# Beautiful Germany: ERFURT, WEIMAR and more



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

Recently I published my Berlin thread and now I'm moving on to another leg of my tour of Eastern part of Germany.

This time I was visiting the federal land of Thuringia which among other destinations has such gems as Erfurt, Weimar and Wartburg Castle.

Location for those who are not too sure where that is:









I stayed in Oberhof which is a town some distance away from Erfurt and is in the middle of forest area surrounded by scenic countryside.


I will start from there. View from my hotel in Oberhof. It's really pleasant to wake up and see this through the window away from the city


Driving in the area


Rennsteig Tunnel on the way to Erfurt on the A71. 7916m in length it's the longest road tunnel in Germany. Opened in 2003


Scenic views on the way




Approaching Erfurt


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## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

*Erfurt*

The first sight of Erfurt which is the capital of Thuringia. Erfurt has a beautiful historic center which seemingly was lucky to avoid WW2 extensive destruction faced by some other cities. It's not a big city but has a nice public transport system and is generally very accessible and pleasant. Perfect for a day visit by car. Parking is not an issue (you can easily find free parking spots) and some Park&Ride areas are actually within walking distance (although you can take a tram if you want) to the city center. A good start.



Businessstrasse. A few too many s if you ask me 


Nearing to the central part of Erfurt. The city is very well maintained and clean 




An old tram which is used for city tours


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## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

*Erfurt*

The Altstadt (old town)





Restaurants at the Domplatz (Cathedral Square)


Domplatz with the Erfurter Dom itself


Stairs to the Cathedral from the Domplatz


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## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

*Erfurt*

The Domplatz seen from the Cathedral


Cathedral interior


Buildings surrounding the Domplatz




A birgarten right next to the Cathedral


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## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

*Erfurt*

Marktstrasse


Buildings around the Rathaus (City Hall) square




Modern buildings a bit further away from the historic core


Trams. There are a few different models (this is the newer one) of tram vehicles. It was a news to me that Erfurt uses a meter gauge (i.e. 1000mm) tracks. Apparently quite many tram systems use this gauge in Europe


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## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

*Erfurt*

One of the old city tour trams


Johannestrasse. Possibly one of the most impressive streets in Erfurt






Thuringian Land Chancellery building


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## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

*Erfurt*





Neue Mühle (New Mill)


Haus zum Sonneborn originally built in 1546. Restored in 1988


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## Skrapebook (May 7, 2010)

Great pics! kay:
Erfurt and Thüringen are stunning! 
The Heart Of Germany! :cheers:


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## Chadoh25 (Dec 28, 2007)

Awesome photos!!!


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## Saxonia (Aug 15, 2012)

Very nice pictures of Erfurt, thanks a lot. 



> Businessstrasse. A few too many s if you ask me


There is a quite funny anecdote relating to this street name. In 2002 the former mayor Manfred Ruge made a bet with the local "Businessclub". A group of businessmen with the aim to do lobbying activities for the region. Ruge bet, that Erfurt won't be displayed on the weather map of the nationwide news broadcaster "N-TV" for one year. Well, they made it and in January 2003 a street was named after this club in exchange. 



> Johannestrasse. Possibly one of the most impressive streets in Erfurt


I agree but this is not the Johannesstraße any more. Johannesstraße ends at Kaufmannskirche north of the Martin Luther monument you may have seen. The street on the picture is called "Anger". It reaches from the Kaufmannskirche down to the fountain at the end of the steet and includes also the big square where you took the picture of the modern building ("Angereck").


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## christos-greece (Feb 19, 2008)

Amazing, very nice photos and well done


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## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

Saxonia said:


> I agree but this is not the Johannesstraße any more. Johannesstraße ends at Kaufmansskirche north of the Martin Luther monument you may have seen. The street on the picture is called "Anger". It reaches from the Kaufmannskirche down to the fountain at the end of the steet and includes also the big square where you took the picture of the modern building ("Angereck").


That's right. I looked at the wrong end of that street


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## Terpentin07 (Oct 3, 2009)

Very beautiful, it looks like a very pleasant city.


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## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

It's time to continue with more Erfurt

Rooftops of the Old town


Facades surrounding the Domplatz


Marktstrasse


Walls of the 17th/18th century Petersberg Citadel


Main entrance to the fortification complex


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## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

*Erfurt*

The following views are from the Petersberg Citadel fortifications which have excellent overview of the city.

Overview of the area from a higher point at the Petersberg Citadel fortification


Domplatz and the Old Town


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## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

*Erfurt*

Among church spires and oldtown rooftops there are other, more contemporary highrise structures seen in the background. They are well visible but are located away from the old town area




Cathedral


Countryside outside the city limits


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## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

*Erfurt*







Industrial sites outside the city


Medieval fight broke out right in front of me


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## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

*Erfurt*









This is it from Erfurt. Next I will carry on with Weimar which is located nearby.


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## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

*Weimar*

Continuing with photos of Weimar which is probably a very familiar name to most but not necessarily a familiar place 
Weimar is close to Erfurt but is by all means a destination in its own right. Spending an entire day is a must.

Statue of Karl August, Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach


Rathaus (City Hall)




Marktplatz (Market square)


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## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

*Weimar*

The compulsory Socialist era apartment highrise




Railway Station




Carl-August Allee


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