A day in Frankfurt!

I recently visited Frankfurt with my family and some friends, and as always I was mesmerized by its charming contrast and diversity. Frankfurt is the financial hub of Germany and the only city here where the mighty skyscrapers coexist with the old heritage buildings. This was my third visit to the city and I love going there to  spend time on the bank of Main river and admire the beautiful skyline. It looks perfect during the summers with the sun and the colorful flowers, however this time even though it was April, the air was cool and the trees lacked the lushness.
It took us 2.5 hours to reach Frankfurt Main Station from Kaiserslautern and we took the exit towards Kaiserstraße. It is a very popular street and has lot of shops and cafes, making it perfect to spend few hours on a sunny day.

Kaiserstrasse

One particular place here where I love to eat is Urban Kitchen (Kaiserstrasse 53). It has lot of options for vegetarians. They serve really sumptuous Pastas, Gnocchi and Pizza Brot (bread).

At Urban Kitchen

The Euro Sign and the hexagon building behind it is the European Central Bank

Walking straight ahead on the Kaiserstrasse, we soon reached the famous euro sign statue. This big blue euro sign stands in front of the European Central Bank, and is not easy to miss (especially if you are interested in Finance and Politics, and have seen this on BBC News).

The Main Tower (in blue)

After some clicks there, we walked ahead to our next destination and my favourite-The Main Tower. The Main Tower is 500 storey, 200m high skyscraper , and the only one in Frankfurt which is open to public. It has been named after the river Main that flows through the region. Just as we enter the building, there is a high-tech security check that each visitor has to clear (similar to the ones at the airports). After the security check, we head to the elevators that take us to the 54th floor in barely 45 seconds.

Security Check at the entrance of Main Tower

From there there are two public viewing platforms (55th and 56th floor respectively)..And what we saw from the top was simply breathtaking..and for merely 5 euros that we paid for each person..On one side was the Hauptbahnhof, where the trains looked like toy trains..on the other was the serene Main river, making everything look so calm..The height of the tower makes all other skyscrapers look like dwarfs, filling me with awe. It is totally worth going up the tower and if luck prevails and sun shines, then one can get some of the most beautiful shots of the city from the top.

At the Main Tower

Main Tower 

View of Hauptbahnhof from the top

View from the top of Main Tower

We stand taller than these skyscrapers

After spending some time at the Main Tower, we decided to take a leisurely walk along the river side..And it was indeed a refreshing break..Since it was not sunny, there were not too many people around..but on a sunny day it is extremely crowded..I love to see people doing all sorts of random activities there- jogging, cycling, boating, sun bathing, having a chilled beer or ice cream, reading a book and simply having fun. Frankfurt am Main is also referred to as ''Mainhattan'' by Germans because of its skyline.

''Mainhattan''

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Walking along the river side, we soon reached the Iron Bridge, which gave a great view of the river and the skyline. There were hundreds of love padlocks tied on the bridge. Since I had already seen these padlocks in Austria, I was well aware of this custom; however, my parents were extremely amused to see these colorful locks in abundance:)

Love Padlocks

To the north of the bridge is the old city, known as Römerberg..It is a quaint city centre with lot of historical buildings. 
There are lot of museums in Frankfurt, but I have not been able to explore that side of the city yet.
I usually go there for few hours to enjoy the sun, river and buy Indian grocery (I shop from Punjabi Shop located on the Weserstrasse).

Römerberg