Bremen is a city in north west Germany. A port city along the river Weser,
Bremen is part of the Bremen-Oldenburg metropolitan area. Bremen and Bremerhaven
are the two cities in the state of Bremen.
Many of the sights in Bremen are found in the Altstadt (Old Town), an oval area
surrounded by the Weser River. The oldest part of the Altstadt is the south east
half, starting with the Marktplatz and ending at the Schnoor quarter.
The Marktplatz (Market square) is dominated by the opulent façade of the Town
Hall. The building was erected between 1405 and 1410 in Gothic style, but the
façade was built two centuries later in Renaissance style. Today, it hosts a
restaurant in original decor with gigantic wine barrels, the Ratskeller in
Bremen, and the wine lists boasts more than 600, exclusively German, wines. It
is also home of the twelve oldest wines in the world, stored in their original
barrels in the Apostel chamber.
One of Bremen's most popular attractions, the 110 m Böttcherstraße was
transformed from 1923–1931 by local artists who were commissioned to convert the
narrow street into an inspired mixture of Gothic and Art Nouveau. It was
considered depraved art by the Nazis.
More contemporary tourist attractions in the city, include the Universum Science
Center, Beck's Brewery tours, available to the public which include beer tasting
and the Kunsthalle Bremen, an art museum with paintings from the 19th and 20th
century.
City of Bremen, Germany official website: www.bremen.de
