We left Jena just after 7 AM for the 3 hour train ride that included 3 transfers. The transfers were nice though because we got off one train and the other one would arrive 2 minutes later. When we arrived in Jena I was surprised by the amount of tourists there. After we left the train station though it calmed down considerably.
We spent most of the day in museums which didn't allow us to take pictures, so I don't have a lot of pictures.
Our first stop was the kreuzkirche which we thought was actually the frauenkirche. It had a unique interior complete with remnants of the bombing.
We next visited the residenzschloss, or royal palace. This area is where the kings of saxony lived and reigned. It is also home to Europe's largest collection of treasure. It was insane. There was so much ivory, and gold, and jewels, just ridiculous stuff. All of it was just random knick knacks that were ridiculously opulent, and it just kept going. It was mind-blowing. We checked out a few other museums in the residenzschloss, one on turkish weapons and armor and then an area with medieval armor and weapons. The medieval armor and weapons were my favorite part of the residenzschloss. It showed armor that had been used in tournaments with dents in the armor from the jousting. It was like being at a medieval tournament complete with knights riding fake horses and suits of armor everywhere.
We then made our way to the frauenkirche which is the main church in Dresden. We paid five euros to climb to the top of the dome and it was worth it the view of the city was astounding. Just as we arrived at the top a storm blew in that dumped rain on us with thunder and lightning. The platform we were standing on was partly covered by a spire but the wind was blowing so hard that the rain was drenching the entire platform. We ducked behind pillars and prayed to not get struck by lightning while we were on the platform. The wind and rain died down shortly afterwards and we were able to enjoy a few moments of relative calm.
We then made our way to the Zwinger, a group of 3 museums. We ended up going to the art museum where they had works by Raphael, Botticelli, Rembrandt, and Vermeer. It was really cool but for me it mostly turned into "find the famous artist's paintings."
We then went to the German National Hygiene museum. Everybody that I was with was super stoked about this, I was indifferent to it. I'm still indifferent to it. I just had fun pretending to be really grumpy about the whole thing.
To head home we were planning on getting on a train at 6:07, which would get us home around 9 PM. However, the train was about 20 minutes late (I thought German trains were supposed to run on time). We were worried that we would miss our connecting train which would make the trip 3 hours longer and we would get home about 1230. Luckily our connecting train waited for us and we were able to get home relatively early.
Here are some pictures of the day:
Inside the Kreuzkirche
Evidence of bombing damage in the kreuzkirche
Soviet realist art
The frauenkirche. Where the four columns rise from the top of the church is the platform that we stood on.
Me and the church
Street performer making bubbles
Inside the Frauenkirche. I like this altar, it shows Christ in the garden of gethsemane rather than the crucifixion like all the other churches.
The city from the top of the tower, notice the crazy rain.
Me on the tower. That girl is hiding from the wind and the rain. The rain was coming from my left.
Trying not to get soaked.
After this, I put my camera away so it wouldn't get soaked. The rain did clear up considerably after this but I never pulled my camera back out. I took some pictures with my phone but I'm too lazy to transfer them to the computer.
Tenery comes a week from Tuesday! I'm so excited to see her again and I'm sure she'll do a much better job at blogging.
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