Friday, 23 June 2006
I took the 23:07 CityNightLine train from Munich to Dresden. Nothing new, except that the seat was extremely comfortable--I could even move it to almost a reclining position (because the train was quite empty--no one was sitting behind me). All this cost me 4 Euros of reservation fee and one day on the Eurail Pass (averaging to about 35 Euros/ day). Nonetheless I didn't sleep well, and as far as I could tell almost woke up at every train stop.
Saturday, 24 June 2006
I arrived in the Dresden Hauptbahnhof at about 8:30. Then a walk down the Pragerstr., a modern looking boulevard lined on both sides by new shopping malls. Indeed, 17 years after the Germany reunification, a large part of Dresden was still under construction / renovation, and all this was evident as soon as one gets off the train.
Then, coming to the Altmarkt (Old Market), I veered to the east towards the Kruezkirche. The pity of visiting here on an early Saturday morning was that almost everything was closed. Continuing north past the Frauenkirche, and the Albertinum, a huge museum, and up a flight of stairs, I came to the Elbe riverside. Walking above the shore, gazing at the old buildings along the river was more than a pleasure; it was one of the best ways, I think, to get to know Dresden.
Coming down, I came to the square surrounded by three imposing structures--the Cathedral, the Royal Castle, and the Fürstenzug. The former two were under renovation, and the latter was a long wall portraying Baroque scenes. Doubling back to the Transport Museum and found it not really interesting, I headed towards the Residenzschloss, probably the most imposing structure in Dresden. Unlike the Munich Residenz, this one has a very large and multi-purpose courtyard (at the time of visit it was used for concerts, it seemed). Rounding the side past the Semper Opera, there is a ramp up which a sweeping view of the courtyard awaits the visitor. Coming down, I entered the Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, which housed various Renaissance paintings, including Raphael's Sistine Madonna.
Crossing the Augustus Bridge, I came to the Neustadt (New Town) of Dresden. There was another wide boulevard, which was begun by the statue of a golden rider. The boulevard also had stores to both side, but had more trees than Pragerstr. Coming out to the Albertplatz, I headed east along the Bautznerstrasse, hoping to see the Pfund's Molkerei, which was reputedly a beautiful milk store. By this time I had about 15 minutes left before the hourly train to Leipzig would depart. Thus I walked to the site con presto, but did not see anything impressive (perhaps I did not walk far enough). In the last five minutes to the train station, I ran full speed, carrying a filled backpack and a bag (my drinking water alone weighed three kilograms). If the dash had been longer I believe that my legs would have given way and I would have collapsed. Anyways, I managed to get on the train, 20 seconds before the doors closed.