Zwickau: Germany

Zwickau: Germany
Zwickau is a city of Germany, in the Bundesland Saxony (Sachsen), situated in a valley at the foot of the Erzgebirge, on the left bank of the Zwickauer Mulde, 130 km (82 miles) southwest of Dresden, south of Leipzig and south west of Chemnitz. (Population: slightly above 100,000). It is accessed by nearest autobahnen, the A72 and A4 along with a train station.
Highlights
Among the nine churches, the fine Gothic church of St Mary (1451-1536 and restored 1885-1891), with a spire 285 ft. high and a bell weighing 51 tons, is remarkable. The church contains an altar with wood-carving and eight pictures by Michael Wohlgemuth and a remarkable Pieta in carved and painted wood, by Peter Breuer. (more…)

Würzburg: Germany

Würzburg: Germany
Würzburg is a city in Bavaria, Germany. Located on the Main river, it is the capital of the Regierungsbezirk Unterfranken. The city of Würzburg is not included in Würzburg (district), but is its administrative seat. Its population is about 127,000 as of 2000.
Arts and Architecture
Notable artists that lived in Würzburg include poet Walther von der Vogelweide (12th and 13th cent.), philosopher Albertus Magnus and painter Mathias Grunewald. Two artist that made a lasting impression were sculptor Tilman Riemenschneider (1460-1531), who was also mayor and participated in the Peasants’ War, and Balthasar Neumann (1687-1753), baroque architect and builder of the Würzburg Residence that is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Its interiour was decorated by Giovanni and Domenico Tiepolo. (more…)

Wuppertal: Germany

Wuppertal: Germany
Wuppertal is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located on the Wupper river south of the Ruhr area. Population 376,700 (1999).
It is a major industrial centre including such industries as: textiles, metallurgy, chemicals, medicine ( Bayer), electric, rubber, vehicles and printing equipment.
The city was formed in 1929 by merging Barmen , Elberfeld , Vohwinkel , Ronsdorf , Cronenberg , Langerfeld and Beyenburg . The name was initially Barmen-Elberfeld, and after 1930 Wuppertal. During World War II it was destroyed to about 40% by the Allies as were many other industrial centres at the time. However, a large quantity of historic sites have been preserved such as the Ölberg (“Petroleum Hillâ€?) District, one of Germany’s largest working class districts, and the so-called Briller Viertel, Germany’s largest district of Bourgeois dwellings.. (more…)

Wolfsburg: Germany

Wolfsburg: Germany
Wolfsburg is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is located on the River Aller northeast of Braunschweig (Brunswick). Wolfsburg is bordered by the districts of Gifhorn and Helmstedt. Population: 122,800 (1999). Car registration symbol: WOB.
The city is very young, since it was planned by the Nazis in order to build a town for the workers of the Volkswagen factories. It was founded in 1938 as Stadt des KdF-Wagens (“City of the KdF Carâ€?) around the village of Hesslingen in the District of Gifhorn. Kraft durch Freude (abbreviated KdF and meaning “strength through joyâ€?) was the German state-controlled leisure organization; one of its projects was the KdF-Wagen, which would later be known as the VW Beetle. During World War II there were also jeeps, airplanes and other military equipment built, mainly by forced workers and POWs at these factories. (more…)

Witten: Germany

Witten: Germany
Witten is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany in the southern Ruhr area in the Ruhr valley. It was first mentioned in historic sources in 1214, however the borough Herbede (which was incorporated into the city in 1975) even dates back to 851. The city was a mining town from 1578.
Witten is twinned with the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, UK