With over half a million inhabitants,‭ ‬Leipzig is the largest city in the federal state of Saxony.‭ ‬In its‭ ‬800‭ ‬years of recorded history,‭ ‬Leipzig emerged as a city of classical music,‭ ‬trade fairs,‭ ‬academic education,‭ ‬and‭ – ‬recently‭ – ‬modern arts.‭ ‬Due to its rich cultural heritage,‭ ‬Leipzig today presents itself as a confident and genuinely international city at the heart of eastern Germany.‭ ‬This truly international approach manifests itself in all layers of life,‭ ‬ranging from the warm welcome Leipzig’s citizens tend to give their international guests to renowned institutions like the Leipzig International School‭ (‬which admits children from the age of three‭)‬.

Famous musicians like Johann Sebastian Bach,‭ ‬Robert Schumann,‭ ‬and Felix Mendelssohn were active in Leipzig.‭ ‬You can still see their influence in town,‭ ‬for example in St.‭ ‬Thomas Church where Bach‭ – ‬director‭ ‘‬musices lipsiensis‭’ – ‬worked as choirmaster of the church‘s Boys Choir between‭ ‬1723‭ ‬and‭ ‬1750,‭ ‬and where,‭ ‬today,‭ ‬the famous‭ ‬Thomaner Choir still performs his works twice a week.‭

Leipzig’s reputation as a city of trade fairs looks back on more than‭ ‬500‭ ‬years of history:‭ ‬In‭ ‬1997,‭ ‬the fair proudly celebrated the‭ ‬500th anniversary of being granted the‭ “‬Imperial Right to Hold Trade Fairs‭“‬.‭ ‬Always a prosperous town,‭ ‬Leipzig had emerged as one of the wealthiest cities in Germany by the beginning of the‭ ‬20th century.‭ ‬Today,‭ ‬the Leipzig Book Fair‭ (‬spring counterpart to the autumn Frankfurt Book Fair‭) ‬and the International Automobile Fair are amongst the most popular and internationally successful annual trade fairs of the city.

Several universities,‭ ‬colleges,‭ ‬and academies make Leipzig a very attractive city to study and work.‭ ‬Founded in‭ ‬1409,‭ ‬the University of Leipzig has produced numerous notable individuals like Johann Wolfgang von Goethe,‭ ‬Gotthold Ephraim Lessing,‭ ‬Gottfried Wilhelm Leibnitz,‭ ‬Richard Wagner,‭ ‬Friedrich Nietzsche,‭ ‬and Werner Heisenberg.‭ ‬Today,‭ ‬the staff and student body at the University exceeds‭ ‬35,000.‭ ‬Leipzig further hosts the University of Applied Sciences‭ ‘‬HTWK‭’ ‬and the Academy of Visual Arts‭ ‘‬HGB‭’‬,‭ ‬as well as several non-university research institutes‭ – ‬including three different Max Planck Institutes.

Economically,‭ ‬Leipzig is an important logistical centre,‭ ‬with its infrastructural‭ ‬location at the very centre of Europe,‭ ‬and with access to an international airport,‭ ‬railway system,‭ ‬and motorways.‭ ‬Significant industry has settled near Leipzig,‭ ‬including Porsche,‭ ‬BMW and DHL.‭

During recent years,‭ ‬Leipzig has also become the centre of modern art in Europe.‭ ‬Leipzig‭’ ‬old‭ ‬Baumwollspinnerei‭ ‬district‭ ‬-‭ ‬formerly the biggest cotton mill of continental Europe‭ ‬-‭ ‬today houses more than eighty artists and many‭ ‬galleries,‭ ‬providing the heart of the versatile modern art scene of the city.‭ ‬Famous representatives of Leipzig’s impressive recent impact upon moden art,‭ ‬commonly named‭ ‘‬New Leipzig School of Painting‭’‬,‭ ‬include Neo Rauch and several of his students from the Leipzig Academy.

With its many parks,‭ ‬forests,‭ ‬canals and lakes,‭ ‬Leipzig is a perfect place for recreation,‭ ‬sports,‭ ‬and leisure time,‭ ‬and offers plenty of opportunities for social life.‭ ‬Your life in this lovely city will be full of surprises‭ – ‬as Goethe put it more lyrically exactly‭ ‬200‭ ‬years ago:‭ ‘‬My Leipzig’s dear to me‭! ‬It’s a little Paris,‭ ‬and educates its people.‭’

http://www.leipzig.de/
http://www.ltm-leipzig.de/index.shtml
http://www.leipzig.de/int/en/tourist/stadtspaz/

http://www.tatsachen-ueber-deutschland.de/en/
http://www.justlanded.com/english/Germany
http://www.howtogermany.com/
http://www.daad.de/en/index.html

Report of "New York Times", January 10, 2010