"Active-clear-genuine", that's how friends and acquaintances described their Frankfurt-feeling when I asked them.
Always amazes me the view of non-Frankfurters on our city. Given the occasion - I can't repeat it often enough - I asked myself what we as residents actually feel about Frankfurt? Where and how its character shows for us?
At the end of the post you will find which surprising answers were still mentioned.
Frankfurt has just grown to 730,000 inhabitants. The city is booming and most residents and expats love living here. Most appreciate the high quality of life.
But quality of life is only one thing. But what is it that makes Frankfurt so distinctive? Is it the city forest and the skyline? After all, almost every big city in Germany has a river. Or is it perhaps the apple wine pubs and the quaint districts? And where does real life take place? On the Fressgass or on the Schweizer Straße? Which I do wonder sometimes if The squares here are beautiful or ugly?
The Frankfurt feeling: International, cute and imposing?
The city of Frankfurt advertises itself with the popular reference to the metropolis in small format, and makes not only out of necessity a virtue. No, I think that narrow, while sometimes challenging (traffic! traffic! Alleenring!!!!!), is otherwise really an advantage. I can, if I wanted to, even march into town comfortably on foot. So, if the subway should break down, it still runs smoothly for me.
As far as hustle and bustle is concerned, we might not be able to compete with Asia or New York yet, but we don't have to hide either ;-) (Traffic!) Unfortunately I have to disagree with the official description of the city.
When I lie around in the Günthersburgpark like yesterday evening, the sun is shining and a mild breeze is blowing (those who read here regularly - thanks for that, by the way - have surely noticed that I have a weakness for mild breezes. :-) ), then nothing of this hectic is to be felt more and another Frankfurt feeling spread.
It blew thus a lukewarm breeze, the people squatted cross-legged on their picnic blankets and ate tomato pasta in aluminum containers. Others were doing gymnastics with their personal trainers, meditating in the yoga group, or blasting their reggae music beyond room volume. At the edge of the park, six small dogs frolicked on their lawn. People spoke German, or English and French. I guess that's the most outstanding thing for me: How many languages I can hear here when I walk along the Zeil, Berger Strasse, or through Gutleutviertel - Frankfurt dialect included. (If you want to dig into the dialect, read my post about it: Scolding made easy.)
Today I have to confess something: Many of you think of "green sauce" first when you think of Frankfurt. Ashes on my head, because green sauce made it onto my plate for only the second time in all the years I've lived here, last Sunday. I'm not a big fan of herbs. So pesto, for instance, isn't really my thing. But Sunday I wanted to dine on something light and fresh, so this sauce came in handy. Recently, I had to explain to a couple of my Asian students that green sauce is definitely something specifically Frankfurt and not available anywhere in Germany! I think I'll order the green delicacy more often in the future.
By the way, green was also among the words participants used to describe my survey, their Frankfurt feeling. Otherwise, many terms like: -passionate-surveyable-objective-worldly-provincial-big-city-diverse-ugly-sovereign-dynamic-international-green-centrally located-cute-clear-imposing-compact
So when I ask you, how would you describe Frankfurt? What would you come up with?APFELWEINLOKALE
* Mrs. Rauscher, Klappergasse 8, Frankfurt
* Solzer, Berger Straße 160, Frankfurt
PARKS
Grüneburgpark
Günthersburgpark
Bethmannpark
Wallanlagen (Obermainanlage with pond and fountain)
TYPICAL FRANKFURT
* The Eintracht Museum
* Book tip: Frankfurt like in the movies
* The Frankfurt Tip Guide: Best of Frankfurt
