Leipzig - Trade Fair and Culture Centre

Tuesday – Up a little earlier this morning for our guided tour through Leipzig. The English-speaking guide, Sam came from Bendigo and Melbourne in Australia. A delightful young character, true Aussie, with Leipzig heritage. (Brigitte and Andrea were to see Sam again in Melbourne, where he was leading a guided tour in German, in January 24, three months later) His tour of Leipzig took us from the Gewandhaus in Augustusplatz to the university with the rebuild church front, the St Thomas Church, the city center, the old townhall, the stock exchange, the Nikolas church and finished with the Christmas markets. During the tour light snow continued to fall. As soon as the tour was finished, we walked back to the markets for a fish roll “broodje” for lunch. Lovely, cold, and all the produce covered in snow. After lunch we all went to look for new boots which were warmer and didn't leak and bought shoes for Sylvie and me. We enjoyed the evening city atmosphere and walked home in light snowfalls. How I miss this atmosphere in Australia!! Dinner at home, a couple of drinks and early night to bed at 22:00.

St. Thomas Church
Constructed in Leipzig, Germany, in the early thirteenth century by the Augustinian monastic order, Thomaskirche, or St. Thomas Church, has been the site of several of Leipzig's most important cultural and historical events. The church initially operated as a monastery before housing the University of Leipzig in the fifteenth century and the St. Thomas school in the sixteenth century. In 1539 Martin Luther introduced religious reform to Leipzig while preaching at the church. Bach served as choirmaster at Thomaskirche from 1723 until his death in 1750, and many notable composers, including Mozart, performed there. Originally constructed in the Romanesque style, the building was later altered in the Gothic period. Romanesque features are still present in the building and can be found in a window on the north side of the choir, portions of the lower floor of the tower, the crossings, arches, and corbels. The church roof, set to 63 degrees and dating to 1486, was an engineering feat in its era. The steep-pitched front gabled roof has been, and continues to be, an enduring feature of the Leipzig skyline. The church tower was damaged during the Second World War and later restored.
Thomaskirche holds both historical and architectural significance. Important historical figures, as well as monumental events, were associated with the structure. The church is a striking example of Romanesque and Gothic architecture in the region and the roof—innovative for its time—remains a unique feature of the building and the cityscape.Read more