Passau is a town in the far east of Bavaria. It has a population of 50,000, of whom about twenty percent are students at the town's university. It is also known as the Dreiflüssestadt (City of Three Rivers) as it lies on the confluence of the Inn, Ilz and Danube.
Despite its relatively remote location, Passau is popular with tourists exploring "Bavaria's Venice". Perversely, Napoleon stated that it was the most beautiful city that he had conquered in Germany. The town centre dates from 1662, when it was rebuilt by Italian architects after a fire had largely destroyed the town. The Cathedral is a particularly good example of the town's Baroque architecture, and with 17,774 pipes is also home to the world's largest pipe organ.
The large student population ensures that Passau has a good nightlife for its size. The European Weeks festival in July and August attracts some surprisingly big names from the world of ballet, opera and classical music. The town is close to the Bavarian Forest National Park and is the start of a long-distance cycle path following the Danube to Vienna.
See also
List of chat forum members in Passau and site search results for Passau.
- www.passau.de - official city website
- Passau - Wikipedia
- Festspiele Europäische Wochen - European Weeks festival