Features

On the River Main

1 Jan 2009 by intern11

Wouldn’t it be nice to take a lazy ride down Frankfurt’s River Main on a sunny afternoon without encountering any of the waterway’s large, intimidating commercial ships? Don’t get us wrong – Frankfurt is not all (although it’s still mostly) about capitalism and business. A closer look at the museums lining the promenade along the south bank will reveal its historical past.  

It is said that grand civilisations flourish near great rivers – the Nile aided in the birth of civilisation in ancient Egypt and the Yangtze of China saw the rise of many kingdoms, including the latest incarnation, over the past millennia. Then, perhaps, it comes as no surprise that Frankfurt, Europe’s banking capital, is firmly planted along the River Main, one of the main tributaries of the Rhine.

The waterway played a vital role to Frankfurt’s success, providing it with fresh drinking water and food – the perquisites of any site capable of sustaining human development. As a result, the swamp-filled landscape eventually gave way to settlements and forts of the Holy Roman Empire. Churches, cathedrals and centres for the art sprouted centuries later to turn Frankfurt into one of the most illustrious cities of the Middle Ages.

After the fall of the empire, the city endured several changes of leadership, wars and even the Grim Reaper himself (in the form of Black Death, the bubonic plague), showing remarkable resilience.

Alas, the Second World War came and Allied bombers relieved themselves over Frankfurt’s skies, destroying some of the city’s invaluable ancient heritage, not to mention 5,500 lives.

Surviving the city’s darkest hours, River Main watched quietly as a battered Germany – and Frankfurt – made a stunning recovery with the help of the US to propel itself back into the world’s league of economic powers. Businesses began to flourish, old buildings were painstakingly replicated and once again, the river found itself in the middle of a bustling centre of human civilisation and enterprise. While newer, taller players have overshadowed the skyline’s old guard, the River Main has remained central to the city, not only functioning as a commercial waterway but also rediscovered as a place of leisure and recreation.

Today, the waterway showcases a mix of Frankfurt’s past and present along its banks – a fitting role for a symbol that has lived (or rather, flowed) through the metropolis since its very beginning.

The Römerberg

Many business visitors never see it, but the tourist heart of Frankfurt is the Römerberg, a reconstructed square down by the river where the kaisers were crowned in medieval times. Here stands the gabled, Gothic-fronted City Hall, where the coronation banquets were held. With fountains, statues and floral displays, it all looks tremendously picture-postcard, particularly the square’s Ostzeile – “Eastern Row” – of beamed and galleried merchants’ houses. But these buildings are practically all reconstructions, after almost all of them were destroyed in the Second World War – from the front they’re all seasoned timber and lime wash, but wander around the back and they’re concrete and steel. Nevertheless, the Römerberg provides a bit of historical soul for a city that can seem a bit like a business park at times.

Goethe Haus

This may be a bit heavy for the average tourist, but if you are a serial visitor to Frankfurt and an interested student of the German character, then you have to pay homage to Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Germany’s Shakespeare, who was born just around the corner from the Römerberg, in 1749. His tragic play Faust is incredibly dense reading, but does contain many insights into the German psyche. The house in which he grew up has been carefully restored (again, it is mainly a post-war reproduction) but there are still some original artefacts such as a piano, cooking implements, an astronomical clock and his father’s collection of art and books. Open Mon-Sat 1000 to 1800 and Sunday 1000 to 1730. Grosser Hirschgraben, tel 49 69 138 800, www.goethehaus-frankfurt.de

Main Tower

It’s only a short walk north from the Römerberg to the Zeil, Germany’s most profitable shopping promenade, which houses branches of all the big-name stores. Head west, past the restaurant-lined Fressgass (“Glutton Alley”) to Goethestrasse, where all the international designers hang out. Turn left at the grand Alte Oper (“Old Opera”) and head down to the 200-metre high Main Tower, which opened in 2000, and has become one of the city’s icons. There’s a spectacular view of the “Mainhattan” skyline and of the old city centre from an outdoor viewing platform on the 54th floor, as well as a glass-walled restaurant and a television studio one storey down, which sometimes needs live audiences. The viewing platform is open Sun-Thu 1000 to 2100, and Fri-Sat 1000 to 2300. (It closes two hours earlier in winter.) Entry is E4.60 (US$5.80). Neue Mainzer Strasse 52-58, www.maintower.de

The River Main

The Bootshaus Dreyer, on the south bank virtually underneath the iron Eiserner Steg footbridge, has a waterside café on a pontoon and a range of four-seater rowing and pedal boats for hire that go for E12 (US$15) per hour.

Without a doubt, a novel alternative to keep you active – just stay away from those floating bulks of steel. Alternatively, there are more traditional one-hour boat trips from the opposite bank. Open 1100 to 2300. Call 49 69 621 935 or visit www.bootshaus-dreyer.de

Museum Embankment

Nine museums line the southern bank of the River Main, the Museumsufer. In a mixture of 19th-century structures and new-builds of striking design, they are objects of admiration in and of themselves, no matter what their speciality. Communications, sculpture, film, architecture, distant cultures and art are all celebrated here, but the most famous of the institutions is the Städel, housing one of Germany’s finest art collections, with works by the likes of Durer, Holbein, Cranach, Rembrandt, Vermeer, Monet, Van Gogh, Cézanne, Matisse and Picasso. If you want to dip in and out of the various disciplines, you can get one ticket to cover all the museums. Open Tue and Fri-Sun 1000 to 1800, and Wed-Thu 1000 to 2100. Closed Monday. Durerstrasse 2, tel 49 69 605 098 200, www.staedelmuseum.de

Sachsenhausen

The only district of Frankfurt that feels truly local is Sachsenhausen, south of the river. A former working-class region, it is now famous for its ebbelwoi (apple-wine) pubs, many with large open-air terraces and trestle tables groaning with regional specialities such as schweinshaxe (pork knuckles). There’s plenty of choice, although a particular favourite is the Adolf Wagner in Schweizer Strasse (www.apfelwein-wagner.com).   

There’s a great feeling of bonhomie in these places, but don’t be fooled by the “local” flavour – most of the customers are visitors like you and me. And be warned, that ebbelwoi is deceptively strong.

Money Museum

The home of the Deutsche Bundesbank is the obvious place for a money museum, so once you’ve finished making it, why not go to study what this building likes to call “payment media”?

A short metro ride to the west of town, the museum is not just a row of coins in glass cases. There’s interesting stuff about the tracking down of counterfeiters, how the euro note was designed, what life would be like without money (in the imaginary land of Nonpekunia), as well as analyses of the perils of inflation/deflation. What’s more, it’s free of charge. Open daily (except Sat) 1000 to 1700, and Wed from 1000 to 2100. (The closest metro station is Dornbusch.) Wilhelm-Epstein-Strasse 14, tel 49 69 9566 3073, www.geldmuseum.de

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