Walking Tour in Frankfurt

The senior missionaries went on a "walking tour" of Frankfurt one Saturday morning, and even though it was a downpour in the beginning, it was lots of fun. It lasted about three hours, and the rain had stopped by the time we were through.

Anyhow, a wonderful sister (who is actually Austrian) was our guide. She works in the Area Office and has lived in Frankfurt for 30 years. I took way too many pictures, and I realize you're going to be really bored by the end of two years, because I don't vary my shots much. Oh, well....

This very pink building is a bank, but I thought the architecture was rather interesting, to say the least! I don't know who the lucky men were who posed for this sculpture, but I bet their backs ached by the time they were through!

This is the Wertheim Haus. It was the only timber-framed building in the old part of the city to survive the war. So, it's the real thing, refurbished I'm sure, but the building itself is not rebuilt. It is original.

We walked to the "Wall Street" of Frankfurt, and we were hosted by their bull and bear. Several tourists were climbing on top and having their pictures taken, but we actually retained some decorum and just "leaned." Frankfurt is the money capital of Germany, even though Berlin is the actual government capital. The pink trees in the background were beautiful, and they were dropping their blossoms really fast, such that it resembled a snowstorm of pink!

This is Goethe's house, with an attached museum to the right. We saw the church he was baptized in, as well as a monument in his honor just down the street. We didn't go inside, so we weren't very educated from just walking by... I thought this combination of architecture was kind of interesting, from gingerbread to circular to ancient church in the background.

This is the Rathaus, or city hall. Weddings also take place there on some days, and you can just barely see a wedding party coming out in this picture. This particular area is famous for it's Weinachtsmarkt, or Christmas market. The whole square and surrounding area is glowing with Christmas lights, the plaza covered with booths for food, decorations, gifts, and anything and everything. We didn't go last year, but they say it gets so crowded that it's shoulder to shoulder the whole time. The sisters were advised to leave their purses home, and cameras were discouraged, cause there's so much pickpocketing, etc. We'll have pictures next year if I can talk Hank into a late night!

Well, that's all for this little blurb. I think I took around 50 pictures during the tour, so you're lucky I have some restraint!