Culture in Dresden Waurich"). Kurt Vonnegut's novel "Slaughterhouse-Five" describes the bombing of Dresden in February 1945 seen from a slaughterhouse near the old city of Dresden. Vonnegut was prisoner of war in Dresden during that event. Contemporary novelists who are active in Dresden include Uwe Tellkamp and Ingo Schulze. Both broach up the theme of "Mythos Dresden". Tellkamp is known for his novel "Der Turm" ("The Tower") plotting the life of an academic family in its educated social environment (ivory tower society) of Dresden in the last seven years of former East Germany. Dresden's heterogeneous cityspace strongly influences the lifestyle of the city.
Culture in Dresden and alternative culture institutions. Dresden is awash with green during the spring and summer. The huge parks and the long Elbe meadows are used day and at night for sports, parties and cultural activities. Local recreation takes place in the nearby National Park of Saxon Switzerland, in the Ore Mountains and in the countryside around Moritzburg, which are all close by. The cultural landscape of the Dresden Elbe Valley is a World Heritage Site but also part of the everyday life of many inhabitants. The site crosses the city and is passed through by commuter traffic, used in leisure time