Cities

Away days: Leipzig

Sometimes referred to as ‘the new Berlin’, Lizzie Coan discovers why Leipzig is so much more than just a cousin of the nearby capital

WORDS Lizzie Coan

My usual routine when travelling to any new city is to immediately google ‘Anthony Bourdain [city name]’. The late chef and prolific traveller’s recommendations haven’t let me down yet – but, unfortunately, my search this time comes up empty. It doesn’t look like Bourdain ever set foot in Leipzig. My usual go-to taxi and public transport apps don’t work here, either; I’m on my own.

It’s not a massive surprise. Leipzig has taken a back seat to other German cities for much of its existence. There’s its small size – it’s Germany’s eighth-largest city – and its location in what was the communist German Democratic Republic (GDR), which led to decades of economic and cultural under-investment. One of Leipzig’s key contributions to German history were the initial Monday demonstrations, peaceful protests in October 1989 which spread across the country and hastened the fall of the GDR; but you’re much more likely to have seen images of Berlin’s protests than here.

Leipzig’s position in the heart of the old East Germany has also given it a different air to other German cities, with its mix of ornate 19th-century architecture, wide ‘ring road’ streets and vast swathes of public green space. Luckily, it’s the perfect city for a traveller like me reliant on Google searches and apps to explore – everything is easily accessible by foot or tram.

I’m in Leipzig for a EURO 2024 group stage game between Croatia and Italy in the height of summer. The city is basking in beautiful June sun, the expansive streets are full of enthusiastic football fans, and as I exit Leipzig’s awe-inspiring train station – the largest in Europe – the city feels abuzz with excitement.

My first stop is to learn more about this intriguing city’s history. Leipzig is full to the brim with art galleries and museums, but there’s one here I’ve always wanted to visit – the Museum of Contemporary History. It traces the history of the GDR from the end of the Second World War all the way through to what Leipzig is today and gives me a new-found sense of the upheaval Leipzig has gone through in its not-so-distant past.

Right outside the museum is the city’s largest square, the Marktplatz, and every Tuesday and Thursday it’s full of market stalls selling all manner of local produce from the Saxony region. I make an immediate beeline for a stall selling fischbrötchen, fried fish sandwiches, and I don’t regret it – they’re enormous and covered with tartare-style sauce. I can smell the fresh strawberries on the market stalls from metres away, so I pick up a punnet and head off to my next stop on one of the ubiquitous trams.

Leipzig is one of Germany’s greenest cities, with one third of the city made up of parks and forests. There’s a plethora of parks to choose from, connected by cycle paths that run throughout the city, and as I settle down in one with my strawberries – best I’ve ever eaten, by the way – the park slowly fills up with locals sunbathing, BBQing and meeting for after-work picnics. A little further out of the city are a number of lakes, originally coal mines which were transformed into ‘pit lakes’, and on a sunny weekend the city’s inhabitants flock there too.

With so much nature in and around Leipzig, it’s not a surprise that the football stadium follows suit. RB Leipzig’s stadium was built inside the bowl of the old one, which was filled in with earth and covered with grass, giving the impression that the stadium sits within a giant crater. It’s just a short walk from the city centre, and fans enter the ground by walking across footbridges which connect the old stands to the new.

I experience something that’s never happened to me before at a football game – when I enter the ground, I’m greeted with the smell of honeysuckle, and trailing roses climb up a grassy bank to my left. The picturesque scenery doesn’t end once you’re inside, either – from the stands you can catch glimpses of the Elsterbecken river winding its way past the ground.

As the sunny day gives way to a warm evening and the game kicks off, the red lights of RB Leipzig illuminate the inside of the stadium. As I watch the game, I know that back in the city centre, locals will be gathered around TVs put out in the street by their neighbourhood corner shop, known as a späti, drinking beers and sitting on plastic crates to catch the action.

RB Leipzig might be a relatively new team, but from my time here its clear football is just as much a part of the fabric as any other city in Germany. I’m a new Leipzig convert, and if you make the trip here next season, I’m pretty confident you will be too.

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Travel

My recommendations

With no Anthony Bourdain tips to guide you, you’ll have to take mine instead

Where to eat

Olive Tree, Karl-Liebknecht-Strasse 38

There are a million different options for döner kebabs in Leipzig – it’s Germany’s favourite fast food – but my vote goes to Olive Tree. They offer a huge selection, but when in doubt, get the classic döner, full of fresh salad and a multitude of sauces. There’s always a queue at busy times, but it moves fast and is absolutely worth the wait.

Where to drink

Musikpavillon, Clara-Zetkin Park, Anton-Bruckner-Allee 11

It seems almost trite to recommend a biergarten for a drink in Germany, but Leipzig has some beautiful ones. This watering hole in the middle of a verdant city park was, as the name indicates, originally a music pavilion built in 1912, but now has a bar on site. They still stage concerts in the pavilion, but have big screens up for watching sports too.

Where to learn

Zeitgeschichtliches Forum, Grimmaische Strasse 6

Genuinely the best-curated museum I’ve ever been to, you will leave feeling like you’ve learnt and experienced so much – and it’s free to enter. Leipzig is also home to the famous ‘Round Corner’ Stasi Museum – an exhibit within the former secret police’s HQ that looks at the methods the Stasi employed to keep citizens under surveillance.

Where to explore

Cospudener See

Leipzig is surrounded by lakes, but this is one of the closest to the city centre, easily accessible by tram. It was once an open-pit mine but is now surrounded by sandy beaches, with a sauna and sailing harbour too. At weekends, Leipzigers head out of the city to swim, sunbathe and wander around the parks that surround the water.

Travel

My recommendations

With no Anthony Bourdain tips to guide you, you’ll have to take mine instead

Where to eat

Olive Tree, Karl-Liebknecht-Strasse 38

Where to drink

Musikpavillon, Clara-Zetkin Park, Anton-Bruckner-Allee 11

Where to learn

Zeitgeschichtliches Forum, Grimmaische Strasse 6

Where to explore

Cospudener See

Travel

My recommendations

With no Anthony Bourdain tips to guide you, you’ll have to take mine instead