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St. Nicholas Day in Germany
Today, December 6th, marks the celebration of St. Nicholas Day in many Christian countries around the world. I had never heard of it before when living in England. That was until I met Vanessa… and now she showed me exactly how it is celebrated in Germany every year since! Different countries mark the day in different ways but Germany does it with lots of sweets and candy. German children will put a Nikolaus-Stiefel (a Nikolaus-Boot) or a pair of shoes outside their house during the evening on 5th December. Then, St. Nicholas will come along during the night and leave a little surprise in the shoes depending on your behaviour during the…
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A trip to Dresden – The Christmas Markets
You can never see too many Christmas Markets… So, the main reason we chose to travel to Dresden is that it’s only a couple of hours from Berlin and we had been told by many Germans that the Christmas Markets there really were something special. And they were not wrong. Dresden is a small town with mostly cobbled streets. The markets are in every corner. Choirs sing next to the ice rink. There are so many different markets here within walking space, it’s quite lucky if you are only in town for a couple of days. The Romantic Market is a little quieter. The oldest market in Germany is more…
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A trip to Dresden – the angels!
I’m loving angels instead… When I was a little girl (read: teenager), my wall was covered in posters. There was literally not a single space of wallpaper to be seen. I won’t go into the content (Boyzone/ Take That/ Peter Andre… ahem…) but I also had a framed poster on my wall. It was the two famous angels painted by Raphael. I have always loved angels and when I heard the original was in Dresden, well… it would be rude not to go and look at it. Especially as it hung above my head for so many years. Little did I know, the Sistine Madonna was actually a very large…
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A trip to Dresden – Going to Church
A view to remember… In any guidebook to Dresden, you will find the Dresden Frauenkirche. It has one of the largest domes in all of Europe and was completely destroyed in World War Two. They actually left the remains in place, as a memorial of what had happened. Then, once Germany was reunified, reconstruction of the church began. It now symbolises reconciliation between former warring enemies. The inside is stunning and you walk up to the top on a spiral walkway and many stairs. You have been warned! At time of writing it cost €8 to enter. Well worth it, as the views from the top are breathtaking. Dresden is…
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A trip to Dresden – Crossing the River by Boat
Aye aye captain! A fun little thing to do whilst in Dresden is to cross the Elbe river. Previously, this whole extensive river area held the UNESCO World Heritage title, but sadly they lost this in 2009 (read more about that here). However, it is still breathtakingly beautiful. Along with large parts of eastern Germany, Dresden received extensive flooding last year. If you look closely, you can actually see the lines on many of the walls and bridges alongside the river where the water reached. It’s a bit scary looking up and seeing those lines three meters above your head. There are a few places you can actually pick up…
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A trip to Dresden – The Milk Shop
Milking it… Okay, okay. It is just a milk shop. But in my defence I would like to tell you all that it is the most beautiful milk shop in the world. Yes, it is official. It was named so in 1997 by the Guinness Book of World Records. I was intrigued. Even though I’m generally not the biggest fan of milk, I like visiting quirky and extraordinary things whilst on holiday, so we had a little look. I was not disappointed. The Dresdner Mölkerei is stunning! It was built over 130 years ago and even survived the war. It was the first place in Germany to produce condensed milk…
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A trip to Dresden – the Waldschlößchenbrücke
Like a bridge over troubled water… The first time I went to Dresden was last May with work. The timing was to match Mount Fuji in Japan finally receiving a UNESCO title. We went to film the Waldschlößchenbrücke, a bridge across the river Elbe. The Dresden Elbe Valley had been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This is of course a great honour for any city and something that brings tourists to the area. I was amazed at how beautiful the landscape actually was. Our job was to capture this, and I think it was my favourite project during my three year tenure at my TV News job. The Dresden…
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A trip to Dresden – Accommodation
A Home away from Home… So, every day this week there will be a post about our weekend trip to Dresden back in November/December 2013. Today I will tell you about the amazing place we stayed. Tomorrow will have information on the controversial bridge that lost Dresden it’s UNESCO status. Over the week you will learn about the milk factory, one of the most beautiful bars/ shops I have ever visited. As we were in Dresden for the Christmas markets, I will tell you all about those too. Then a little about the history and sights you mustn’t miss, including a short trip on a boat! I hope this will…