Frankfurt am Main

Thanks to the kindness of Vladimir Putin it took fourteen-and-a-half hours to fly to Frankfurt am Main from Tokyo, Russian and other Ukraine-affected airspace being off-limits. It was nice, though, to get glimpses of Alaska, Greenland and Iceland on the way.

Truth be told, Frankfurt was never on our to-do list, seeing as now we don’t work for the European Central Bank or attend any trade shows. We just spent a few days here because that’s where the flight took us. Nevertheless, it does have some attractions.

Neue Altstadt - the New Old Town (!!) - is a rather small area reconstructed out of what was left after the allies dropped their bombs in World War Two. It incorporates the Romer, a restored medieval building that has spent a mere 600 years or so as the city’s town hall. Small size notwithstanding, it’s quite an atmospheric area, nestled between the river and the upmarket shopping in Hauptwache.

A short distance away is the Eiserner Bridge, pedestrians only (and covered in padlocks - it’s a wonder it hasn’t sunk into the river) and leading across the River Main to the Sachsenhausen area. We wandered through the narrow streets full of Apfelwein bars, the inevitable Irish pubs and a statue of Fraa Rauscher - a 19th-century alcoholic - that spits at its audience every minute or so.

We also walked along the river past the museum quarter, with a number of worthwhile (but unattended by us) museums and galleries, and enjoyed the scenic river views, but not so much the stench of duck and swan shit.

Finally, we took a cruise up and down the river. Possibly this was overreaching in terms of things to do, but it was interesting in some small way the see the docks, the power station and the metal-recycling plant.

Next stop on our not-such-a-major-tourism-centre tour will be Rotterdam.Read more