7 Best Sights in Bautzen/Budyšin, Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia

Erected in 1558, the Alte Wasserkunst served as part of the town's defensive fortifications, but its true purpose was to pump water from the Spree into 86 cisterns spread throughout the city. It proved so efficient that it provided the city's water supply until 1965. It is now a technical museum.

Bautzen was the site of one of East Germany's most notorious prisons, which was dedicated to holding the Stasi's political prisoners. It remains an active prison until the fall of the Berlin wall in 1989. Since 1994, it has been a memorial to those inhumanely and unfairly persecuted by the East German regime. There are guided tours on Friday (5 pm), and on weekends (11 am and 2 pm).

Behind the Rathaus is one of Bautzen's most interesting sights: Dom St. Petri is eastern Germany's only Simultankirche, or "simultaneous church." An early effort to avoid the violence that often occurred during the Reformation, St. Peter's has a Protestant side and a Roman Catholic side in the same church. A short fence, which once reached a height of 13 feet, separates the two congregations. The church was built in 1213 on the sight of a Milzener (the forerunners of the Sorbs) parish church.

Below the waterworks and outside the walls, this reddish-brown house was one of the only structures to survive all the city's fires—leading Bautzeners to conclude that it could only be occupied by witches. There's an exhibition, open every on the 1st and 3rd Sunday every the month.

Bautzen's main market square is actually two squares, the Hauptmarkt (Main Market) and the Fleischmarkt (Meat Market), separated by the yellow, baroque Rathaus. The current town hall dates from 1705, but there has been a town hall in this location since 1213. Bautzen's friendly tourist-information center, next door, has a great two-hour walking-tour map and an audio guide available through the SmartGuide travel guide and map app.

Bautzen's city walls have a number of gates and towers. This one, at the end of Reichenstrasse, is the most impressive. Although the tower base dates from 1490, it was damaged in four city fires (in 1620, 1639, 1686, and 1747) and rebuilt, hence its baroque cupola. The reconstruction caused the tower to lean, however, and its foundation was further damaged in 1837. The "Leaning Tower of Bautzen" currently sits about 5 feet off center. The view from the top is a spectacular vista of Bautzen and the surrounding countryside.

If you want to learn a bit more about the Sorbs and their place in Germany, this museum is a good start. Rooms are devoted to Sorbian art and traditional Sorbian costumes. It's the largest single collection of Sorbian fine art in Germany. An audio guide is included with admission.