Dave and I had only one day to spend in Frankfurt on Main in Germany, but I think we spent our time there efficiently. We walked the old town, visited Main Tower, had a private walking tour and a scenic river cruise on the river Main.
While boarding at Washington Dulles International Airport, we noticed that Lufthansa was the most organized airline that we experienced so far. There are separate boarding lines by seat rows in the airplane.
We arrived in Frankfurt early morning and took a taxi to the Old Town. We got out of the taxi right next to Eiserner Steg bridge.
This famous iron and concrete footbridge, crossed by over 10,000 pedestrians every day, connects the city center and Römerberg with Sachsenhausen on the southern banks of the Main River. Fantastic views and thousands of love locks.
On the right is a sightseeing cruise boat along the river Main. We took a ride on one of those at noon.
We spent quite some time in Römerberg (Roman Mountain), Frankfurt’s old central and most beautiful square. Ornately gabled half-timbered buildings, reconstructed after WWII, give an idea of how beautiful the city’s medieval core once was.
The Gerechtigkeitsbrunnen (Fountain of Justice) at the center of the square was built in 1543. The statue of goddess Justitia, holding the scales of justice but without her usual blindfold, faces the Römer (City Hall). In 1612, at the coronation of Matthias, the fountain ran with wine.
Römerberg has been the seat of the Frankfurt city administration since the 15th century. As the site of numerous Imperial coronations, trade fairs and Christmas markets, the square is the historic heart of the medieval Altstadt (old town) and today a popular tourist destination. We were told that The Römerberg is especially lovely as a backdrop for the Christmas market in December.
The Römer is actually a building-complex, consisting of nine houses and six court yards. It has been the city hall of Frankfurt for more than 600 years. The Römer also houses the main registar’s office, and generations of newly-weds have stepped down the little staircase, welcomed by the cheers, rice and flowers of their friends and families. We got to take a glimpse of one of those weddings.
We had some time before our river cruise, so we took a nice walk to the observation tower. Main Tower is a 56-storey skyscraper in the Innenstadt district of Frankfurt. It is named after the nearby Main river. Frankfurt am Main (Frankfurt on the Main) also refers to the river which flows through the city.
The tower has five underground floors and two public viewing platforms. It is the only skyscraper in Frankfurt with a public viewing observatory. It is the 4th tallest building in Frankfurt and the 4th tallest in Germany.
The Frankfurt skyline of steel and glass skyscrapers, unique to Germany where traditionally one didn’t build higher than the cathedral, is evidence of local bank power, the quest for upward mobility and the importance of the city in the banking world.
The financial district proper is the area between the central station and the Alte Oper, the Westend and Hauptwache. Many splendid buildings characterize it, the “debit an credit” towers of the Deutsche Bank or the Norman Foster brilliant construction for the Commerzbank. Neither the Bundesbank nor the ECB are located in the financial district.
A view of the river Main from the Main Tower.
Walked by Goethe Museum House. I wish we had time to explore the museum of this famous German writer.
Cool little pub on the square.
Walking through St. Paul’s Square. Right in the center of the picture is the Alte Nikolaikirche, a small early Gothic church which was possibly built as early as the eleventh century.
Paulsplatz (St Paul’s Square) is one of the most important and symbolic in the city and it is located at the foot of the church which it takes its name – the protestant church of St. Paul. This place was the scene of some of Frankfurt’s most special historical moments, such as the meeting of the Frankfurt National Assembly of 1848.
The eastern part of the square has plane or Platanus trees and a number of cafés with outdoor tables during summer months. There are various street festivals that take place in the square during the summer, as well as the Frankfurt Christmas Market in late November and December.
We had a nice lunch in one of the restaurants on the square.
The trash cans with the hot dog tops were everywhere on the square. This cute little detail made me smile.
I really like this trimmed Platanus tree park.
Beautiful surroundings of St Paul’s Square.
While waiting for the sightseeing cruise, we noticed this cute ice-cream cone exhibit.
The one-hour sightseeing cruise along the river Main, was nice and relaxing. The weather was really warm and sunny at the time and German beer was refreshing. A river cruise on the Main was a great way to discover Frankfurt with accompanying commentaries in German and English about the most important sights along the river.
Back to Romerberg Square – our Frankfurt on Foot tour was scheduled to start here. The City Hall view.
Our tour guide informed us that this guy, who is playing the music, is a music teacher. He practices often on the square in order not to disturb his neighbors. How thoughtful of him. 🙂
Our tour guide pointed out to us the Gedenkplatte Bücherverbrennung: memorial plaque to the 1933 book burning. The plaque mounted in the cobblestones near the Fountain of Justice reveals a writer’s stern warning. In the tragedy “Almansor“, the German-Jewish writer Heinrich Heine warned readers about the dangers of burning books.
This dog is made from sand – cute street art.
The east side of the square, opposite the Römer is known as the Ostzeile. This row of six picturesque half-timbered houses are reconstructions of the original fifteenth- and sixteenth-century houses, most of which were rebuilt or expanded in the eighteenth century. In March of 1944 bombardments obliterated the whole historic district, including the Römerberg.
Some of the historic buildings, like the Römer, were reconstructed soon after the war. The Ostzeile however wasn’t rebuilt until 1981-1983 when the houses were reconstructed following historical models.
When looking at Frankfurt’s skyline, one building clearly strikes out, mainly because it is more than half a millenium older. St. Bartholomew’s or “Kaiserdom” (Imperial Cathedral) is a Catholic church.
Consecrated to St. Bartholemy in 1239, the Kaiserdom (“Emperor’s Cathedral”) was used for the coronation of 10 emperors. It was reconstructed twice, first in 1876 giving it a neo-gothic style and later to repair the damages of the second world war. The church is open throughout the year and can be visited whenever there is no service is going on.
We had a quick tour inside of this beautiful cathedral.
One of the religious scenes inside the church.
We saw some pretty nice graffiti on our way to the Market Hall.
We also stopped at Kleinmarkthalle, an indoor market hall with 60+ vendors selling a variety of groceries, plus flowers, wine & prepared foods.
We spent some time exploring Frankfurt airport while waiting for our flight. The new terminal looked great with a variety of food and really comfortable lounge areas to relax.
In a couple of hours we will leave Frankfurt on Main and arrive in Kiev, Ukraine late at night.
