Located on the west bank or the Rhine River in western Germany, Mainz is a university town of almost 200,000 people and a center of the German wine economy. Just 25 miles from the Frankfurt airport, Mainz is a politically-important city in its on right as capital of the Rhineland-Palatinate state. Just across the Rhine is the town of Wiesbaden.

Gutenberg's home

A Roman outpost, Mainz was home to Johannes Gutenberg, inventor of the modern printing press of movable type. A museum named in his honor exhibits a rare Gutenberg Bible and other early printed books. Also in Mainz is a museum with a lot of Roman and medieval artifacts, a grand cathedral, the Iron Tower, the Wood Tower and the beautiful domed "Christuskirche," or "Christ Church, which was first finished in 1903, bombed in 1945 and rebuilt by 1954. A great day in Mainz includes walking around and exploring, particularly on market days of Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays around the cathedral.