Augsburg, located in the foothills of the Alps at the confluence of the Lech and Verthach rivers, is one of the most interesting cities of the tourist route "Romantic Road of Germany". This Bavarian city with a history of two thousand years makes tourists happy with curious historical monuments that survived during the Second World War, when the whole city as a whole was badly damaged.
How to get here
Of the major cities of Germany, the nearest to Augsburg is Munich, 45 km. The most convenient way to get to the city is by train: from Berlin (the journey time is 6 hours, the train departs every hour), Dusseldorf (4, 5 hours, every hour), Cologne (4 hours, every hour), Munich (45 minutes, trains go 5-6 times per hour), Frankfurt (3 hours, every hour) or Stuttgart (1, 5 hours, every hour). There is also a Lufthansa bus running from Munich (the journey time is 1 hour 10 minutes, it leaves 6 times a day).
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The climate of Augsburg
The weather in Augsburg is often changeable, as the city is in a transitional climatic zone. It is not very cold winter and not too hot summer. The sky over the city is often clear, from here you can admire the alpine peaks. From January to mid-March, snow lies, and autumn differs thick fogs.
Entertainment, excursions and attractions in Augsburg
The symbol of the city is the city hall, the modern building of which was built in 1615-1620. in the style of the Italian Renaissance. On its facade are the emblem of the city - a pine cone, and the imperial eagle, symbolizing the Roman past of Augsburg. The most important part of the town hall is the Golden Hall, which is two and a half stories high, decorated with walnut trees and decorated with elegant frescoes.
The Archbishop's Residence is a complex of buildings in the old part of the city, built in 1740-1752. It is nice to admire the exterior of the residence and its interior decoration. In the Rococo hall, concerts are held now, and the court garden, elegant and solemn, is open to all comers.
The Fuggerei district is a historical quarter for the poor, surrounded by a wall. 67 standard two-storey houses were built here in the 16th century. And until now, local residents pay for living, rather, a symbolic amount. The history of the quarter and the Fugger family, which founded this social district, is told in the local museum.
One of the most famous theaters in Augsburg is the open-air theater "At the Red Gate". During the summer festivals, colorful performances are shown here. The puppet theater is also very popular, located in the hospital of the Holy Spirit. In the theater "work" 6000 dolls, each of which has its own character and facial expression.
The churches of Augsburg
Gothic church of St. Ulrich and Afra on the hill - the fifth or sixth on the account at this place - was erected in the period from 1474 to 1604. Here relics of St. Afra, the patroness of Augsburg, and Bishop Ulrich, who saved the city from the pagan Hungarians, are buried. In the church it is worth looking at the statue of the Madonna (1500), stained glass in the sacristy, Baroque gates (1712).
In the church of St. Anna deserve attention a magnificent collection of paintings and a chapel Goldschmiedekapelle with a wall painting. No tourist route is complete without visiting this wonderful old church. Here, in the monastery of St. Anna, Martin Luther stayed in 1520.
The ancient cathedral of the Virgin Mary (Mariendom) in the Old Town is notable for bronze doors with images of scenes from the Bible, Romanesque stained-glass windows of the 11th century - the oldest in Germany, and the carved altar. The Augsburg colored stained-glass windows depict the biblical prophets.
Museums of Augsburg
The Maximilian Museum, housed in a building from the middle of the 16th century, features paintings, sculpture, and gold and silver art. The German Baroque Gallery and the State Gallery in the Shezler-Palais Mansion present to the public the fruits of the work of famous German artists of the 15th and 16th centuries, among them the paintings of the Holbein family, Albrecht Durer and others. A small museum of Martin Luther is in the church of St. Anne, also in the city there is a museum of handicrafts and a museum of the automobile plant MAN.
On the street Frauentorstrasse is located the memorial museum of Leopold Mozart - once lived in this house of the father of the famous composer. Another memorial museum in Augsburg is dedicated to the life and work of the German poet and prose writer Bertolt Brecht, who was born here in 1898. Rudolf Diesel's house is designed to perpetuate the memory of the inventor of the internal combustion engine.
Events in the city
Annually in the first half of February in the theaters of Augsburg there passes the week of Bertolt Brecht. This tradition is almost 30 years old.
Photos of Augsburg (14)