Frankfurt am Main.

I flew into Frankfurt on Friday night, and I was hoping to do some sightseeing that night. Well, that didn't happen. My flight got in 30 minutes late, then getting to the Hauptbahnhof (main train station) was much more difficult than it should have been. First, the ticket machine for the subway would not take my €20 bill, so I had to go buy an overpriced pack of gum in the terminal. After buying the ticket, I couldn't find a system map to figure out which train and which direction to get on. After finally figuring all that out, I had to wait 20 minutes for the train to actually depart. I didn't get to my hostel until around midnight, very frustrated and hungry at that point - needless to say, this was not a good first impression of Frankfurt. I dropped my stuff off in my room, got some food at the fast food joint right next to the hostel, and went to bed.

I got up early on Saturday to see the city. I walked along the river to the Altstadt (Old City). I somehow managed to avoid mobs of tourists, until I was in the Altstadt. This was a beautiful area, especially the Frankfurter Dom - a gorgeous cathedral made from red stone. Just in front of the Frankfurt Dom, there are ruins dating back to Roman times that were uncovered thanks to bombing during WWII. I was nt expecting that, but it was really interesting. Then I strolled up to the Alte Oper (Old Opera), passing the Paulskirche on the way. The Paulskirche is a very politically important church in Frankfurt - it was the seat of the Frankfurt Parliament, the first freely elected parliament in Germany. Unfortunately the Paulskirche was closed for the day. The Alte Oper is nestled in a lovely park, and the building itself is gorgeous - though I wasn't able to go in. Next I went to the Goethe-Haus, which is the restored 18th century house of Goethe (famous German poet). Not only was it interesting to see what houses were like in the 18th century, but the fact that it was Goethe's house made it even more interesting for me because many of the Schubert songs that I sing are settings of Goethe's work.

Then it was time to cross to the southern side of the river to get lunch at the restaurant that created the first Frankfurter sausage. I'm going to lie, it tasted a lot like a hot dog - a good hot dog, but still... However, the Spaetzle (German noodles) and the soup were phenominal. I also tried the Apfelwein (apple wine), which is very popular in Frankfurt. The name kind of says it all: it tastes like a mixture of apple juice and white wine. Honestly, I think it just dulled both flavors - I would have preferred either plain apple juice or white wine.

After lunch, I still had about an hour to kill, so I strolled along the Museumsufer (Museum Bank/Shore), which is along the southern bank of the river. There are a ton of museums here, but I didn't have time to go in any of them, just enjoyed the view from outside. I also relaxed by the river for a little while before getting my luggage and heading to the train station. My train to Freiburg left 20 minutes late, but at least I was fortunate enough to find a free seat.