The first impressions are really good. Great pictures. Green parks, space, public services including tram, subway and bus!

I’m pretty sure it is not the ugliest city in the world. As far as I can see, this website is mostly visited by Germans, and many of them must live in the Bochum area. Comparing to the other great german cities the visiters know, they probably voted for it as comparison. Anyway, I wouldn’t mind living in Bochum, basing on the pictures and info above.

A tourist’s view never tells the truth about a city. You got to understand the history, the traditions, the everyday’s life, the driving forces behind the growth of the urban structure. What foreign people like in beautiful cities is mostly the historical center and its charm. But there is no way to maintain cities or part of it as museums. What does ugly mean? So wait and see, Bochums neighbouring city Essen is about to change its structure dramatically. Come back to Bochum in 50 years

Hi,
what we can see on those pictures, is not really charming. Bochum is industrial and boring city. Of cause you can find some interesting places even there, but no historical part and nothing special. It looks like in another industrial city. It could be Essen or anything else…

I think, those 50 years would not be enough.

Hello there,

I don’t want this to be a current issue on my posts, but I can’t help it: I live in Brazil, so I am used to cities crowded with favelas (”slums” might be the best translation).

Favelas are made out of basic materials to make a home: bricks, woods, whathever is avaliable. There is no clean water, sewer, energy system, nothing. Most of Brazilian cities has one or more favelas. I would like you guys to know more about here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Favela

That not only makes the cities uglier, but it shows the worst part of modern economy and social carelessness. So Bochum has “green parks, space, public services including tram, subway and bus”? that gives Bochum 1,000 points ahead most cities I’ve known in my life.

O’k, Osni. You are right. Bochum also has something like slums, but it different to the situation in Brasil. From your point of view Bochum is really fine. People in Germany have high expectation to there cities.
Which city would you call ugly? What would be you “favourite”?

Hey Anna,

I couldn’t agree more. Bochum #1 position reflects german citizens’ high expectations. It’s amazing to see how this opinion change from one nation to the other!

I’ve visited many cities in Brazil and a few in USA. I think that the favourite is Rio de Janeiro. Yes, there are slums all around. Poverty and security issues. BUT it is still beautiful. I wanted to take pictures the whole time. There’s something about its nature, weather, beaches, its vibe. I can’t point my finger at the exact reasons I think this city is so beautiful, maybe because it’s a choice that comes mostly from emotion.

Anyway… The ugliest? I remember being very disappointed on Houston, Texas. I’m specially thinking about the center. It is ugly, poorly projected… it feels like a huge ghetto, forgotten by the local govern.

The same question goes to you, Anna (and everyone else).

Which city is the ugliest for you? and what’s your favorite one? why?

Hi Osni,
my favourite city was always London. And it is my emotional and personal feeling. It doesn’t matter, which language you speak, you never feel yourself there as a foreigner.
But London also has some ugly districts, which could be called slams.
Of cause there is no comparison to your discription of Rio, which I have never visited.

One of the ugliest cities I have ever seen is Ludwigshafen. It is industrial aria of southern Germany. But if you check pictures on the internet you would not understand how ugly it really is. It is not only urban design of the city, which makes it so ugly, but also single buildings.
Of cause this opinion depends on my point of view.

Hi all,

thanks for your comments . I think Bochum pretty much serves as an example of different needs, expectations and perceptions of criteria of our cities in the world – dependent from where we come from. I think you are also right in saying that emotional and personal feelings are somewhat important (maybe THE MOST important criteria?). A city may have green parks, may be secure and offer a sound infrastructure – but it does not feel good being there… that may very well happen! On the other hand, there seem to be some basic factors or basic criteria, which a city has to fulfill – but we do not perceive a fulfillment of these factors as awe-inspiring. but when a city is lacking those, it is also not good! However these basic factors may be decisive for some. And that is where our current Poll comes into play: we are about to find out the criteria of your personal perfect city. Please share a little bit of the reasons for your vote! Thanks for your active participation!

Best regards

The whole contest about the ugliest city is stupid. Such a contest says more about the opinions and mental images that have been established about cities rather than reality. In the public in Germany Bochum was always adressed as ugly and the contest simply confirms that this image has been hammered into consciousness with great success.

Dear Mr. Stankewitz,

thank you for your comment. I think you are definitely right in saying that mental images and perceptions of a certain city are mirrored in the results of that poll. But here we come to a discussion of what is reality? Is it the “hard facts”, or do we create reality through perception? Initating such a poll was to start a discussion about these issues and get to know peoples’ opinions and criteria of an “ugly city”.

I believe your very interesting Blog is a facinating example of the beauty of cities and their perception with the eye of an artist. Why don’t you tell us more about your work? Maybe you have some paintings of Bochum as well?

Kind regards,

When the statistics is done mainly by Germans who stay in Germany, it is not difficult to understand why the “top” few choices are cities in the country.

The term “ugly” seems not very useful to me. We all have changing feelings when we move in a city even when we do not watch our reactions and for example think about our shopping list the traffic or what ever.
Thomas Sieverts has introduced the expression “anaesthetic deserts” as description for areas with faceless,trivial and exchangeable look that we can find all around Europe in major cities. Even though our senses are hurt by this “visual junk places” we bear them in a kind of anaesthetic state of mind i.e. without feelings.
A city is never perfect and can always improve instead only changing. A positive change can be made to address these “anaesthetic deserts” and turn them into liveable places and finally to stop creating these “nonplaces”.
This is nothing new or extraordinary…a new thing could be that investors,planners, architects take the responsibility that they have for this as a standard of their conduct.

I’m French and i lived in bochum for a semester. I obviously wouldn’t say that Bochum is a beautiful city, but i can’t say it’s ugly !! moreover it’s a very practical city with U-bahn, buses, the university is very old so not beautiful but really really well-thought, and there are much to do.
that was a pleasure to live in Bochum and i was very sad to leave!!

I think birmingham in england is the ugliest city, as when I was there I was shocked at how ugly most of the women were. It was definitely the ugliest city I’ve ever visited!

Hello!! I’m from Mexico city but right now i’m living in Bochum city. I really like bochum because it is a small, quite and relxaxing city. Mexico city has a lot of people, noise, poluttion; Bochum is the other hand. I really like bochum, i don’t know how it can be the ugliest city of the world when we have a crowded and stressing mexico city

Pd. Although it doesn’t schow, i love my mexico.

bochum ist dei geilste stadt die ich kenne obwohl ich kölner bin
aber in bochum lernte ich meine schatz kennen hehe und sind 2jahre zusammen
ich sag nur19,april2006 da lehrte ich sie kennen am bhf bochum

is is the city of germany

Want to see the real Bochum?

wtch this: http://slideshow.bochumcity.imageloop.com/