The Three-Rivers City Passau [antikvár]

Welcome to Passau, the City of the Nibelungs! The Nibelungenlied, the most famous epic poem in the German language, tells of Kriemhild's arrival in „Paz-zovwe", where she is received by her uncle, Bishop Pilgrim. Thus centuries ago, the city at the junction of the Danube, Inn, and llz rivers was already a centre of trade and travel between East and West, North and South. The settlers passed this way during the migration of peoples, as did the armies of Emperor Frederick I on their cru-sades, the traders coming from the Mediterranean and the salt deposits in the foothills of the Alps, and, last but not least, the Bavarian princess Eiisa-beth, popularly known as „Sissi", on her way to the Imperial Throne of Aus-tria. The city got its name from one of the Roman forts in the vicinity: „Bata-vis" was corrupted into „Passawe", which ultimately became „Passau". Among those who profited from the city's favourable position were the prince bishops, whose sphere of influ-ence extended eastward all the way into parts of what is now Hungary. They ruled over a bishopric which, in terms of geographical area, was once the larg-est in the entire Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation. Their power and the wealth of the merchants are reflect-ed even today in the magnificent buildings, such as St. Stephen's Cathedral, the Town Hall assembly rooms, the defiant citadel Veste Oberhaus, and the residence of the sovereigns. Under their influence, Passau also de-veloped into an educational and cultur-al centre that lives on today in the city of schools and universities and its var-ied cultural landscape. Besides re-nowned museums and galleries, thea- tre, opéras, and concerts of all kinds make for a varied arts calendar, round-ed out by an attractive cabaret and the „Eurôpean Weeks", a music festival, which receives a great deal of international attention and is dedicated to the idéal of European unity. In addition to the weekly evening concerts in the cathedral, in summer, visitors can enjoy a daily thirty-minute noon-time concert on the world's largest church organ. Artisans and craftspeople have mainly set up shop in Hôllgasse, while the small parade grounds is today home to the big public spring and autumn festivals „Maidult" and „Herbstdult". In Passau, however, hospitality is second nature all year round. Whether in the numerous, earthy beer gardens and taverns or the sidewalk cafés of the extensive pedestrian precinct, visitors will quickly find a place where they feel at home. Just shopping the numerous boutiques, shops, and department stores or the atmospheric weekly mar-ket is a pleasure every bit as unforget-table as sauntering through the roman-tic alleyways and the dreamy corners of the old town and along its riverfront promenades. Even night-owls will find plenty of opportunités to indulge their proclivities in Passau. If it's outdoor exercise you're looking for, you'll find it in Passau. The city has an exemplary network of hiking trails, offers many possibilités for water sports, and is a hot tip among cyclists, with no fewer than eight long-distance cycling routes leading in all directions. There is even a day-or-night repair service and a plain hôtel geared to ecology-minded cyclists. Guest hous-es and hôtels steeped in tradition court