Things to do in Saxony
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Schloss Colditz
High on a crag above the sleepy town of Colditz, some 46km southeast of Leipzig, is the imposing Schloss Colditz, a Renaissance palace that's seen stints as a hunting lodge, a poorhouse and a mental hospital. Mostly, though, it's famous as Oflag IVC, a WWII-era high-security prison for Allied officers, including a nephew of Winston Churchill. Most astounding, perhaps, is a 44m-long tunnel below the chapel that French officers dug in 1941-42, before the Germans caught them. You can see some of these contraptions, along with lots of photographs, in the small but fascinating Fluchtmuseum (Escape Museum) within the palace. Several inmates wrote down their experiences later, o…
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Sol y Mar
The soft lighting, ambient sounds and lush interior (including padded pods for noshing in recline) make this a relaxing place to dine. There's lots of choice for noncarnivores and prices are sensible.
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PlanWirtschaft
Only fresh, organic ingredients sourced from local butchers and farmers make it into the international potpourri of dishes at this long-time favourite. There's a romantic courtyard for balmy days.
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Residenzschloss
The neo-Renaissance Residenzschloss was the home of Saxon kings until 1918. With postwar reconstruction nearly completed, the must-see Grünes Gewölbe (Green Vault) has returned to the palace. Picture it as the real-life equivalent of Aladdin's Cave, a mind-boggling collection of precious objects wrought from gold, ivory, silver, diamonds and other materials. There's so much of it, it's shown in two separate 'treasure chambers', both in the palace west wing (enter from Sophienstrasse).
The Neues Grünes Gewölbe (New Green Vault) presents some 1000 objects in 10 modern rooms on the upper floor. Among the most prized items are a frigate fashioned from ivory with wafer-thin…
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Dresdner Elbtal
The Saxon heartland, with Dresden at its centre, represents one of the richest cultural tapestries in all of Germany. This fact obviously didn't escape the Unesco officers in charge of designating new World Heritage sites, who in 2004 welcomed a 20km section of the river valley, the Dresdner Elbtal, into their prestigious club. This stretch follows the Elbe downstream from Schloss Pillnitz to Schloss Übigau, passing by Dresden's matchless baroque magnificence along the way.
But only two years later, in July 2006, the Elbtal ended up on a far less honourable list: the one identifying endangered World Heritage sites. The reason? The planned construction of a controversial …
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Schloss Ortenburg
Schloss Ortenburg sits on a strategic cliff-top spot that's been occupied by a series of castles since the 7th century. You enter the complex through its most interesting structure, the late-Gothic Matthiasturm (Matthias Tower), named for the Hungarian king Matthias Corvinus who ruled over the region in the late 15th century - you can see him depicted on horseback as a monumental relief on the tower.
The main palace houses a regional courthouse and is not open to the public. A smaller one, off the courtyard, contains the Sorbisches Museum, which displays Sorb folk art, musical instruments, costumes and other items in the old salt storehouse.
Across the square is Bautzen's …
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August Horch Museum
Zwickau's top attraction is this amazing car museum that will enlighten and entertain even non-petrolheads. Housed within the original early-20th-century Audi factory, gleaming and imaginatively presented exhibits range from old-timer gems like the 1911 Horch Phaeton to the latest Audi R8. And, of course, there are plenty of Trabants (three million were produced here until 1990) and other cars that gave communism a bad name. You can walk inside an early gas station, inspect Audi founder August Horch's original wood-panelled office, stroll down a 1930s streetscape and even learn how Trabants were made. English-language audioguides are available for €2.50. The museum is abo…
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Herzog Anton Ulrich Museum
Duke, Anton Ulrich (1633-1714) left Braunschweig with an impressive legacy. Like Bruce Chatwin's compulsive collector Utz , Anton Ulrich had an eye for miniature porcelain figures - as well as for crockery, furniture and all types of painting, from Chinese to European. Now the thousands of pieces he assembled in his lifetime are found in the Herzog Anton Ulrich Museum. Artefacts, including an ancient Roman onyx cup that survived some escapades through the years, and the most complete museum collection of Fürstenburg porcelain anywhere, are here. Unfortunately, lack of funding often means that opening times for different floors are staggered (as at Burg Dankwarderode), so …
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Bautzen Prisons & Gedenkstätte
It seems incongruous that this pretty and historic town has been known as Gefängnisstadt (prison town) for over a century. The first facility, Bautzen I, a yellow brick structure from 1904, gained such notoriety under the Nazis and later the Soviets that it earned the moniker Gelbes Elend (Yellow Misery). Completely modernised, it's still used as a correctional facility today.
South of town is Bautzen II, which became a Stasi prison in GDR times. Many famous regime opponents - including Rudolf Bahro, who later co-founded the Green Party in West Germany - served their sentences here. Today, it's a Gedenkstätte (memorial site) for the victims of political oppression.
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Landesmuseum
The city's Landesmuseum covers German history from a regional perspective. Although the descriptions are only in German, the museum has lots of engaging exhibits that speak for themselves, starting with a large Foucault pendulum illustrating the principle of the Earth's rotation, and augmented by a myriad of artefacts assembled chronologically to tell the story of Germany's past. It is a fascinating museum, not least because of eclectic objects like the strands of hair allegedly belonging to Heinrich der Löwe and Mathilde. They are in cases of silver, gold and marble, specially constructed in 1935 as part of Hitler's propaganda offensive to present Heinrich posthumously a…
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Nikolaikirche
Leipzig's largest church, the Nikolaikirche, has Romanesque and Gothic roots, but now sports an amazing classical-style interior with palm-like pillars and cream-coloured pews. More recently, the church played a key role in the nonviolent movement that eventually brought down the GDR regime. In 1982 it began hosting 'peace prayers' every Monday at 5pm (still held today) and in 1989 it became the chief meeting point for peaceful demonstrators. A pamphlet recounts the 'miracle' of 9 October 1989, when 600 SED party faithful, who had been sent to the church to break up the services, ended up listening to the sermon and joining the protesters.
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Dom St Blasii
Heinrich's tomb is in the crypt of Dom St Blasii, where he lies alongside his wife Mathilde. In a macabre postscript to the duke's life, the Nazis decided to co-opt his image and in 1935 exhumed his tomb to conduct an 'archaeological investigation'. Even Hitler paid a visit. However, the corpse found inside had one leg shorter than the other (it's known that Heinrich suffered a terrible horse-riding accident late in life) and dark hair, and the master-race propagandists went very quiet on the subject after that. There were also questions over the body's gender and some doubt as to whether it's really Heinrich in the sarcophagus.
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Zwinger
Next to the opera house, the sprawling Zwinger is among the most ravishing baroque buildings in all of Germany. A collaboration between the architect Matthäus Pöppelmann and the sculptor Balthasar Permoser, it was primarily a party palace for royals, despite the odd name (which means dungeon). Several charming portals lead into the vast fountain-studded courtyard, which is framed by buildings lavishly festooned with baroque sculpture. Atop the western pavilion stands a tense-looking Atlas with the world on his shoulders; opposite him is a cutesy carillon of 40 Meissen porcelain bells, which emit a tinkle every 15 minutes.
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Deutsches Hygiene-Museum
The Deutsches Hygiene-Museum, is, in fact, all about you, the human being. The fascinating permanent exhibit is a virtual journey through the body, drawing from anatomy, cultural studies, social science, history and scientific research. You'll learn about various aspects of the human experience, from eating, drinking and thinking to remembering, moving, grooming and dying. Oddly, people seem to linger just a tad longer in the room dealing with sexuality… A highlight is the Gläserne Mensch in room 1, the first transparent human model complete with bones, muscles and arteries.
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Priesterhäuser Zwickau
Next to the Dom, the Priesterhäuser Zwickau gives you a close-up look at medieval living conditions. This ensemble of pint-sized cottages was built between the 13th and 15th centuries, and ranks among the country's oldest surviving residential buildings. Church employees lived here as late as the 19th century. Imagine the people who've come before you as you climb up the creaky stairs, duck into small chambers or inspect the soot-stained kitchen. A modern annex has changing exhibits about the town history.
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Mädlerpassage
Historic Mädlerpassage is easily among the world's most beautiful shopping arcades. Enter it from Grimmaische Strasse, south of the Markt. A mix of neo-Renaissance and Art Nouveau, it opened as a trade hall in 1914 and was renovated at great expense in the early 1990s. Today it's home to shops, bars and restaurants, most notably, Auerbachs Keller.
There are statues of Faust, Mephistopheles and some students near the Grimmaische Strasse exit; according to tradition you should touch Faust's foot for good luck.
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Historisches Grünes Gewölbe
Historisches Grünes Gewölbe exhibits 3000 items displayed on shelves and tables in a series of increasingly lavish rooms, just as they were during the time of August der Starke. To protect the artworks, which are not behind glass, visitors must pass through a 'dust lock', and numbers are limited to 120 an hour. Admission is by timed ticket only. Advance tickets are available online and by phone, and about a third are sold at the palace box office on the day.
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Frauenkirche
The domed Frauenkirche, which is one of Dresden's most beloved symbols, has literally risen from the ashes of the city. The original, designed by Georg Bähr, graced Dresden's skyline for two centuries before collapsing two days after the February 1945 bombing. The GDR left the rubble there as a war memorial, but after reunification a grass-roots movement to rebuild the landmark gained momentum. It was consecrated in November 2005, a year ahead of schedule.
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Alte Spinnerei
'Cotton to culture' is the motto of the Alte Spinnerei, a 19th-century cotton-spinning factory turned artist colony. Around 80 New Leipzig School artists, including Neo Rauch, have their studios in this huge pile of red-brick buildings, alongside designers, architects, goldsmiths and other creative types whose creations are displayed in 10 galleries. It's in the southwestern district of Plagwitz; take bus 60 from Bayrischer Platz to S-Bahnhof Plagwitz.
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Dom St Petri
North of the Hauptmarkt is the Fleischmarkt, the old meat market, dominated by the Dom St Petri. This is the only Simultankirche in eastern Germany, meaning it serves both Catholics and Protestants. When the Reformation reached Bautzen in 1524, both congregations agreed to share the church, with the Protestants holding services in the nave and the Catholics in the choir. There's a waist-high iron grating separating the two - although it was 4m high until 1952!
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Universität Leipzig
On the west side of Augustusplatz, the run-down GDR-era Universität Leipzig, with its bronze relief depicting Karl Marx, is expected to soon have a date with the wrecking ball. Not too many Leipzigers will likely shed a tear, for many still remember the medieval Paulinerkirche which stood here until being demolished in 1968 by GDR authorities. A handful of beautiful epitaphs salvaged from the church are on display in a glass case on Grimmaische Strasse.
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Robert-Schumann-Haus
Behind Hauptmarkt is the Robert-Schumann-Haus, where this renowned composer of the Romantic Age was born and spent the first seven years of his life. Exhibits trace the various life stations of the man who sadly went seriously bipolar in his 30s, and died young in Bonn. A highlight is the piano once played by Schumann's wife, Clara Wieck, herself a noted pianist. There's a monument to the man in the northeast corner of the Hauptmarkt.
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Kasematten
West of the Albertinum is the Brühlsche Terrasse, a spectacular promenade that’s been called the ‘Balcony of Europe’, with a pavement nearly 15m above the southern embankment of the Elbe. In summer it’s a must for strolling, with expansive views of the river and the opposite bank. Beneath the promenade is the Renaissance brick bastion known as the Kasematten, which has a museum showing how the fortress was used.
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Hansestube/Boom
Widely regarded as Braunschweig's leading restaurants, these sister establishments in a renovated half-timbered house serve a seasonally changing menu of modern international cuisine. Enjoy Braunschweiger Mummebraten (€13.50) , a roast stuffed with mincemeat and served in a sauce based on Mumme , a local nonalcoholic malt extract. Rooms in the comfortable hotel cost €90 and €110 for singles and doubles, respectively.
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Yenidze
Northwest of the Altstadt, you can't miss what looks like a huge kitschy mosque with a great stained-glass onion dome. The Yenidze, the world's first reinforced concrete-framed building, actually started out life in 1907 as a tobacco factory, manufacturing an unsuccessful pseudo-exotic cigarette named Salaam Alakhem. Today it's home to three restaurants and a rooftop beer garden, with cultural events taking place in the dome.
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