Atlantica - 01.05.2007, Qupperneq 42

a t l a n t i c a 41
Frankfurt is the air and rail hub of Germany, an entry point where most
travelers spend a few hours on layover and then take off to discover the
rest of Europe. For those who actually spend the night there, most show
up for one of the many conventions hosted by the city, conventions that
bring in over two million visitors each year. This includes the Frankfurt book fair.
So Frankfurt’s not high on the list of travel spots for the ordinary tourist. And
when brochures on the city espouse the virtues of shopping not in downtown
Frankfurt but at the city’s airport, you’re left to wonder, well, what the heck is
there to do there?
The Hungarian waitress hawking beers at the Irish pub across from the main train
station tells me she just can’t wait to earn enough money to get back to London. But
if you’re looking for something to do in Frankfurt, climb the TV tower and check
out the skyline. “It’s not New York, but it’s all we got,” she says.
Ah, the skyline. The glass monuments to international finance, one of which,
the Commerzbank Tower, reaching 259 meters into the Frankfurt sky, is the highest
In Transit
In Frankfurt
Fabulous Frankfurt might sound like an oxymoron.
But the European capital for finance and
trade does have some hidden
treasures, like alligators
in a pub.
tExt By Edward wEinman
Photos By Páll stEfánsson