Germany (Lonely Planet, 6th Edition) - Andrea Schulte-Peevers [154]
THOMASKIRCHE
The composer Johann Sebastian Bach worked in the Thomaskirche (St Thomas Church; 2222 4200; www.thomaskirche.org; Thomaskirchhof 18; 9am-6pm) as a cantor from 1723 until his death in 1750, and his remains lie buried beneath a bronze epitaph near the altar. The Thomanerchor, once led by Bach, is still going strong and now includes 100 boys aged eight to 18. The church tower can be climbed at weekends (€2).
BACH-MUSEUM
Opposite the Thomaskirche, the Bach-Museum ( 964 110; www.bach-leipzig.de; Thomaskirchhof 16) was receiving a comprehensive refit at the time of writing, but should be back in summer 2010.
MENDELSSOHN-HAUS & SCHUMANN-HAUS
Two other world-famous composers have museums dedicated to them in Leipzig: Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, who lived (and died) in the Mendelssohn-Haus ( 127 0294; www.mendelssohn-stiftung.de; Goldschmidtstrasse 12; admission €3.50; 10am-6pm); and Robert Schumann, who spent the first four years of his marriage to Leipzig pianist Clara Wieck in the Schumann-Haus ( 393 9620; www.schumann-verein.de; Inselstrasse 18; admission €3; 2-5pm Wed-Fri, 10am-5pm Sat & Sun).
GRASSIMUSEUM
The university-run Grassimuseum (www.grassimuseum.de; Johannisplatz 5-11; 10am-6pm Tue-Sun) unites three very different collections. At the fabulous Musikinstrumenten-Museum ( 973 0750; adult/concession/family €4/2/8) you can discover music from five centuries in the prestigious and rarity-filled exhibits, in an interactive sound laboratory, and during concerts. At the Museum für Völkerkunde (Ethnological Museum; 973 1900; adult/concession €5/2) you can plunge into an eye-opening journey through the cultures of the world. The Museum für Angewandte Kunst (Museum for Applied Arts; 213 3719; adult/concession €5/3.50) is the second oldest in Germany and has one of the finest collections of art-nouveau and art-deco furniture, porcelain, glass and ceramics in the country.
MUSEUM DER BILDENDEN KÜNSTE
An edgy glass cube is the home of the Museum der Bildenden Künste (Museum of Fine Arts; 216 990; Katharinenstrasse 10; adult/concession permanent exhibit €5/3.50, temporary exhibit from €6/4, combination ticket from €8/5.50; 10am-6pm Tue & Thu-Sun, noon-8pm Wed), which has a well-respected collection of paintings from the 15th century to today, including works by Caspar David Friedrich, Lucas Cranach the Younger and Claude Monet. Highlights include rooms dedicated to native sons Max Beckmann, Max Klinger, whose striking Beethoven monument is a veritable symphony of marble and bronze, and Neo Rauch, a chief representative of the New Leipzig School.
VÖLKERSCHLACHTDENKMAL
Some 100,000 soldiers lost their lives in the epic 1813 battle that led to the decisive victory of Prussian, Austrian and Russian forces over Napoleon’s army. Built a century later near the killing fields, the Völkerschlachtdenkmal (Battle of Nations Monument; 2416 870; Prager Strasse; adult/concession €5/3; 10am-6pm Apr-Oct, 10am-4pm Nov-Mar) is a 91m colossus, towering sombrely over southeastern Leipzig like something straight out of Gotham City. The nearby Forum 1813 (adult/concession €3/2, combination ticket €7/4.50) chronicles the events, or else you can rent an audioguide with English-language commentary. In June/July, the naTo culture club Click here hosts its annual ‘bath tub race’ in the large reflecting pool that sits below the monument. Take tram 15 to Völkerschlachtdenkmal.
ZOO
If you can stomach the hefty admission, Leipzig’s zoo ( 593 3385; www.zoo-leipzig.de; Pfaffendorfer Strasse 29; adult/child/family €13/9/34; 9am-7pm May-Sep, 9am-6pm Apr & Oct, 9am-5pm Nov-Mar), has lots of rare species, plus perennial crowd-pleasers