Dresden, Germany is a city 2 hours south of Berlin. It is not well known, but if you are a history nerd like me you know that the city was completely destroyed (bombed) during World War II. The city has been rebuilt, including the Old Town which is so cute! It’s quaint with a large plaza and historic buildings like their Opera House.
The concept of rebuilding old buildings is super common in European countries especially since World War II was fought in Europe so many cities were bombed and destroyed. So, when in Dresden’s old town you may think you are looking at a 300+ year old building but the truth is they are less than a century old.
Honestly, I can’t remember learning about Dresden in any of my history classes but I can say that I am glad that my coworker recommended it to me!
Here’s why:
The Christmas Markets
Unlike Berlin, Dresden’s Christmas markets are fairly priced. I bought a sweet treat, whose name I don’t remember along with red mulled wine for 6 euros. The currywurst and things alike were also priced at 3 euros which is standard to what you would pay if you bought it in a restaurant. Dresden’s Christmas markets definitely felt more homey and comfy than the ones in Berlin. I honestly got in the Christmas spirit because of Neumarkt.
After Neumarkt, I headed to Augustmarkt which is a Christmas market primarily for food. Their are stands and people sell all different types of food. My stomach is very bougie and so I tend to steer clear of street food but it looked GOOD! You get get a full meal for 6 euros or less. They had German, African, Spanish, Turkish, food, etc and their portions were fairly sized too!
The people:
People in Dresden were surprisingly friendly. Germans get a bad rep for being cold and mean people, which I think is a generally accurate blanket statement. However, people in Dresden smiled at me all the time whenever I was walking down the street. I did get the occasionally too long 30 second stare, but as a solo black traveller that is to be expected.
Public transport is really good:
In general, Germany has really good public transportation. Though Dresden isn’t that big of a city, trams run very frequently (every 5-10 minutes) even late into the night. Single tickets €2.40 and can be bought on the tram, on the S-bahn, and at bus and tram stops.
There isn’t a lot of tourism:
As a solo black traveller I stand out easily. There is nothing worse than standing out amongst locals and then on top of that being the only black tourist in a group. Dresden feels much more German than Berlin per say. I really enjoy feeling like I am apart of a culture and not like I’m in America with a different Google Maps location. I definitely learned more about German culture in Dresden and I feel smarter because of that.
Overall, I really enjoyed my time in Dresden! I think the city definitely comes alive in the summertime and would without a doubt go back again. Have you been to Dresden? Have you travelled to Germany?
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