Dresden: So fresh and so clean

Knowing about what happened in Dresden during WWII, this was the city I was anticipating the most. For those who don't know, the city was bombed flat by the Brits and Americans late in the war after it had been pretty much decided who would win. This contributed to why it was so controversial to bomb the city resulting in many innocent casualties.

Hofkirche, only catholic church in Dresden

The city itself has an incredible number of outstanding looking buildings which had to be rebuilt from scratch. The city is still rebuilding itself.

The Frauenkirche stands in the middle of town and was just completed in 2005 to enormous praise from the community. All of the money was donated by regular people around the world for the rebuilding. For years it stood as a ruin reminding people of what once happened. But I don't think the people need any more reminding here.

Frauenkirche

The inside of the church is full of bright colors almost doing the church an injustice to how incredible it is. If you notice on the outside there are some dark stones which are originals.

Frauenkirche

I didn't think I would realize the newness of the place but you really can, which disappointed me a bit. But it still is a beautiful place.

There is not much going on in the old town. They just opened up their big mall in the main square last year. That shows just how much rebuilding they are doing. Just one block from the Frauenkirche stands a large overgrown empty lot. Hard to imagine such ground going unused in the middle of town.

The new city on the other side of the river is really funky. Graffiti and art galleries galore. Bars and restaurants line every street. Very alternative cool place to hang out at night.

As for my happenings I couchsurfed here and had an awesome dinner with 4 lovely ladies the first night. Bouldering the next night.

If I were to study somewhere I think this would be an awesome University town for a few years. I really recommend everyone to not pass this city up. It's just as good as Prague if not better in my opinion. Come summer time you can be hiking or grilling on the shores of the river with a great view.

The Zwinger/City Palace