The 2010 European Capital of Culture
Bild: Zeche Zollverein (Ralph Lueger)
Welcome to RUHR.2010, the 2010 European Capital of Culture. Experience the change from industrial region to cultural metropolis. There are 200 museums, 100 cultural centers, 100 concert halls, 250 festivals and 3500 industrial monuments waiting for you.
Smoking Chimneys, harsh working conditions, corner stand and, it goes without saying, football - that ist how most people see or imagine the Ruhr for decades now. The surprise ist great, however, when they discover the charm of the industrial region and its culture as a location for recreation and adventure that can hardly be more diverse. Instead of grey melancholy, there are vast recreational areas, a wealth of cultural activities and an urban landscape that has something for every taste and interest within an area of just several square kilometres: amusement strips and natural paradieses, shopping centres and rustic stettings, cultural institutions and monuments to mining heritage. The distinctive architecture not only demonstrates that the region´s transformation from Europe´s leading industrial region to a vibrant cultural region is not a renunciation but rather a commitment to the roots of the coal and steel industry.
After all, cultural diversity, soldarity and enthusiasm have always been the driving forces of the Ruhr: That is since migrant workers in excess of two million started to migrate from all over Europe to the rapidly evolving industrial region during the nineteenth century at the latest, thus lending the area its unique character. Magnificent monuments to industrial heritage, bizaare mining landscapes and the charm of works in progress shape the image to this day. And that´s how we like it. For instance, the transformation of the Ruhr into the Metropolis Ruhr focuses on its lively history in particular to guide its innovativeness.
