Sign in with Facebook"Opera and cycling in Leipzig" Top 5 Page for this destination Leipzig by Nemorino
Leipzig Travel Guide: 557 reviews and 1,063 photos
Leipzig is now just three and a quarter hours from Frankfurt am Main by InterCityExpress train, and there are thirteen such trains per day. You don't need a visa, you don't have to change money, and the train doesn't even slow down when it goes through Gerstungen. Times have changed.
I've been to Leipzig several times in recent years. After my 2009 visit I added two new tips -- at the beginning of the Transportation category -- and updated several others.
Whenever I am in Leipzig I of course make a point of attending one of their fine opera productions. The first was a quite traditional production of Germany's most popular and often-performed opera, The Magic Flute by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, followed by a clever modern version of The Bartered Bride by Bedrich Smetana and a seductive Orfeo ed Euridice by Christoph Willibald Gluck.
Later I saw The Tales of Hoffmann by Jacques Offenbach (with the American tenor Robert Chafin as Hoffmann) and more recently La Sonnambula by Vincenzo Bellini (twice) and the premiere of Les Troyens by Hector Berlioz (with Robert Chafin as Énée).
Dresden and Leipzig, the two largest cities in Sachsen, have very different-looking opera houses. As you can see from my Dresden page, the Semper Opera in Dresden has three U-shaped balconies and is very ornate on the inside, with warm colors, endless paintings and decorations, and looks as though it was built in the 1840s -- which in fact it was, though it has been destroyed and rebuilt twice since then.
The Leipzig Opera House was designed and built in the 1950s, and is a faithful reflection of the tastes and priorities of that era. It has only one straight balcony, so you have a full view of the stage from any seat in the house. There is lots of wood paneling, but very little ornamentation. The elegant but unspectacular design elements on the walls and ceiling were created mainly for their acoustic properties.
This opera house is not a huge tourist attraction like the one in Dresden, but it's very attractive in its way, and I always enjoy going there. It's a Listed Building now, so when they did renovation work on it in 1992/93 and again in 2007 they were careful to preserve the original ambience of the building.
Leipzig in the 1960s
The only thing I can remember about my first visit to Leipzig is a large grimy restaurant at the station late at night. During the time it took me to have a meal and a couple of beers, three different squads of People's Police came through and checked everyone's identification.
I guess I must have stayed at the InterHotel, as all foreigners were required to do, but I don't remember anything about it. At some point my cousin Manfred drove over from Nordhausen in his Trabbi (this was before they got the Lada) to pick me up.
Reviews (28)
Cycling in Leipzig
Transportation
(5)
Photos: 1. Cycling in Leipzig 2. Colorful barefoot cyclist 3. Two more cyclists 4. Three more cyclists 5. More people... more travel advice
NextBike
Transportation
(5)
NextBike is a private bicycle sharing system that is quite similar to DB Call-a-Bike except that it is partially paid... more travel advice
Shopping in the Central Station
Shopping
(1)
In the 1990s the huge Leipzig railroad station, one of the largest in Europe, was completely refurbished and modernized,... more travel advice
Bicycle station
Transportation
(5)
Leipzig is one of those fortunate cities, like Aschaffenburg, Darmstadt and Gera, which has a bicycle station right at... more travel advice
-
Off The Beaten Path (8)
See All Another empty building -
Favorites (4)
See All The Peaceful Revolution
-
Things to Do (10)
See All Museum of City History -
Been to Leipzig?
Share your travels with the world!
Nemorino's Related Pages
-
Dresden
-
Karlsruhe
Top 5 Page for this destination
-
Munich
-
Stuttgart
Top 5 Page for this destination
-
Freiburg im Breisgau
Top 5 Page for this destination
-
Weikersheim
-
Heidelberg
Top 5 Page for this destination
-
Nürnberg
Top 5 Page for this destination
-
Augsburg
Top 5 Page for this destination
-
Bruchsal
Top 5 Page for this destination
-
Würzburg
Top 5 Page for this destination
-
Pforzheim
Top 5 Page for this destination
-
Frankfurt
Top 5 Page for this destination
-
Tauberrettersheim
-
Queckbronn
-
Ulm
Top 5 Page for this destination
-
Renchen
-
Scheinfeld
-
Schäftersheim
-
Mannheim
Top 5 Page for this destination
Leipzig Travel Guide
Member Travel Pages
- "Leipzig - petit Paris (Goethe's words)"
- "Opera and cycling in Leipzig"
- "Leipzig"
- "For those about to Rock!"
- "Leipzig"
- "LEIPZIG"
- "LEIPZIG"
- See All...
Badges & Stats in Leipzig
- 28 Reviews
- 49 Photos
- 20 Forum posts
- 37 Comments
- 20,054PageViews
- See All Stats
- See All Badges (54)
Have you been to Leipzig?
Share Your TravelsLatest Activity in Leipzig
- Commented on german_eagle's Leipzig Page
- updated a Leipzig Travel Page "Opera and cycling in Leipzig"
- Uploaded a Photo to "Cycling in Leipzig"
- Wrote a Review Cycling in Leipzig in Leipzig Transportation
Photos in Leipzig
See All Photos (49)
Top 10 Pages
-
Top 5 Page for this destination
Paris
Intro, 207 reviews, 774 photos, 3 travelogues
-
Top 5 Page for this destination
Frankfurt am Main
Intro, 91 reviews, 224 photos, 6 travelogues
-
Top 5 Page for this destination
Copenhagen
Intro, 61 reviews, 222 photos, 2 travelogues
-
Top 5 Page for this destination
Verona
Intro, 49 reviews, 175 photos, 2 travelogues
-
Top 5 Page for this destination
Lyon
Intro, 56 reviews, 149 photos
-
Top 5 Page for this destination
Karlsruhe
Intro, 32 reviews, 150 photos, 6 travelogues
-
Prague
Intro, 44 reviews, 125 photos, 1 travelogue
-
Zürich
Intro, 43 reviews, 126 photos
-
Berlin
Intro, 47 reviews, 114 photos, 2 travelogues
-
Milan
Intro, 37 reviews, 116 photos, 1 travelogue
Trains
Cycling
MusicLatest Leipzig hotel reviews
- Pension Leipzig Georgplatz
- 1 Review & Opinion
Latest: Sep 23, 2011 - Hotel de Saxe
- 3 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: Sep 4, 2010 - Vasano Suites
- 4 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: Dec 2, 2011 - Etap Hotel Leipzig Nord-Ost
- 2 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: Sep 13, 2011 - Holiday Inn Leipzig City Centre
- 30 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 12, 2012 - Atlanta International Leipzig
- 5 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: Sep 13, 2011 - Art'otel Leipzig City Center
- 2 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: Sep 29, 2010 - Hotel Lindenau Leipzig
- 2 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: Apr 29, 2012 - Tulip Inn Leipzig
- 8 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: Oct 24, 2011 - Mercure Hotel Leipzig am Johannisplatz
- 21 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: Mar 24, 2012 - NH Leipzig-Messe
- 6 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 4, 2012
Comments (36)
I like your pages on Germany, have such fond memories of my time there. I particularly liked your tip on "No stop in Gerstungen", thank God.
Yes it's interesting that whilst Berlin got all the coverage it was the people of Liepzig who changed the course of modern European history. Nice page.
It's good that the Schiller house survived the encroachment of the city. The austere interior of the opera house reminds me a little of London's Royal Festival Hall, from that era. I would like to visit here, though of course WOULD have to change money!
Fabulous updates here, Don. How could I miss them for so long? Alas, the ICE train connections are going to be worse from Dec 2010 on and the money that goes into the construction of the new railroad tunnel under the city centre doubled ...
Don, excellent updates on your fabulous Leipzig page. Since my last visit of your page, I have at least been to Leipzig for 1,5 hours, which was of course not enough for this gorgeous city.
Unfortunately another city where I have only managed an afternoon visit.
Thank you for visiting my Utah pages. I thought I would return the favor. :-). My Grandparents in law were from Leipzig, left in the '20's. It is our hope that one day we could visit, though I expect there will be little left from their life.
Great general unkown tips!... thanx!
I have not yet been to Leipzig, but it's on my wish list for sure although when I see these modern theatres then I hope that there is also some older architecture to be seen.
So much to see off the beaten track - I hope those sad buildings have been restored. Leipzig Opera and Welsh Nat.Opera did an exchange around 1980 I recall they sang Poppea, Tito and Orestes in Cardiff.
1 - 10 of 36
View 26 More