Where to visit in Germany? - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: Harvs
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 19, 2013, 01:49:45 pm
content: I'm heading to Germany around Christmas time, and doing a bit of planning now. Really haven't nailed down where we're going yet, but I wouldn't mind seeing Berlin this time around. Probably be there for about a week.Apart from the typical tourist things (and beer drinking,) is there anything in particular for someone that enjoys engineering (and science in general) that should be seen? Any area that's a must visit?Cheers

author: nctnico
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 19, 2013, 02:09:53 pm
content: Berlin is a nice place to visit but many buildings still have bullet holes from WW2. Some parts have been rebuild in the past 20 years or so. Most of Berlin's tourist attractions are about the DDR or WW2. Maybe Hamburg is nicer. They have the biggest model railroad. I didn't see it though because my kids where whining. When I'm visiting a city I usually take a site-seeing tour so I can get a glimps of what is there to see and what is interesting. However, if you want to see technical stuff then you should visit the science museum in London.

author: madworm
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 19, 2013, 02:14:46 pm
content: The technically / scientifically inclined should have a look at the "Deutsches Museum" in Munich.Lots of stuff, old computers, high-voltage exhibition with lots of 'noise', WW-2 submarines, trains... they also have quite a big aerospace branch. Probably needs more than one day to see it all.http://www.deutsches-museum.de/en/exhibitions/overview/

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: June 19, 2013, 02:15:38 pm
content: Hamberg is very nice, more bridges than Venice!But most importantly, it has the worlds biggest model railway:And yes, it's even more awesome than the video!

author: Spikee
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 19, 2013, 02:23:16 pm
content: That place is awesome!i really need to visit Hamburg sometime ... it is only 500 Km from my house

author: BillyD
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: June 19, 2013, 02:39:03 pm
content: Another good scientific venue in Munich is the Siemens Museum.

author: peter.mitchell
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 19, 2013, 02:42:57 pm
content: Quote from: Spikee on June 19, 2013, 02:23:16 pmWow, thats pretty close, could make a weekend of it!

author: mikeselectricstuff
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 19, 2013, 02:56:35 pm
content: Quote from: madworm on June 19, 2013, 02:14:46 pmIf you're in Munich - DefinitelyDeutsches Museum. Seimens also have a small museum (Seimens-Forum I think) . BMW museum also worth a look.

author: jpb
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 19, 2013, 03:07:56 pm
content: I enjoyed the Mercedes museum in Stuttgart, though it is perhaps not big enough to be worth travelling a long way for.

author: madires
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 19, 2013, 03:14:02 pm
content: Frankfurt/Main has several great museums:Telecommunictions Museum (small)Movie MuseumSenckenberg Museum (natural history)EXPERIMINTA - ScienceCenter (hands-on science)Explora Museum (optical illlusions, 3D stuff)Frankfurter Feldbahnmuseum (old railroad stuff / steam locomotives)Mobility/Traffic Museum (old trams and so on)and tons of other museums for art, architecture and whatever you like. There's even one for kids :-)

author: FrankBuss
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: June 19, 2013, 03:20:15 pm
content: If you are in Berlin, visit the Computerspielemuseum:http://www.computerspielemuseum.deNot that big, but a nice collection of old video games and computers, some interactive installations (with good old Competition Pro joysticks) and playable old and new video games. You can see some photos from my last Berlin trip of it at the bottom ofhttp://www.frank-buss.de/berlin/index.htmlRegarding tourist attractions: The Reichstagsgebäude is quite impressive and you can visit it (for free). There is a spiral way to the top inside the dome. But you have to register one day before.

author: edavid
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 19, 2013, 03:52:09 pm
content: The Deutsches Museum is amazing! Definitely the best engineering museum I've ever seen. My favorite part was the mining exhibit in the basement.You can do it all in one (long) day.

author: nctnico
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 19, 2013, 04:16:30 pm
content: There are also several real mines in Germany which are now a tourist attraction. They are interesting to visit.

author: Corporate666
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: June 19, 2013, 05:46:26 pm
content: I found Berlin to be a bit underwhelming. I guess I just imagined the capitol of any country would be it's most impressive city (dunno why I'd think that, considering it's certainly not true of the USA!) but I really liked Frankfurt and Dresden. Dresden was actually pretty amazing - just beautiful.

author: madworm
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 19, 2013, 06:00:38 pm
content: Well, Berlin was in ruins after WW-2. So if you're after old castles and churches, there are certainly better places.It is a good idea to look for sights "close by" (at least by Aussie standards), and not rely on Berlin to be massively entertaining. It might be, or not. But the same is true for London, unless you want to count all the tiles in the subway.The "Pergamon Museum" in Berlin is worth a visit though.

author: IanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 19, 2013, 06:26:55 pm
content: When I was in Munich I was rather dismayed to find that museums, shops and other things tended to be shut at weekends (apart from a short period on Saturday morning). There were many museums I would have liked to visit but was unable to because I was working from Monday through Friday.

author: nctnico
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 19, 2013, 07:17:09 pm
content: Quote from: madworm on June 19, 2013, 06:00:38 pmYou can say that again. When I showed a picture I made of the big church (the one with the green domes) to my grandfather he noted that the last time he walked by that church it was still on fire but they restored it nicely. There is Charlottenburg you can visit but do check opening hours and don't think the Charlottenburg subway station is close to it. My wife still likes to remind me of that.

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 19, 2013, 07:46:17 pm
content: I think my dad did deliveries airfreight to close to there, but he did deliver to Monte Casino, and was on his way to deliver to Bavaria when he did an unscheduled stop in the Bodensee. He never stopped though, more of drop and haul ass back. Funny thing is that he went to school in Bavaria, and was living and working at a brewery near Munich, but in 1939 was in the UK looking to enter university in Glasgow ( I know.......) when he was interrupted. Then he became a pilot, even though he was a bit colour blind ( blue green colour blind). He was still paying for one Tiger Moth when the war ended, written off during training when the engine failed during take off between v1 and v2. Across a road, through 2 hedges and ditched and between 2 trees. He survived all 3 of his flying accidents, but stopped flying in the 1970's when he could no longer afford the maintenance for the amount of hours he did.

author: branadic
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 19, 2013, 07:51:48 pm
content: QuoteI'm not sure in what century you live,but there are no bullet holes this time.You could check Daimler-Benz museum and don't forget Porsche mueseum in Stuttgart. But around christmas is worth visiting Dresden with all its christmas markets, the best ones you will find. The architecture is beautiful (Zwinger etc.).Munich isn't german so it's not representitive for the country. Except the rail road landscape Hamburg is also very boring.

author: branadic
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 19, 2013, 08:05:39 pm
content: By the way, it's easy and cheap to fly from Berlin to Stuttgart in the morning and back to Berlin in the evening. This way you can visit the two big investment graves in germany, the new Berlin airport and the most expensive hole in the ground for the new central station in Stuttgart

author: Harvs
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 20, 2013, 12:53:06 am
content: Thanks for all the suggestions, I've got some more googling and planning to do. Surprising I've been to Munich three time now as I've got some friends that live there, and I'd never heard of the Deutsches Museum! Maybe it's overshadowed by BMW Welt and it's surrounds.Also whoever mentioned the science museum in London, been there and it's awesome. Defiantly a full day trip.

author: GK
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 20, 2013, 03:02:00 am
content: I was in Berlin for a visit in '87. My most vivid memory of walking the streets of Berlin as a 10 year old is of dog poo. I'm not kidding. If you tried to walk more than 20 meters without watching your step you were in it. No one appeared to clean the crap up and it was freaking everywhere. I'm sure things are different nowadays. Then there was the "abstract" scupltures everywhere. The most bizarre was a massive and truly ugly convolution of twisted pipe painted red and white with a shopping trolley plonked on top.

author: nctnico
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 22, 2013, 10:01:12 pm
content: Oh and there is more in Hamburg: The infamous Reeperbahn! Hamburg's red light district. My wife unknowingly booked a hotel in a street around the corner