ than they mean something different than the rest of the country. ‘Buga‘ here refers to the Fuldaaue, an area that was redesigned by the Bundesgartenschau 1981 (federal horticultural show, abbreviated as ‘Buga‘). Kassel has seen two Bundesgartenschauen: in 1955 when the Karlsaue was restored after the war and in 1981 when within the Fuldaaue the ‘BUGA-See‘ as a swimming lake with different small beaches was created.

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Within the Staatspark Karlsaue at Kassel, Germany you can find a big lake – the Aueteich (wetland pond). Within there is an island called Schwaneninsel (swan island) you can’t reach unless you swim over or wait until the water is frozen in winter times. On the island you can see a neoclassical temple with a golden sphere on top: it symbolizes the planet jupiter and is part of the ‘Planetenweg‘ showing the distances of the planets in scale 1:495 millions.

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The Staatspark Karlsaue is public garden in baroque style at Kassel, Germany that has been created from the year 1568 on. It is part of the city but feels a bit separated as it is below the city level. At the northern end you will find the Orangerie with a museum, the Marmorbad, a restaurant and a giant bowling green in front. There you can find different statues and three main axes: in the east the Hirschgraben, in the west the Küchengraben and in the middle an alley leading to the Aueteich with the Schwaneninsel with a neoclassical temple.

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The orangery of Kassel, Germany was formerly only 400 meters away from the city palace. But this palace burned down in 1811 and only one tower remained that now hosts a popular beer garden in summer – the Rondell. Therefore the Orangerie is now the northern end of the Karlsaue garden. It was built from the year 1703 on in baroque style and was damaged massively by a British air raid in 1943.

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The roman-catholic church Sankt Elisabeth next to the Friedrichsplatz of Kassel, Germany might draw your attention as within its tower a giant person seems to be standing on golden sphere. It is an artwork of Stephan Balkenhol and one that lead to a long discussion. Exactly in parallel to the dOCUMENTA (13) art exhibition in 2012 the church arranged on exhibition of the works of Balkenhol on their grounds.

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The Karlskirche named after Charles I, landgrave of Hesse-Kassel (but also called Oberneustädter Kirche) is a tiny, nice protestant church in the city centre of Kassel, Germany that is often overlooked. It is located at the Karlsplatz that is not directly at the pedestrian zone. It was designed by Paul du Ry in baroque style and opened in the year 1710 CE. The area was by that time used to host religious refugees from France and those were in need of a church.

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The city of Kassel, Germany is located within a basin – a situation that also influences the weather. Within this basin there are only a limited number of hills like the Kratzenberg, the Möncheberg and the Weinberg. The latter consists of shell limestone and in medieval times wine was grown there. On top you will find the Grimmwelt, the memorial for the victims of fascism and a nice terrace that is sometimes used for events like the Weinbergfest.

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The Aschrottbrunnen in front of the town hall of Kassel, Germany is a special fountain with a sad history and it is also an artwork that is often overlooked. That is especially because the fountain looks flat and is built headfirst into the ground. An unusual situation that requires to step on top to see and understand the fountain and artwork.

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Everyone is unique. And this is a memorial for everyone of us. At the Brüder-Grimm-Platz of Kassel, Germany near the city center you can find an apparently empty memorial made of sandstone with the letters ICH (‘ME‘). Via three steps on the reverse side you can climb on top and complete the artwork.

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