Back in Frankfurt!
We were back in Frankfurt for the second time last June 24, 2022. We had been there once before back in 2013 and I just couldn't believe it had been nine long years since our very first trip. I have to be honest, I was shocked by the changes that has happened to the city since. I cannot say that the entire city of Frankfurt has changed, but the area in and around the Frankfurt Train Station was pretty skanky to me. It didn't seem like it nine years ago. Back then, the street facing the station was quiet and elegant. This time, there were homeless people everywhere and I even saw some drug dealing in broad daylight. Funny enough, it reminded me of my home city, San Francisco. What Frankfurt is facing now is nowhere near the magnitude of the homelessness, drug addiction, and mental illness we have and I hope and pray it doesn't go the way my city has.
I saw a lot of immigrants this time too. Lots of Middle Eastern immigrants in the tens of thousands. I do remember Germany welcoming nearly a million immigrants from Syria most of whom were driven out of their country due to war.
For our stay in Frankfurt this time around, we opted to stay in the same hotel we stayed at before, The IBIS Centrum. Marc and I have long been fans of the IBIS Chain of hotels worldwide. This summer though, we found their rooms to be not as clean as before. We are seriously considering staying in other hotels next time we go to Europe.
The IBIS Frankfurt Centrum. I remembered this hotel well. In fact, I still knew the way to get there from the Frankfurt Train Station. It was around a 10 to 15 minute walk. The area it's in is quiet and safe.
Just the day before, we were at the IBIS Wurzburg and that hotel had wood flooring. It wasn't bigger but because it wasn't carpeted like our IBIS rooms in Frankfurt and Brussels, it seemed and felt cleaner.
Beautiful architecture
The city's biggest mall, My Zeil. We ate at this mall's food court twice. The first was in a burger joint and then in an Indian restaurant next.
Me at the Romerberg. We returned several times to this area. It was hard to take pictures during our first few days here because of the huge stand built for the marathon that took place our first weekend in the city.
We finally got to visit the museum mile and we visited the most highly recommended Stadel Museum at last!
One has to look up here to at times to see the beautiful decorations that adorn the buildings.
The Ratskeller
Inside the huge My Zeil mall
There was a new addition to the Altstadt. This attractive building with a half timbered facade is just one of them.
A museum along the Museum Mile of the city
There was one Persian grocery and souvenir store in front of the Frankfurt Train Station. We went in and browsed around. For several years now, I have become very interested in Iranian culture and when I saw these boxes for sale, I knew I had to have them. I paid 25 euros for each one. I found the price a bit steep but given there is no way I can travel to Iran and go to the bazaars of Isfahan to get any, I decided to bite the bullet and buy them. We also bought ice cream here and my oh my, was it delicious!
The view of a fancy restaurant in the background is not real. It is a life size wall paper on a vacant store front on the ground level of a high rise in a posh neighborhood.
I love this view of Frankfurt by the Main River.
More beautiful buildings
The Eschenheim Gate a few steps away from the Residence Inn By Marriott
The Opera House surrounded by luxury food stalls
So regal!
This was the Iranian grocery store we shopped in.
There were new eateries inside the Frankfurt Train Station. We didn't see it on our first visit. We ate here twice. Their food was good although the service was quite gruff.
The facade of the fabulous Stadel Museum along the city's Museum Mile
One of the several bridges crossing the Main River in Frankfurt's city center