Essen, Germany

Essen is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Located on the Ruhr river, it ranks as the second largest city of the Ruhr area and as the 8th largest city in Germany. Population: 586,205 (as of 30.06.2004).

Sights in Essen

• Villa Hügel: Built at the end of the 19th century by industrial magnate Alfred Krupp as his family home. Today it often houses temporary art exhibitions and music concerts.
• Zeche und Kokerei Zollverein: Coal mine (built in 1932, closed in 1986) and coking plant (built in 1961, closed in 1993). Visitors now have access to the precincts, which frequently house temporary art exhibitions.
• Essener Münster: 14th-century cathedral, enlarged and rebuilt in 1958; not spectacular in appearance, but having some exquisite objects on display in the attached treasure house: Artworks from around 1000 AD, a crown of emperor Otto III), the oldest preserved sculpture of the Virgin Mary in the world (Goldene Madonna).
• Alte Synagoge: The Jewish community inaugurated the synagogue in 1913. Destroyed by fire in the Nazi pogroms of 1938, it was restored after World War II.
• Werden: Once a city of its own, it became a borough of Essen in 1929; the center of the town has partly retained its medieval townscape with many pubs and restaurants. It stands near the Baldeney See and hosts the Folkwang College of Art.
• Kettwig: Also once a city of its own, and also located in the south of the Essen near the Ruhr river.
• Baldeney See: The big lake in the south of the city, a popular recreation area. It dates from 1931 - 1933, when 10,000 unemployed coal miners dredged it in exchange for bread and beer http://www.pimath.de/PiRuhr/Kapitel6/ruhrgebiet6.html.
• The Essen game fair , held in October, and the occasion of the presentation of the Essen Feather and of the Deutscher Spiele Preis
• The Town Hall (Rathaus) of Essen, the largest town hall in Germany, reaches about 120 meters high.