The Judengasse includes the oldest known Jewish house in Germany at number 2. The Jews came to the Rhineland during the time of the Roman empire.
This is one of the few old paintings that survived in the church.
This church is attached to the Dom, but is a separate church. Apparently most of the windows were blown out during the war, because the current ones are not old.
What seems unusual to me is the late date of this sculpture with the Grim Reaper, as seen from the man's 18th-century hair.
The scene in front of the Dom when I was there was very much like the medieval fairs that were once held there, with children trying new games (this one is a child's version of bungee cords) and booths selling all kinds of handmade things, food and flowers.
These authentic-looking buildings are actually reconstructions of the original buildings that were destroyed by American and British bombers during World War II.
On the left is the city's historical museum; on the right is the city's oldest restaurant. Frankfurt is full of these odd contrasts. The ugly concrete buildings in Frankfurt are mostly built in places where bombs fell.
At Christmastime, the Christmas market begins here.
The first riverboat is named after Goethe, Frankfurt's favorite son. The boats take people on short Rhine cruises-- the Main runs into the Rhine not far from Frankfurt.
The church in the photo was one of the first in Europe to switch its allegiance to the Protestant faith. On the riverbank you can see an inscription that says "WM 2006." This means "Weltmeisterschaft 2006," or 2006 World Championship Soccer, which Frankfurt is hosting. All along the riverbank on the south, there is a lot of construction in preparation for the games this summer.
Both sides of the river are lined by pedestrian walkways with cafes here and there. On the south side, there are about a dozen museums in a row, each with its own cafe. On Saturdays, there is a big fleamarket on the road above the river. It's a very pleasant place.
This building is so beautiful at night that I looked up the architect! It makes the whole Frankfurt skyline more sophisticated and newer architects have raised their standards to compete with it. Supposedly it has gardens spiraling up inside. In the evening it is lit up in green or yellow.
Liebig Haus, on the south bank of the river, is a wild fantasy of architecture that is now a sculpture museum, with an old-fashioned cafe and a quiet walled garden.
Before World War II, Frankfurt had the largest, best-preserved old center city in Germany. But after the war it lay in ruins. This is one of the old houses in a neighborhood in Sachsenhausen that survived mostly by chance.
Goethe was born in Frankfurt and the Frankfurters are very proud of him. I think he would be more popular in other countries if anyone knew how to pronounce his name. I thought it was Go-EETH for years....