Dresden!

Germany!
*Note: I am writing all about Germany in a short period of time, very early in the morning. Therefore be sure to check for more about Germany in other posts (4 total) and be sure to ignore any and all of my mistakes :)

Dresden is another beautiful city. We were able to find our hostel very quickly and not get honked at by too many cars, which is a definite improvement. Also the city is very clean, compared to Dublin at least. Our hostel had a definite Australian theme and the people their were not Australian, but this mattered little to them. And now for our tour.

I will break Dresden into two parts, the old part and the new part. We saw most of the new side of town our first day. Now while it really is not that new, it is full of a different kind of German. Our map told us how some people in this part refuse to use running water. But the new side had many cute shops, cafes, and churches. Martin Luther has a church there, or at least it is called Martin Luthers church. Otherwise there is also a rather old cemetary in this part as well. This cemetary is completely Jewish. It felt like stepping into a park and all of the tombstones faced Jerusalem.

The old part of town is more of what had been rebuilt after the bombing. The various churches, castles, and opera house. It was interesting as you can see the old stone that had survived the bombing (completely black) mixed with the new stone (tan color) in the buildings. Then in many places, particularily the caste and Zwinger, there was the old statues and the new standing side by side. Dresden has done a lot to bring back the old city and many of the towns people like this, but some worry because the old palaces are turning in to hotels and soon part of the city scape may disappear behind bigger buildings too.

During our stay in Dresden President Obama was due to arrive. Now one may think that we would be excited for the chance to see our president. We were, but it was also frustrating. Everywhere we looked there was police. And not just like 3 or 4 in one spot, more like 8 to 10. They were circling blocks. When you walked down the street you would see a line of the police vans driving by (again 8 to 10). And the day he was due to arrive the completely closed off most of the old city, as that was where he was supposed to stay. Though it does amuse me that the hotel he is staying in is the old residence of King Strongs mistress (right next to the castle). Thus ending our stay in Dresden, as we fled before more cops came and the city stood still.