Germany

 

LUBECK

 

Lubeck,the second largest city in Schleswing-Holstein,in northen Germany,served as the capital of the Hanseating League.Sited on the Trave River,it is the largest German port city on the Baltic Sea.Its old town is a well-preserved ensemble of churches,merchant`s homes,narrow alleyways and warehouses that have been recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.

 The old town of Lubeck,the heart of the city,is dominated by church steeples,showing how wealthy it once was and including the Cathedral(Dom),St Mary`s (Marienkirche),St Peter`s,St Aegidien`s in the craftsmen`s district and St Jacob`s,the seafarers` church.The oldest,the Dom and the Marienkirche date back to the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries.

 Also in this area are the Stiftshofe(almshouses),founded by rich merchants,as well as all of the major museums,including the St-Annenmuseum,Behnhaus,Gunter Grass Haus,Museumkirche St Katherinen,Buddenbrookhaus,the Volkerkundesammlyng (ethnology),Museum fur Natur und Umwelt (nature and the enviroment),Lubecker Theaterfigurenmuseum (theatrical puppets) and the Holstentor (the history of the city).

 The old town`s many narrow lanes and alleys are lined by Gothic,Renaissance,Baroque and Classical town houses with red-brick,gabled facades.The impressive Town Hall (Rathaus),still in use,and the Art Nouveau Stadttheater,the Heiligen-Geist-Hospital and the Schiffergesellschaft can also be found here.The sounds of Brahms and Mozart sometimes float through the windows of the Hochschule fur Musik (college of music),lending another layer to the city`s already heady European charms.

 Boat trips round the beautiful harbour-the origin of the city`s wealth and power-leave from the Holsten bridge (Holstenbrucke),opposite the old Salzspeicher (salt warehouses).