Having first arrived in Macau in the early 1500s, Portuguese traders used its natural harbour as a convenient place to…
A-Ma
The story of A-Ma (also called Mazu or Matsou) starts on Meizhou Island off the coast of the southeastern province…
Up the Elbe
The origins of the city of Dresden lie in its position along the river Elbe. It flows wide and slowly…
Arts and lemons
Walking from the Zwinger towards the river, we passed the Semper Oper. A famous opera house that was severely damaged…
Palace between the walls
Like the Fraunkirche, the baroque palace called “Zwinger” was severely damaged during the bombings of Dresden in February 1945. Its…
Princely procession
In the Augustiner Strasse in Dresden, you can admire the largest tiled mural in the world. The “Fürstenzug” (Procession of…
Rebuilding with old and new
On 13 February 1945, allied air forces bombed Dresden. It had been a centre for industry, food manufacturing, banking and…
Levitating up the hill
Not long after the funicular railway connected the district of Loschwitz to Weißer Hirsch, the residents of Oberloschwitz (Upper Loschwitz)…
View from the top
The Luisenhof opposite the station also features in the novel which first alerted me to the railway. We decided to…
Dresden Funicular
A novel set in Dresden starts with a detailed description of the main character travelling up the steep bank of…