Mainzer Neustadt: A young, colorful neighborhood
"It's a good place to live," my husband Rainer says spontaneously during one of our exploratory tours. The Mainz New Town with its 29,000 inhabitants, including many students, exudes joie de vivre: people sit together in squares and children play. Mothers and fathers push baby carriages through traffic-calmed streets. Cafés, pubs, restaurants - often with beautiful outdoor areas - as well as small stores, galleries and handicraft businesses are inviting everywhere. Tall trees provide shade. Not far from the city center, you can expect a bit of small-town flair and a colorful multicultural atmosphere at the same time. You'll also find plenty of sights worth seeing in Mainz's former workers' and industrial district. Wikipedia lists seven monument zones and 169 individual cultural monuments for the Neustadt.
House with Hole and horse skeleton
The entrance gate for those arriving by train is the main station, built in the style of the Italian Renaissance. We start on the other side of the quarter, from the bank of the Rhine, there is ample parking. There, a few steps separate us from the customs and inland port. Where merchant ships used to be unloaded, a new urban quarter with apartments and offices has been under construction for several years on about 30 hectares around the harbor basin. Many buildings have already been occupied, while work is still underway on others - especially in the rear section.
Immediately on the right, the brick building of the "Rheinkai 500" reminds us that warehouses once stood here. Eye-catching the work of art "Nomade" by the Mexican Gustavo Aceves. The 1.2 ton bronze horse sculpture with exposed ribs stands in a section of the ribs stands in a cutout of the house. This "hole" makes me think of the rules of Feng Shui harmony: positive energy should flow freely. flow. Here, the viewing window rather reflects an architectural feature of the entire Neustadt: free lines of sight, as here to the Rhine.
Inspired by the city of love
For classification let us briefly look back at the At the end of the 19th century, Mainz was one of the most populous cities in the region. most populous cities in the region and was bursting at the seams, constricted by fortress walls, was bursting at the seams. The solution for new housing and economic development was to expand into the former "garden field" (or "Gaadefeld"). (or "Gaadefeld," as the people of Mainz called it). The city commissioned the master builder Edu the city commissioned the master builder Eduard Kreyßig. The "father of the new town" drew his inspiration his ideas from Paris. His concept included a grid-like street system with view axes in longitudinal and transverse direction. The streets, The streets, some of them magnificent boulevards, flow radially into central squares.
Some time passed before the work could be started. For at that time, the Prussian War Ministry was responsible for such a permit. The permission came on September 21, 1872. This starting signal for the implementation thus marks the birth of the New Town now 151 years ago. At that time, it was the largest urban expansion project in Europe. Eduard Kreyßig also designed the original customs and inland port during the 30 years of his tenure as "Geheimer Baurat" (his title).
Golden facades and a leaning tower
This brings us back to today. At the harbor a particularly striking building appears on the left. Where once stood the largest warehouse once stood, golden-colored facades now gleam. The diamond-shaped the Pandion Doxx, whose ground plan is in the shape of a double X (hence the name). (hence the name). To some, the building, surrounded on three sides by water house, which is surrounded on three sides by water, reminds some of a UFO.
Also located on historic grounds - the former engine and boiler house - is the Art Gallery. Its 21-meter-high green glass tower leans at seven degrees - hence its name, the "Leaning Tower of Mainz". It is intended to be reminiscent of the old smokestacks and at the same time to represent a striking entrance gate to the harbor. In the brick building itself, the Kunsthalle shows international and contemporary art in changing exhibitions. Its aim is to convey artistic positions on current issues in art, politics and society.
Green bridge and blessing architecture
We cross the busy Rheinallee on a special urban feature on a special urban feature: the park-like Green Bridge. On it numerous plants and bushes ensure that it lives up to its name. It was designed by the environmental artist Dieter Magnus, who was even awarded the the Federal Cross of Merit for his idea. NABU takes care of the beds as part of a sponsorship. within the framework of a sponsorship. The children particularly like the waterfall and the "erratic boulder fountain." In keeping with Kreyßig's concept, the bridge is part of a green "green axis to the Rhine. This stretches from the river across Feldbergplatz to the bridge and on the other side to Goetheplatz.
As an eye-catching architectural work of art rises a few streets away the new Mainz Synagogue, the seat of the Jewish Community. The individual parts of the building, which opened in 2010, "write" the letters of the Hebrew word "Kedushah" in the sky - a blessing that means "healing". Depending on the incidence of light, the green ceramic tiles of the facade shimmer in a different tone. On the site, renamed Synagogue Square, fragments of columns recall the previous building, which was destroyed.
My city is alive!
The "heart" of the Neustadt lies between Boppstraße, Frauenlobplatz and Gartenfeldplatz. There and on the connecting streets, there are most of the small stores, cafés and pubs. Lively are the squares, some with lawns or playgrounds. On the Frauenlobplatz, a market is held every Thursday between 7 a.m. and 1 p.m.
We stopped at Block + Cross. The company describes itself as an upcycling furniture design office with its own furniture line and DIY workshops. "My city lives" can be read in their shop window. Looking around: They are so right!
Multiculturalism also in gastronomy
The culinary offer of the new town is offer of the new town. These examples particularly caught our eye - and there are are many more:
The Golden stag cooks according to old family recipes - for example, beef roulade according to Grandma Emma's recipe. Good drops and "modern taste experience in Mainz tradition" served by the traditional house Geberts wine bar. Because of its historical ambience, the Tower tavern Caponniere only cold food on the menu - the location directly on the Rhine is all the more beautiful for that. In the Neustadt pharmacy today luscious pieces of cake and abundant sandwiches are the best medicine. The beer bar Particles & Accelerators also spices up many a meal with barley juice.
Vegetarian and partly vegan come the Kumbir (potatoes) with various ingredients or the soy gyros of the Allotment garden vegan, partly even sugar- and gluten-free delicacies has dedicated itself to the Carrot milieu.
Especially delicious at the Vietnamese An o Ban on Mondays and Tuesdays are the Bao Buns, steamed buns with tasty insides. The versatile poke bowls of the Hawaiian Nanami also show Asian influences. On a culinary journey to South America take the EO and the Chilean Patagonia with.
In the dinky vintage atmosphere of the Café Annabattery master confectioner Gesa Kohlenbach has turned her passion into her profession. Her cakes, spreads, butter mixtures and granola are homemade. The ice cream is also handmade, using regional ingredients wherever possible. N'icethe Neustadteis. The flavors change daily, including unusual ones like yogurt-cucumber, avocado-cashew or pistachio-fleur de sel.
Meatballs and a woman lober
Cult status has "At Peter's"Peter Leussler's butcher shop and snack bar. His legendary meatballs are on our shopping list every time we visit Neustadt. For the Specail Edition, he fills the meatballs with either hand cheese or meat sausage. Right next door, there are baking specialties at a branch of bread sommelier Mario Peter Berg.
Finally, back on the Rhine, a look at the Frauenlob fountain. It commemorates the Heinrich von Meisen, who during his lifetime in the 14th century is said to have who is said to have sung songs of praise to the female sex during his lifetime. This earned him the name Frauenlob. According to tradition, even his pallbearers were women from Mainz. were women from Mainz. The New Town holds many stories.
Guided through the New Town
Providers of tours of the New Town include:
Best of Mainz the insider Stefanie Jung, e.g. a photowalk.
Eat the World, culinary tours
Mainz Guide, wine + culinary, e.g. with culinary-historical journey
Geography for All e.V. Bundles different guides and topics
One Response
Dear Marina,
In search of " what do we do on my sister's birthday" I came across your
Tour "Young and colorful through the Mainzer Neustadt".
Although living in Frankfurt and Hofheim we both always like to come back to
Mainz to stroll, stroll along the Rhine and to get to know gastronomic new.
Your tour offers a little bit of everything!!!!.
Your post with a personal touch is written very stimulating and diverse that this makes you want to immediately go on a discovery tour.
Yesterday we set out at 32 degrees and were very positively surprised what the Mainzer Neustadt has to offer.
Fascinating the mixture of old and new in the former customs port, beautiful old well-kept houses in the new town of Mainz and the gastronomic variety is excellent.
We tried almost everything; just almost, because you can't eat and drink so much in four hours. Conclusion: we will be back!!!!"
With warm regards Kornelia