City Center/Old Town
The most central starting-off point is the spacious Marktplatz, situated between Petersstraße and Grimmaische Straße. The aroma of coffee and freshly baked cakes wafts out of the atmospheric cafés and bars which line the square, many of which spill into the crooked little alleyways nearby. The Altes Rathaus—a beautiful Renaissance building erected in just nine months—used to be the city hall, but now houses the Stadtgeschichtliches Museum, a fascinating museum depicting Leipzig's history from Medieval times to the present day. The north-western corner of the square contains two other historic buildings: Webers Hof, a typical bourgeois home, and Adler Apotheke, where the author Theodor Fontane worked from 1841 to 1842 as a chemist's assistant. On the western side of the Marktplatz, you'll see Barthels Hof (1523), Leipzig's oldest commercial building and the first structure in the city to be built in the Renaissance style. Goethe was overwhelmed by the "spacious rooms" which where reminiscent of the country's "great castles". In the nearby Zum Arabischen Coffe Baum Museum and Café, visitors can enjoy a "Schälchen Heeßen" (as the locals affectionately refer to their coffee) in one of the oldest coffee shops on the continent. The Messehaus am Markt was home to the world's first underground trade fair - a 5,000 square metre complex where books, watches and hunting instruments were exchanged. Behind the Altes Rathaus is the Alte Handelsbörse on Naschmarkt, where a bronze statue stands in memory of J.W. Goethe, who studied here between 1765 and 1768. A few steps away in the magnificent Mädler Passage, visitors can wine and dine in Auerbachs Keller, which was featured in Goethe's classic work, Faust. Leipzig is blessed with dozens of historic buildings which are best explored on a stroll through the city. Fine examples include the impressive baroque buildings on Katharinenstraße, churches such as Thomaskirche, Nikolaikirche, Paulinkirche und Matthäikirche, or the Alte Waage, where imported goods used to be weighed and taxed. It's also worth popping into the University of Leipzig to take a glimpse of the place where many a famous German studied. Known by locals as the "steep tooth" or the "wisdom tooth", the main building is 34 floors high and towers over the city. For those interested in all things cultural, the Neues Gewandhaus - home to the world-famous Gewandhausorchester—shouldn't be missed. Other cultural landmarks include the Opera House, the Moritzbastei, the Johann Sebastian Bach Museum, the Egyptian Museum and the Museum of Natural History. Yet perhaps the best thing about Leipzig is the pulsating multicultural atmosphere that permeates its city center, day and night. In summertime, every street seems to metamorphose into an outdoor café or beer garden. And the 3.5 km-long promenade which encircles the old city offers both locals and tourists the chance to relax and take a breather.