Several members and friends of CAIF met German colleagues in Dresden, this in the week leading up to the remembrance of the blanket bombing of Dresden on 13 February 1945. Visitors and hosts included Claudia, Clive, Dave, Linda, Paula, Rainer, Reinhard, Sabine, Sinclair, Stefan, Ulrich and Emilia. Some of the events and visits in Dresden included:… Continue reading Dresden visit February 2026
Category: Dresden
Urban conversations
During our visit to Dresden we were able to attend a conversation around twinning organised by Dresden Technical University as part of their Urban Conversations programme. Those taking part included: Tine & Günter Starke – photographers whose work provided the visual framework for the evening Sabine Coady Schaebitz from Coventry University, editor of Heritage and… Continue reading Urban conversations
Welcome visitors to Coventry
We were very pleased to welcome Marc Lalonde (Lektor) and students from 'The Tudors' - this is the name of the drama group within the Institute for English and American Studies at the Technische Universität in our partner city of Dresden. This was the group's fourth visit and this time around they were reading 'Poems for… Continue reading Welcome visitors to Coventry
Trusting the Air: A Poet’s Dresden Sojourn: Part 1
Amy Rugg When you are 90 feet in the air, it focusses your mind. One week after returning from Dresden, I found myself on the edge of the roof of Coventry Cathedral, where I was abseiling to raise money for a local charity. The abseil coach rolled his eyes as I began shaking uncontrollably. His response… Continue reading Trusting the Air: A Poet’s Dresden Sojourn: Part 1
Trusting the Air: A Poet’s Dresden Sojourn: Part 2
Amy Rugg In part 1 Amy describes first impressions of Dresden, the Frauenkirche, meeting artists and working in school. In part 2 she tells us about working with students in a high school, leading a workshop at Veranderbar, a community radio invite, and an unexpected evening meal. Volkshochschule After a brief respite, Annika returned from… Continue reading Trusting the Air: A Poet’s Dresden Sojourn: Part 2
At the Priory Undercroft: Photographs from Dresden
Christine and Gunter Starke are renowned photographers from our partner city of Dresden where they have been documenting people and places for over 45 years. They are visiting Coventry this month and in advance they sent over sets of photographs which are now on show in the LTB’s St Mary Priory Undercroft near the cathedral. Christine and Gunter’s particular concern has been… Continue reading At the Priory Undercroft: Photographs from Dresden
Documenting the past
CAIF, the Coventry Association for International Friendship, and CDE, the Coventry-Dresden Exchange, are bringing Günter Starke and his partner, Christine, to Coventry from our twin city of Dresden in October this year. Now more than 80 years old, Günter is a legend in photographic circles in Saxony, having survived as a documentary photographer during the… Continue reading Documenting the past
Visit to Dresden 10-16 February
We publish below some blog contributions about our trip to Dresden [1] . To give you some background Coventry has enjoyed a strong connection with Dresden over the years. In good part, this began through each city's experiences of intensive air raids during WW2. In Coventry these raids were carried out early in the war,… Continue reading Visit to Dresden 10-16 February
Pirna: Remembering the past and writing a collective future
We are pleased to publish this blog from Lisa Hagan, head of English at Lyng Hall School in Coventry. While in Dresden, Lisa and colleagues were able to visit the Gedenkstätte Pirna-Sonnenstein (the Pirna-Sonnenstein Memorial) and here she reflects on the visit and the importance of international cooperation today. I have been a scholar of… Continue reading Pirna: Remembering the past and writing a collective future
Coventry Association for International Friendship 