GERMANY - Europe by Eurail 2015: Touring Europe by Train - page 225

Tel: [phone]; Fax: [phone]
www.dresden-tourist.de or www.dresden.de
E-mail: [e-mail]
Hours: 1000-1900 Monday-Friday, 1000-1800 Saturday, and 1000-1500 Sunday
Notes: In the summer the center is open for longer hours. A five-minute walk on
Prager Strasse, across the street from the rail station, will take you there.
Dresden's name is derived from Drezdzane , the old Slavic word for “forest people,”
who were the early settlers in the area. Dresden is situated in the wide, gentle val-
ley of the Elbe River, about 19 miles (30 kilometers) from the northwest border of
the Czech Republic. Although the city's fame comes mainly from its past cultural
achievements, Dresden is also economically important and is best known for its
Dresden china.
From its beginnings as a small Slavonic fishing village, Dresden developed a de-
lightfully harmonious relationship with the river and the forest. As it grew, its scen-
ic beauty was enhanced in the 17th and 19th centuries by builders who erected
fine examples of Baroque and Rococo architecture. This, in turn, attracted a great
number of artists and writers as Dresden grew into a modern, confident city of half
a million citizens. With its architectural landmarks and its art treasures of Dutch,
Flemish, and Italian collections, Dresden gained the well-deserved title “Florence
of the Elbe.”
On February 13, 1945, more than a half-million bombs rained down on Dresden
from Anglo-American aircraft. Thirty-five thousand citizens died, and more than
15 square miles of the inner city were reduced to rubble. The air raid devastated
nearly all of the city's cultural monuments. Dresden was declared dead. But Dres-
den is rising like a phoenix. Dust from the air raid scarcely settled before restora-
tion began on the Semper Opera House. Forty years to the day, on February 13,
1985, Dresden's population celebrated the reopening of this world-famous theater,
and many other cultural and historic edifices have been rebuilt.
Dresden's Altmarkt (old market) is the historic center of the city, which was re-
built between 1953 and 1956. The city's botanical gardens, completely destroyed
in 1945, were rebuilt in 1950. Only nine zoo animals survived the air attack, but
in 1961 the zoo reopened with a stock of more than 2,000 animals representing
nearly 500 species.