Peter Carpenter: European Semester: Dresden. So it goes.

I always thought that WWII's influence on this part of Europe would be more marked and prevailing, with numerous statues, museums, and other landmarks remembering that pivotal, not-so-distant era of the world's history. However, European cities seem more preoccupied with the history, culture, art, and architecture of their continent before it was devastated by two industrialized World Wars. In Prague especially, which saw little actual combat, the legacy of the Second World War exists on a more subtle plane, below the surface of the city. Many of the area's castles and fortresses served as concentration camps or important conjunctions between greater occupied Europe and larger camps in Poland, but there is little visible presence of WWII or the Holocaust. The history is here, but it takes some investigation to uncover. I had expected such a momentous chapter to bear more physical scars, especially on the region where it all began and ended. In contrast, the city of Dresden itself serves as a living, tangible memorial to World War II and represents the questions of wartime morality, on both sides, that we still grapple with today. Almost completely destroyed in 1945 by 1,300 British and American bombers, the city has been meticulously reconstructed to resemble its appearance before the war. It is one of a handful of places where WWII truly sculpted the contemporary landscape. So it goes.

What sets the destruction of Dresden apart from other German cities that also experienced relentless aerial bombardment was the type of bombing and Dresden's lack of strategic military or industrial importance to the Nazi war machine. Although the Allied commanders that planned and ordered the bombing justified the attack based on what they thought were over 100 industrial factories supplying the German army with armaments and munitions, Dresden, in reality, was a sleepy metropolis, revered as one of Germany's most beautiful cities. Often titled as the "Florence of Germany," the city played a minimal role in the Third Reich's conquests and war crimes and represented the one stronghold of German culture and history not yet touched by the Second World War. When the bombing began in mid-February, 1945, the city had seen almost no fighting and the citizens bore little responsibility for the horrors inflicted on Europe by Hitler. By attacking what was essentially a peaceful city for its association with an aggressive nation, at the end of the war when Germany's defeat was imminent, the Allies drew (and still draw) accusations of war crimes from the international community. The type of bombing also drew heavy criticisms from the public in hindsight, as the Allies employed not only traditional, but incendiary bombs, to destroy Dresden. The incendiary bombs, used in conjunction with specific weather characteristics, created a firestorm that burned for several weeks, incinerating everything sucked into its path. Unlike traditional bombings of the era that destroyed with explosives, a firebombing relied on these indiscriminate tornados of fire to raze buildings. Almost 15 square kilometers of the city were completely leveled to the ground, including all but one the original bridges and most of the Old Town. The inferno created by the fires killed an estimated 40,000 people, which equalled that of the atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki. So it goes.

The shot on the left demonstrates the severity of the bombing directly following the aerial assault in February 1945. The picture on the right, obviously from the same vantage point, is a modern view 50 years after rebuilding began.

Thus, visiting Dresden was a powerful experience, because we were confronted by the horrors of WWII at every block. Following its utter annihilation, the city was completely reconstructed, so the majority of buildings had been built within the past 50 years. Much of it is now modern architecture, but several Palaces, the famous Opera House, and a number of iconic Churches were rebuilt as they existed before the War. I can't imagine the city's beauty before the war, as the reconstruction was limited in what it could preserve. The bus tour that we took of the city allowed us to get off at our discretion, explore, and get on any of the other numerous buses running the same route. The hills above the city housed a number of castles and seemingly endless neighborhoods of beautiful homes and mansions. Dresden must have been, and must still be a very wealthy area, because the countryside around Dresden was scattered with villas and mansions built before the War. All but one of our roommates, Paul, went to Barcelona, so Tucker, Paul, another girlfriend of ours, Caitlin, and I got to explore the city together. The weather was pretty grim the whole trip which hindered us from walking around as much as we had wanted to, but despite the weather, it wasn't hard to appreciate Dresden's architectural brilliance.

A random shot of one of the large houses that dot the hills over the city. We stopped in this little town center during our tour for lunch and one would never know they were only a few kilometers from a major city.

The Fraunkirche Church, which essentially translates to the Church of our Lady in German. Completely razed by the bombings, the people of Dresden put great effort into rebuilding this icon of Baroque architecture with great care. The original stones make up some 15% of the new church.

Caitlin and I in front of one of Dresden's many squares. The Elbe River is a few hundred yards behind us.

The famous Semper Opera House. Destroyed in the late 19th Century by a fire and then again in the 1945 bombings, the Semperoper was reopened in 1985 and functions today as it did before the War.

Because it is rather off the beaten path for American tourists and we are probably beyond tourist season for this part of Europe, we didn't meet any native English speakers. The night life was centered around the New City, which was comprised of 130 bars and restaurants densely packed into a few blocks. We ate doner kebabs for eight of nine meals we enjoyed in Germany because the city was so expensive. Doner Kebabs are essentially pita sandwiches with shavings of meat from a huge, oscillating column of chicken or beef. The vision of someone using an electric saw to shave hunks of meat off of collection of several hundred chicken breasts is rather unappetizing, but they are delicious. We also got our daily allowance of vegetables in the lettuce, cucumbers, and onions that came on them. Eating healthy and cheaply is always a high priority...

Roommate Paul, Tucker, and Caitlin at the rooftop bar of our hostel. In our defense, we didn't chose the girly champaign you can see being held in the picture-it was free with the room.