We will be in Dresden for 4 days in November. Main reason is to visit the Porcelain museum. That should take us a day. Then what else should we see?
Any special local food to look out for? Special beer? Special anything?

Just a few thoughts: all museums in the Zwinger are worth a visit. Number one is definitively the Gruenes Gewoelbe followed by the Gemaeldegalerie (mainly old masters). Another Dresden museum I enjoy a lot is the Deutsches Hygiene Museum, www.dhmd.de, a "museum of man" (good for children). And if you're into technology, visit the "Glaeserne Manufaktur" where Volkswagen builds its luxury level cars.

In terms of old buildings and churches, the Frauenkirche (the rebuilt cathedral) is a "must". In addition, I very much like the Kreuzkirche, a baroque church which after the war was plastered from the inside with concrete. While this might sound weird, if gives you one of the best feelings for the space of a baroque cathedral, which leaves me breathless whenever I see it again. It's a special treat to go there when the Kruzianerchor sings (a world class boys choir). Note that Dresden was completely destroyed in the 1945 bombing, so a lot you will be seeing has been reconstructed. They've done a very good job, though, and Dresden really deserves its title "Elbflorenz" (Florence on the river Elbe) and its former UNESCO world heritage ranking (now gone because of a heavily debated bridge building project.

Off the beaten path and not so well known but architecturally very important is the section of Dresden called "Hellerau" (easily accessible by tram). This was one of Germany's "garden cities" built in the 1920s, they offer nice guided tours there (in the US, something comparable was Greenbelt, MD).

In the vicinity of Dresden is Meissen, but I guess since you're interested in porcelain, you're going there anyway. Other nice places for tours from Dresden are the Saechsische Schweiz, a nice mountain area close to Dresden. Only go there if the weather is good, though. Festung Koenigstein is a nice place to go (a huge castle). Finally, I like Schloss Moritzburg, a baroque water castle, and the baroque castle in Pillniz.

In terms of food, I especially like pastries in Dresden, in November there will already be Dresdner Stollen available (a must try), I also like Eierschecke a lot. Non-sweet foods in Saxonia are influenced by bohemian food, heavy but very good. I don't drink beer, so I cannot comment on this.

Exactly what I was hoping for. Thanks so much for your suggestions, we will consider them carefully. Funny, I never considered Meissen. Guess my geography isn't as well defined as I thought. Meissen is on the list now, I assume there is a Museum as well? We heard in Japan, that the museum in Dresden has the best selection outside of Japan of Japanese porcelain. That's what caught our interest. Thanks again.

I highly recommend that you attend a performance in the splendid Semperoper. The building was not re-opened until 1985, and has a splendidly-restored interior. Many Richard Strauss works were premiered in this theater, and Strauss' works are always part of the repertory. The orchestra is the Statskapelle Dresden, which traces its history back over 500 years.

A little off-topic as regards Dresden, but if you ever find yourself near Bologna in Italy, consider a visit to the Ceramics Museum in Faenza, which has extensive exhibits/holdings of porcelain from Europe and Japan.

I own some recordings from the Staatskapelle Dresden when Karl Boehm was conductor. Thanks for the suggestion.
Also next time we are in Italy, we will make sure to visit Faenza. Sounds quite interesting and right up our alley.

Local Dresden beer... Radeberger Pilsner is the first that comes to mind.

Don't forget the waffles with cream at the kiosk in front of Karstadt at the tram stop Altmarkt Galerie.

If you want to expire some of dresden nightlife you should visit the "�u�ere Neustadt" (Alaunenstrasse/luisenstrasse). Quite a lot of different nice pubs are located in this area.

A very nice piece of modern architecture is the new synagogue. One of the few buildings in Dresden, which are more than just a copy of an old building.

The Museum Festung Dresden is pretty cool, part of the city wall now underground and built over. Eat lunch upstairs at the Post office on K�nigsbr�cker Stra�e. Outside Dresden, visit Stolpen and see the fortress sacked by Napoleon. A mistress of the Saxon king was locked up there for nearly 50 years. Below the fortress, take a break in Stolpen and have dinner on the town square, if the weather is nice.

For some amazing scenery, take the S-Bahn south from the main station to Sch�na. It is a three zone ticket but worth it for the view, and a nice ride if your feet are tired. At Sch�na there is a ferry across the Elbe to the Czech Republic where you can get cheap booze, counterfeit goods and new luggage to carry it all. Plus you can say you visited another country.

Along with Radeberger bier, be sure to have a Feldschl��chen bier or two (three...)!

I forgot to mention, the beautiful Russian Orthodox Church, south of the main train station.

Hi, thanks to you all. We have four days there in November and all your suggestions come in handy. Thanks again.

Some nice pictures from Dresden:

http://www.merian.de/fotostrecke/fotostrecke-59588.html

I recommend:

-stay at Hilton ... next to Frauenkirche
-take an old steamer (boat) on Elbe River to "Blaues Wunder" (a bridge)
-visit "Manufaktur" where VW produces the "Phaeton"

D�rum Kebap Haus in the Rothenburgerstrasse

http://www.durum-kebab-haus.de/

And a walk around the "Weisser Hirsch" district.

The Staatskapelle Dresden made recordings at the Lukaskirche (Lukas Church) in Dresden. The church was badly damaged in the 1945 bombing and partly restored after the war. In the 60's, the East Germans turned it into a recording studio. Later it was returned to the congregation. There are still concerts and recordings made in this church, with its superb acoustics. Hopefully they sell enough recordings to build the steeple back someday.

If you are big into watches, the village of GLASHUETTE is about an hour away and A.LANGE & SOEHNE are offering 'tours' through the manufactoring of these famouse luxury watches....

And make sure you book yourself a good tour guide for a walk in the old town of Dreden, as there is so much to see that you won't find at first sight....

Has anyone toured Die Glaserne Manufaktur..worth a visit?