Live: Frankfurt - More than just the bank of the world

Frankfurt am Main Hauptbahnhof

Next up was Frankfurt, the one that broke my "capital of Germany" trend, though technically with its commercial banking prowess, it is considered to the "capital" of european banking and transportation system. Located along the Main River (thus her full name "Frankfurt am Main"), Frankfurt is the seat of the  European Central Bank, the German Federal Bank, the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and the Frankfurt Trade Fair to make it the financial hub of Germany and Europe. On top of that, Frankfurt boost one of the busiest international airport and largest train station. If there is any city that can claim rocket speed recovery after being leveled in WWII,  Frankfurt will be on right on top.

The main highlight of the day definitely was the view we got from the Main Tower (the only tower that allows tourist to go up to its rooftop). It was totally worth the cheap €5 and its a must-do for all who visit Frankfurt. Even if you have only 1 hour there, you got to just rush in there, take the elevator up and enjoy the view. Frankfurt is the only city in Germany that has that many skyscraper and it is certainly not a view that can be enjoyed anywhere else in Europe.

Let me try to orientate you:

Commerz Bank

Euro-Land

Frankfrut Airport in the Background 

Hauptbahnhof from the Top

Twin Towers of Deutsch Bank

Pool Party, Anyone?

State Opera House

Besides the obvious skyscrapers, Frankfurt also offers a little bit of history and churches. All these can be found along the main shopping stretch starting from the Old State Opera House. The walk took us through the eateries that bankers invade during lunch hours, the main shopping areas, the old town Romer, St Paul Church and culminates in the grand St Bartholomew's Church. An interesting incident happened around St Paul Church - I was out hunting (not sure how the church looked like) for St Paul Church when I chanced upon a small little chapel in the middle of a square, went inside thinking it was St Paul Church. We spent nearly half an hour there trying to locate the "to-see" in the church only to give up after a while. It took us a few more yards down to realized that we went into the wrong church! Worse of all, we missed the closing time by a mere five minutes.

The day ended on a high with dinner with Amanda. Its always nice to meet up with familiar faces and to be able an good friend is even better. Like what Amanda said, its really good to hear the Singapore Slang again. Maybe Singlish is quite a good sense of identity after all. So it was a good night with Thai dinner and a 2nd tour around Frankfurt with Amanda. Thank you for recommending airbnb.com to me, I have added it to my sidebar. See you back in Singapore!!!

St Bartholomew

All in all, my one day stop in Frankfurt was more than enough for me to enjoy what Frankfurt had to offer to a tourist. Among all the historical sites, only the St Bartholomew's Church is worth the long walk. However, a two-day stay in Frankfurt is also good for a more relaxed pace and to enjoy experiences like watching the afternoon rush (the streets will literally be filled and emptied out within minutes). I would recommend a full two-day stay in Frankfurt. First day to check out the historical sites and go up the Main Tower for the bird's eye view. The second day to sit back and watch the crowd fill the lunch areas, check out some museums or even catch an opera.

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