Xanten

The small and charming town of Xanten is located close to Düsseldorf and the Dutch boarder. Its best attraction is the archaeological park Roman Park that includes some buildings of the ancient Roman city Colonia Ulpia Traiana. 

The Romans were in the region between 100 B.C. and the year 400. The buildings are partially reconstructed or rebuilt in their original sizes and are surrounded by a spectacular wall with defensive towers. The park is one of the largest archaeological museums in the world and is a copy of what was a roman village or fortification. For me this was a very informative and a fascinating archaeological experience.

The impressive city gate Kleve Tor dates back to the 14th century and was part of the old city fortification and used as one of the entrances to the town. The three stores gate has circular towers and is a fantastic tourist attraction, which hosts today three holiday apartments.

The entrance to the city.

Not far away from here is a large green area with a beautiful wind mill Kriemhildmuehle.

The mill was part of the city wall but then converted to a mill and now operating as a bakery.

The Gothic cathedral of Xanten is dedicated to St. Viktor and dominates the view of the medieval city. According to the legend the Roman legionary Viktor and his companions died here in the fourth century as Christian martyrs.

Monuments commemorate the tragic event.

The first church was built above the graves of the martyrs. The area developed during the centuries as a settlement which later became the city of Xanten.

The impressive cloister is surrounded by a green courtyard.

I love visiting old churches and was impressed by the atmosphere inside, so beautiful and calm.

Great German Gothic architecture, beautiful glass stained windows and paintings.

Very close is situated the lovely Marktplatz- the central square, surrounded by bakery and pastry shops, cafes, small restaurants. Here we enjoyed good and tasty food and drinks.

We  and visited the small market and the local products and plenty of choices.

The rest of the day we walked along the center and also enjoyed the very relaxing atmosphere.

Xanten is a little town with Roman history and a nice day trip destination from Cologne or Düsseldorf.