The first view looks across the Elbe river at an old Dresden castle. On the green area in front they hold summer concerts and festivals. The second again is a look at the old historical part of the city (about a 20 minute walk from the train station) -- I'll check on the exact name of the buildings. A friend of mine in Dresden moved there from the West because of job opportunities back in the early nineties, and has settled down there now with a family, and has an insightful perspective on the difficulties of unification. We once took a long bike ride on the Elbe from Pirna to Dresden (with his daughter), and it was telling how the sleek clean bike paths of the West don't exist in quite the same way in the East! We had a great ride though. One other bit -- traditionally East Germans skinny dip when they go swimming at lakes. On that bike ride we happened by a swim beach on a lake and I was shocked that nearly everyone was naked. That's simply the norm in the East, no one gives it a second thought. Unfortunately communities like Dresden are in dire financial trouble (especially smaller outside towns and villages), as their finances are weak and they often have debts from the old era they are supposed to repay. It will be a long time before the East is "blooming" in the way former Chancellor Helmut Kohl promised. Still, every trip I make, I see more and more progress