sábado, 12 de abril de 2014

Memories of Dresden



Dresden before the war

Yesterday my son told me he is going to Dresden in July. This inspired me to tell some of the stories I heard when I attended a summer course in east Germany (GDR) in 1983 and visited Dresden.
Dresden after the bombing

 The old city centre was still kept in ruins as a reminder of the notorious bombing of Dresden by the allied forces (British and Americans) towards the end of the war.


My “begleiterin” (constant companion) told us about the tragic event that resulted in around  25 000 civilians being killed.


 People who had sought shelter in the “Frauenkirche”(Church of Our Lady) couldn´t escape as the dome collapsed because the temperature of the floor in the surrounding area reached 1 000 degrees Celsius. 

Dresden before the war

The bombing destroyed the whole of the capital of the state of Saxony, which had become a safe haven for war refugees. It was an important communications and manufacturing centre, as well as a leading cultural centre of art, classical music and science.

The Zwinger

Fortunately the reconstruction of the museum of the Zwinger began in 1945 and I was thus able to visit the painting Gallery.

 The Shloss


 I was told that reconstructing other buildings like the Schloss (castle) and the church began after the German reunification of 1990 and that the city is reestablishing its cultural importance. I hope to see pictures of this soon. The ones I am showing here are from the internet and not mine because, unfortunately, the ones I own are of very poor quality.




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