Dresden & Wackerbarth Castle
Categories: Sightseeing, Cultural and History
Dresden is located to the south of Berlin (Berlin vacation rentals | Berlin travel guide) and it takes under 2 hours to cover the distance of 165 kilometers on the Autobahn between the two cities. You can even fly to Dresden (Dresden vacation rentals | Dresden travel guide) on Austrian via Vienna as they offer convenient connections to the capital city of Saxony Saxony, the art and cultural capital of Germany is on the South East corner of Germany and borders the Czech Republic and Poland. We were to spend 4 days to get a flavour of this wonderful area of Germany comprising of 7 regions.
The first stop is at Pillnitz Castle Gardens. Pillnitz used to be the summer residence of the Saxon Kings near Dresden. The park and the castle were built here at the end of the 18th Century. This used to be the summer residence of the Saxon Kings and the Riverside Palace was linked to the New Palace and the Hillside Palace to form a unique ensemble of architecture. The English and Chinese pavilions were added later. We had the opportunity to take a short stroll for about 15 minutes to get an impression of this wonderful area which has been part of the Dresden Elbe Valley UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2004. Before Dresden became a centre of research, industry and tourism, it was the seat of the royal residence and being royalties they had castles. Pillnitz was built in a Japanese style and was the closest castle to Dresden with the exception of the city castle.
The Dresden Zwinger is yet another famous landmark comprising of pavilions and galleries in baroque style and was commissioned by Augustus the Strong, the elector of Saxony. Zwinger which means interspace originates from its location between former city fortifications. The most impressive pavilions are the Rampart and Glockenspiel. The Zwinger with its large inner courtyard was used for court festivities, tournaments and fireworks and today, houses several museums such as the Porcelain Museum, the Old Master's Gallery and the Historical Museum. One of the highlights of the Zwinger is the Crown Gate, a baroque gate topped by a large crown and the Nymphenbad, a small enclosed courtyard near the Rampart pavilion which has a baroque fountain featuring numerous statues.
Another interesting area of the city centre is Neumarkt. Neumarkt which stands for New Market is misunderstood as a market place. Here in Germany, it is the name of the square and is a culturally significant section of the inner city of Dresden. The Neumarkt like most of Dresden was destroyed during WW II and was rebuilt to its original pre-war look.
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Dresden
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