Official Walking Tour

After exploring the city from the sky it was time to hit the footpaths and see it like a local – literally. Kathrin and Christina were nice enough to organise a tour with a grey haired man who was a born and bred in Frankfurt. He had so much knowledge and gave me a quick lesson about Nazi's as we explored the nooks and crannies of the city. He told me his father was a soldier in WWII, and I told him my grandfather was too! It is crazy to think that once, not so long ago, Germany and Australia and were at war. I honestly do not see many differences between the people and the countries. Above is a photo of our group on the tour (left to right) Andrea, Laura, Daniel, Jarrod, me, Rachel, Lily, David, Kathrin, Juliana, Christina, Adrian and Eva.

Maintower Observation Deck

Kathrin and Christina have been so welcoming and, to introduce us to Frankfurt, took us to one of the tallest buildings in Frankfurt, the Maintower. The observation deck is similar to the one on top of the Rockefeller Plaza in New York – open top and beautiful views. I can definitely see why it is called the 'Mine'-hatten!

Apfelwein

At the restaurant last night I finally tried the famous Frankfurt Apple wine, called Apfelwein. It was horrible! Sorry, there is no other way to put it! Pictured above, left to right, are me, Lily (Chinese), Rachel (Chinese), Juliana (Spanish), a friend of Christina (American), Christina (German, she is an organiser), Laura (Columbian), Jarrod (Griffith Uni), Eva (Spanish) and Kathrin (German, she is the other organiser).

Apfelweinkneipe

The first day of class started with an hour long introduction presentation. I learned exactly what 'development finance' means and met the other participants. We have a very diverse group of 15 students – people from Russia, Spain, Columbia, China, South Africa and, of course, Australia. Everyone seems to be very intelligent and it would be very interesting to be a 'fly on the wall' listening to different perspectives. I can see it is going to be a very 'full on' course – most days we have four 1.5hr classes (so basically 4 weeks' worth of material!). Today, after a long day of classes (9am to 6.15pm!) the organisers, Kathrin and Christina, took us all to a local traditional Frankfurt Restaurant/Pub called Apfelweinkneipe. I had a DELICIOUS pork dish (pictured above). The only way to eat it is with your hands!

Frankfurt School of Finance and Management

Frankfurt School of Finance and Management has a unique history. Originally, it started as a training academy, sponsored by many of the European Banks headquartered here. Although that is still their primary business, they also offer a wide range of undergraduate and postgraduate studies in both German and English. The campus itself is very impressive. So beautiful and modern. After a brief tour and a day of class I came to the conclusion that it is certainly one of the most advanced education facilities at which I have ever studied!

Exploring Frankfurt by Foot

With eight hours to kill until I could check in, I decided to walk
around this comparably small city centre on the Main
River (which is actually pronounced 'Mine'). It was so amazing. I felt
like I was on a movie set for a European movie. So green, so historic and
so big; the bridges, the trees and the old buildings. I started by
crossing over the Main and walking along the green space (photo above
taken from there) that runs parallel to the river. I ventured north to the Romer. That was amazing! At 1pm, 3 hours short of my check in time I gave up and went back to the hotel – I was simply too
tired to walk anymore.

Welcome to Frankfurt!

Flying in over the beautiful city of Frankfurt and the surrounding
areas I knew it was going to be worth every minute of sitting in
Economy on the long haul flights. I had left Sydney one hour late and
I was constantly 'chasing up' the whole trip. Both in Shanghai and
Beijing my transfer time was very limited and I did not stop walking
and running in the airports. Having never have been to either region
in China it seemed like a bit of a waste to be just transferring in
these dynamic unique cities, but that is for another trip! Arriving in
Frankfurt at 6am I took the 6:47am S-Bahn (read train) to the stop
near my accommodation, Kolpinghaus. I wasn't too impressed with, after
transiting for 35+ hours being told that I wouldn't be able to check
in until 4pm!