Frankfurt is part of the Land of Hesse, and is bisected by the River Main.
The centre is on the north side of the river. Frankfurt claims to be at the
geographical centre of Europe, between Amsterdam (440 km), Paris (600 km), London
(640 km) and Milan (670 km).
The commercial centre of the city is centred around Zeilstraße, on which the
huge commercial centre the Zeilgalerie is located. The Römerplatz, where you
will find the city hall, is often used for fairs, including the city's Christmas
market.
Frankfurt has 655,000 inhabitants (2005) and has 6 important districts:
- Bornheim - a young, vibrant area with many cafes
and bars. The main street is Berger Strasse
- Sachsenhausen - the quaint, touristy area, with
cobbled streets and restaurants serving local specialities. The main road
is Gr. Rittergasse
- Bockenheim - popular with students at the large
Johann Wolfgang Goethe University. The area has attractive parks, including
the beautiful Palmengarten floral garden
- Westend - a smart, quiet area with a good selection
of cafes from which to watch the world go by on sunny days. On Sundays, the
area is popular with roller-bladers and cyclists
- City Centre - well known for it's commercial streets,
the Zeil and the Hauptwache.
- Old Town - here you can admire the historical sites
of Frankfurt, such as the Römerplatz, the town hall, the Paulskirche church
and the cathedral
During the 1980's, many distinctive skyscrapers were constructed in the business
area. The majority of the towers hold banks (including The European Central
Bank):
- 1980 - The Messehochhaus: height 117 m, designed by Oswald Mathias Ungers.
It is sometimes known as 'the Toaster'
- 1980 - The Aluminiumhaus: 149 m, designed by Richard Heil, home to BfG-Bank
- 1980 - The twin towers of Deutsche Bank: 166 m designed by ABB
- 1980 - The tower of the Japanese centre, designed by Christoph Mäcklers
- 1989 - der Messeturm: 256.5 m, designed by Helmut Jahns for exhibitions
and fairs. Fondly known as 'the asparagus'
- 1990 - The Kommerzbank: 298.74 m, designed by Norman Foster, is Europe's
tallest building
- 1999 - The Europaeum tower
It is interesting to note that Frankfurt's skyscrapers are quite narrow compared
to those found in other cities. This is due to the requirement to build them
on enormous concrete pilings, up tp 4m thick, to avoid them sinking into the
soft ground of the Main valley.