Düsseldorf: Paris, London, New York, Düsseldorf?
Nestling alongside the mighty River Rhine, Düsseldorf is a city with an air of grandeur about it. In fact, many Germans would call it a ‘delusion of grandeur’, since the Düsseldorfers have a nationwide reputation for narcissism and snobbery. The large number of high-earning businessmen, top-models and swanky media types probably has something to with this prejudice. As a student, though, you’ll get to know quite a different city.
Düsseldorf. Photo: photocase/himbeertoni
Düsseldorf introduced
Situated on a majestic bend in the Rhine, Düsseldorf has the feel of a capital city despite its relatively small size. With 577,000 inhabitants, it ranks only ninth in Germany in terms of population. However, it is the capital of North-Rhine Westphalia, Germany’s most populous and industrially-productive state and, as such, punches well above its weight on both the national and international scene.
Besides the parliament, courts, and other bureaucracies, though, Düsseldorf is also something of an economic powerhouse in its own right. It is Germany’s second banking center after Frankfurt, with NRW.Bank, WestLB, as well as Germany’s leading financial daily newspaper Handelsblatt all located there. Düsseldorf has also garnered itself the nickname “Japan on the Rhine”, with the second-largest Japanese community outside of the Land of the Rising Sun after London: over 10,000 Japanese citizens are resident, and numerous Japanese corporations run their European operations from the city, which also plays host to a wide variety of other international companies. Mobile phone network operator Vodafone Germany, for example, has a landmark headquarters on the riverfront, and the traditional industrial giants ThyssenKrupp, Rheinmetall and Henkel continue to operate from the city, too. Furthermore, Düsseldorf is Germany’s premier location for advertising agencies, with well over 100 in the city: that’s one advertising agency for every 577 Düsseldorfers!
On an international level, Düsseldorf is known as Germany’s fashion capital; art is also important here, with both public and private collections of world-wide note. Furthermore, the city’s distinctive artistic creativity comes through in many of the fascinating modern buildings that have made Düsseldorf into a case study for architecture students. For despite the nicely-restored old-town and some districts made up primarily of belle époque townhouses, the city has a decidedly modern appearance. Then again, a quaint and fierce local patriotism lives on in many of the real Düsseldorfers – and in some of the wannabes – constructed around a particularly strong brand of mustard, a dark ale that is only brewed within the city limits, and an unshakeable conviction that the city and its inhabitants are far more stylish than their Rhenish rivals nearby in Cologne.
Overview of the universities
Düsseldorf’s main University is named after the city’s most famous son: the poet Heinrich Heine. Other than that, the city offers a University of Applied Sciences, an Academy of Arts, and a Musical University.
Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf
http://www.uni-duesseldorf.de/
Do not be fooled by the charming name of a dead German poet: Düsseldorf’s Heinrich Heine University is new and modern, and there are more than 16,000 students enrolled – several hundred coming from Asia and Europe. Founded in 1965 on the basis of a long-extant medical school, the University expanded to offer first other sciences, then humanities. Sports science followed in the 80s, law in the 90s, and in 2002/3, the University set up a faculty of information technology.
Despite the boxy, often unattractive modern buildings, the campus is green and pleasant: it shares land with the Düsseldorf Botanical Gardens, and is as such a perfect research site for biologists. All the plants and greenery might just help to inspire the more artistically-minded students on campus, too: after medicine, the most traditional of choices, Düsseldorf’s biggest subject is German language and literature. The heritage of Heinrich Heine lives on!
Getting to and from the University is relatively simple. The 707, one of Düsseldorf’s positively bewildering array of tramlines, leaves from the main station and goes straight to campus. During peak hours, several other lines also serve the Univeristy. The more sporting students can skip the tram and walk through Volksgartenpark back to the city; many of them live in Bilk and Oberbilk, which are located just across this beautiful stretch of greenery.
Fachhochschule Düsseldorf
http://www.fh-duesseldorf.de/
Founded six years after the Heinrich Heine University, the Düsseldorf University of Applied Sciences offers a completely different range of subjects. German literature and medical students will not find what they’re looking for here, but budding architects and engineers will be well taken care of. With roughly 7,000 students, Düsseldorf’s second major university is a thriving institution that welcomes foreign students.
Kunstakademie Düsseldorf
http://www.kunstakademie-duesseldorf.de/cms/index.php
The Düsseldorf Academy of Arts is a public institution with a long and illustrious history. Several of the city’s main thoroughfares are named after its famous directors – Cornelius and Schadow, for example – and its collection offers an unparalleled view of German art through the late Enlightenment period. Students there can also look at more modern aspects of art too, though, thanks to projects like the CIAM, or Centre for International Art Management, which cooperates with Düsseldorf’s music university.
Robert-Schumann-Hochschule Düsseldorf
http://www.rsh-duesseldorf.de/de/index.php
The Robert Schumann University is, as the name suggests, Düsseldorf’s premier musical institution. Students range from classical musicians through composers to sound technicians, who complete half of their course here and the other modules at the University of Applied Sciences. The Schumann University gives frequent, high-quality concerts.
What Düsseldorf is like
Volker Sliepen, 24, is originally from Wesel, about an hour north of Düsseldorf, and has been studying for 4 ½ years. He came to the Heinrich Heine University partly because it was close to home, and partly because the University’s excellent reputation for the humanities.
“The German Course here is excellent. As well as the usual modules in linguistics, literature, and media, we also do a fourth ‘hands on’ module involving public speaking, journalism, and other practical issues. We cooperate with the Heinrich Heine Institute in the city center, too, and have access to an astonishing range of texts.”
What about people who don’t necessarily want to study German literature, though, Volker? “Well, the university is very international. Thanks to the Japanese community in Düsseldorf, we have lots of partnerships there and in other Asian countries. Lots of students come from Europe through Erasmus, too.” Even if they’re not here to study literature, Volker suggests that new students take the literary tour of Düsseldorf, which he helps organise every term; it ends in Düsseldorf’s famous Altstadt, whose main street is said to be the “longest bar in the world”, and students are welcome to stay on and get to know each other over a glass of Altbier. From there, they can go on to any number of Düsseldorf’s clubbing locations: Volker reels out a long list of hot-spots like 3001, Der Zack, The Stone…
My favorite spot
Of course, a long night out on the town is all very well and good, but you’ll need a quiet place to recover the following day. Volker recommends a quiet beer on the Rhine Embankment, or indeed a brief dip in the fast-flowing waters. Eagle-eyed swimmers can look out from small concrete bays constructed along the river front if they fancy a quick splash.
If the night really was too long and exhausting for a morning swim, there’s always the spacious Volksgartenpark. Volker’s tip: blanket, newspaper, sleep. If you’re feeling more energetic, jogging round the lake at the Southern end is very pleasant, as is a quick peek at the zoo in the middle of the park.
Did you know?
Düsseldorf is a seaside resort! Well, not quite. In fact, it’s a good 150 miles away from the nearest sea; but it does have two beaches. Firstly, there’s the Düsselstrand, an artificial beach set up along the small Düssel River - complete with water-park, outdoor pool, and slides. Then there’s Monkey Island, an islet near the harbour which once boasted Caribbean-style shack restaurants and bars. They’re all gone now, but the beach on the Rhine with the funny name is still going strong…
Things to check out
Düsseldorf is the perfect location for art fanatics. The city centre is marked by the K-axis, a long, straight road from K20 on Grabbeplatz to K21 at Schwanenspiegel. The former offers modern art from the 19th and early 20th Centuries; the latter is a far more modern affair. (http://www.kunstsammlung.de).
The paintings of the Kunstakademie collection (http://www.kunstakademie-duesseldorf.de/cms/index.php?id=21) are also well worth a look; but for those who prefer moving pictures, the Filmmuseum in the Altstadt is a definite must-see (http://www.filmmuseum-duesseldorf.de). The wishes of more special-interest museum-goers won’t go unanswered in this part of town, either: the Heinrich Heine Museum (http://www.duesseldorf.de/heineinstitut/museum/index.shtml) offers exactly what its name leads visitors to suspect, whilst the Schifffahrtsmuseum (http://www.duesseldorf.de/stadtmuseum/schifffahrtsmuseum/index.shtml), located in an old castle tower, has more than just a moniker with three consecutive ‘f’s to keep you going back for more.
Further down the Rhine, the Harbour area (http://www.medienhafen.de) has some of the world’s most interesting modern architecture. The outlandish forms of the Gehry buildings will fascinate specialists and laypeople alike; visitors looking to get a good view of the city have only to turn round and buy a ticket for the Rheinturm, a three-hundred-foot tall television tower with a revolving restaurant (http://www.guennewig.de/drheintu/index1024.php).
If that all sounds like too much concrete and steel, though, Düsseldorf’s suburbs are the perfect semi-rural escape. Twenty minutes by tram to the South is Benrath (http://www.schloss-benrath.de/en/portal_stiftung/bootportal.asp), a pleasant little quarter with its diminutive palace and extensive gardens, modelled on Versailles and every bit as charming. To the north – a couple of hours strolling up the Rhine – is Kaiserswerth (http://www.kaiserswerth.de), a delightful suburb with a ruined castle and some truly splendid pubs and restaurants.
What’s happening?
If you’ve still got the energy after a long walk up to Kaiserswerth, you might like to finish the day by sauntering down the Königsallee (or just Kö), Düsseldorf’s premier shopping location. If your wallet isn’t looking too healthy, though, you’d best just limit yourself to the shopping street for mere mortals, Schadowstraße.
If you stop for dinner in the city centre and then fancy a night out, the Altstadt is the place to start. As crowded, noisy, and sweaty as it can be, Uerige is the traditional starting point for almost every occasion; it’s tradition, so go for it. Later, try out the Ratinger Straße at the northern end of the central drag – Füchschen Brauerei is a particularly friendly little place with fresh Altbier straight from the tap. Later, move on the Nachtresidenz across town, or get a night-bus down to 3001.
For more civilised dancing, stop by the Tanzhaus NRW: this state-subsidised dance studio offers a wide range of courses, from salsa to tap and even urban moves. Most courses take place in the evenings, and there are discounts for students and interns.
If you’re lucky enough to be in Düsseldorf over the summer, don’t wear flammable clothes: everywhere you go, there’ll be a big fireworks display. In mid-June, the Japanese community puts on a truly amazing display; not to be outdone, Schloss Benrath puts on displays in July/August, too.
Useful links
The University Ranking of the DAAD http://www.daad.de/deutschland/hochschulen/hochschulranking/06543.en.html)
for information on the cities’ higher education institutes.
Cheap accommodation
http://duesseldorf.studenten-wohnung.de/
Heinrich-Heine-Universität-Düsseldorf
http://www.uni-duesseldorf.de/
International Office
http://www.uni-duesseldorf.de/home/Internationales
Fachhochschule Düsseldorf
http://www.fh-duesseldorf.de/
Kunstakademie
http://www.kunstakademie-duesseldorf.de/cms/index.php
Robert-Schumann-Universität
http://www.rsh-duesseldorf.de/de/index.php
The city’s homepage in English
http://www.duesseldorf.de/en/index.shtml
Photo 1: Photocase.com/ user: Himbeertoni
Photo 5: Flickr (cc) ds1987
