Wuppertal: a German city where trams fly

Wuppertal, a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, is famous for its Schwebebahn, a suspended railway opened in 1901 that carries 80,000 passengers daily over 13 kilometers above the Wupper River. The city is also known as the birthplace of Friedrich Engels (Barmen, 1820) and Pina Bausch, who founded the Tanztheater here. Wim Wenders featured the Schwebebahn in his 1974 film "Alice in the Cities" and later shot "Pina" (2011) in Wuppertal. The Von-der-Heydt-Museum, founded in 1902 by banker August von der Heydt, houses a collection of 2,200 paintings, 500 sculptures, and 30,000 graphic works, including pieces by Monet, Van Gogh, Picasso, and Bacon. The Opernhaus, built in 1905 in Art Nouveau style, was damaged in WWII and reopened on January 18, 2009. The Pina Bausch Centre, a €60 million project designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro, will be housed in the former Schauspielhaus. The Historische Stadthalle, inaugurated in 1900 with a concert conducted by Richard Strauss, is home to the Wuppertal Symphony Orchestra. The Visiodrom Gaskessel, a former gasometer in Barmen, now features Europe's largest 360° projection space (38m diameter, 47m height) with 33 laser projectors, currently showing an immersive program on Vincent van Gogh. The city also boasts the Briller district, a Wilhelmine-era neighborhood with over 250 protected buildings, and the Waldfrieden Sculpture Park, where Tony Cragg exhibits his works.