I mentioned to one of the conference organizers that I was spending the afternoon in Dusseldorf before flying back to the U.S. tomorrow morning. He paused and said, "If someone were to make a list of the most beautiful cities in Germany, Dusseldorf might not appear on it." (I'm afraid I have to agree with his assessment!)
There is a huge amount of construction going on in the city; everywhere you turn, there's a crane or a bulldozer. (I think they're expanding the city train lines.)
I took the tram down to the Altstadt (Old Town), which is pretty (albeit very touristy!) When I arrived at one of the main squares, there were about five vans full of police strapping on their riot gear. It turned out that there was a demonstration with people both in favor of and opposed to what's going on in Turkey. (And as far as I know, the police didn't have to intervene in anything -- it seemed to be a bunch of people waving flags and making speeches.)
I was going to do a city bus tour, but it was cancelled due to the demonstration. I ended up taking a boat ride on the Rhine, which was nice. It was a good way to see the "Media Harbour", a newly-developed area with a lot of unique buildings.
Dusseldorf is famous for having "the world's longest pub" since it has breweries back to back in the Old Town. I tried some of the local "Alt Beer", which is darkish beer served in small glasses (so that it stays fresh). Not too bad -- and it was fun to hang out and watch the street performance.
I do like that Dusseldorf's symbol is two kids doing cartwheels. :) According to the tourist guide, "The custom of cartwheeling goes back to the year 1288 when Düsseldorf was granted its city charter following the Battle of Worringen and the children turned cartwheels for joy." Indeed, they held their annual cartwheeling competition today, but I missed it.
There is a huge amount of construction going on in the city; everywhere you turn, there's a crane or a bulldozer. (I think they're expanding the city train lines.)
I took the tram down to the Altstadt (Old Town), which is pretty (albeit very touristy!) When I arrived at one of the main squares, there were about five vans full of police strapping on their riot gear. It turned out that there was a demonstration with people both in favor of and opposed to what's going on in Turkey. (And as far as I know, the police didn't have to intervene in anything -- it seemed to be a bunch of people waving flags and making speeches.)
I was going to do a city bus tour, but it was cancelled due to the demonstration. I ended up taking a boat ride on the Rhine, which was nice. It was a good way to see the "Media Harbour", a newly-developed area with a lot of unique buildings.
Dusseldorf is famous for having "the world's longest pub" since it has breweries back to back in the Old Town. I tried some of the local "Alt Beer", which is darkish beer served in small glasses (so that it stays fresh). Not too bad -- and it was fun to hang out and watch the street performance.
I do like that Dusseldorf's symbol is two kids doing cartwheels. :) According to the tourist guide, "The custom of cartwheeling goes back to the year 1288 when Düsseldorf was granted its city charter following the Battle of Worringen and the children turned cartwheels for joy." Indeed, they held their annual cartwheeling competition today, but I missed it.
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