Kassel is situated in the northern part of the federal state of Hesse.
Kassel is the cultural and economic centre of Northern Hesse, capital of the German Fairy Tale Route. The city's is name is derived from the ancient Castellum Cattorum, a castle of the Chatti, a German tribe that has lived in the area since Roman times.
It is one of Germanys newest cities.
Due to the destruction of the war in 1943, the city was almost completely rebuilt in the 1950s.
Kassel is well-known to be one of the greenest cities in Germany. 62 percent of its area are forests, parks, or gardens, If you are in the centre of Kassel know as the Koenigsstrasse, you should not miss exploring the nearby baroque park Karlsaue.
The Konigsstrasse is the main shopping area in this city. It is approximately 1.5km long and one shop neighbours the next. There are two shopping malls the City Point and the Konigsgalerie. Ir you head to Friedrich-Ebert Strasse you will find several bars heading away from downtown. There are also a few on Treppenstrasse in the middle of town. I would not be concerned about walking alone anywhere near the city centres it is quite safe.
The Orangerie was largely destroyed during the Second World War, and it was still more or less a ruin when it was used as the setting for Documental 2 in 1959. The restoration was not completed until 1981. Since 1992 the Orangerie has been the home of the Museum for Astronomy, the Planetarium and the History of Technology,
Karlsaue Park in a large formal garden in the French style. Like most buildings in Kassel. This garden, which is the oldest of three Landgrave gardens, was built below the former royal palace out side the medieval city. From Moritzaue, the renaissance pleasure grounds situated on marshland on the River Fulda, Landgrave Karl started building a vast baroque park in 1680.
There are great bakeries on every corner and through out the city,
Kassels university, founded in 1971, is firmly allied to the region while maintaining international contacts. It attracts more than 17,000 students from over 100 countries worldwide.
The brothers Wilhelm and Jacob Grimm, who where world famous for there fairy tales and linguists, spent the longest and most fruitful period of their lives in Kassel. It was here that Grimms Fairy Tales were compiled, edited and translated into 160 languages.
