The German Alps

On the picture you can see Lake Engeratsgundsee and the Kirchendach mountain.

The Bavarian Alps are only those ranges between the rivers Lech and Saalach in Germany
The highest peak in the bavarian alps is the Zugspitze and with its hight of 2,962metres its a small glacier.

The bavarian alps were heavily influenced by the last ice age, glaciers formed cirques, lakes and valleys.
A rolling landscape with bogs and lakes was left behind.
The bavarian alps are known as the cultural heart od the country.

                             On the picture above you can see the Zugspitze from the southwest

General Information

Germany is part of the European Union and it consists of 16 states. Its capital and largest city is Berlin.

Germany covers an area of 357,021 square kilometres and with 80.3 million inhabitants (of wich more than seven million are foreigners) it is the most populous member state in the European Union.                    Apart from this it is the major economic and political power of the European continent.

German is a language mainly spoken in the central European countries: Germany, Austria, Liechtenstein and northern Switzerland. But there are more countries with German speaking minorities: South-Tirol, Elzas-Lotharingen, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Poland, Romania, Hungary and Russia (the Volga-Germans).

German is the seventh language on earth and is spoken by about 120 million people.

Culture

 

Parties and celebrations :

Germany's national day is the Day of German Unity on 3rd October.

the other holidays Good Friday, Easter Monday, Ascension Day, Whit Monday, the two Christmas holidays, New Year's Day and Labor Day  are based on the laws of the countries and are like Sundays days of rest.     

One of the biggest tourist attractions of Germany is the Oktoberfest in Munich, wich is a Beer festival and with seven million visitors a year the largest festival in the world.                                                                     

Significant events are also the Carnival of Cologne and Düsseldorf, the “Mainzer Fastnacht“ and the “Canstatter Festival“ , wich is something like a small Oktoberfest in Stuttgart. Every year the largest shooting festival in the world takes place in Hanover.                                                                       

There are also the Long Nights of the Museums, music and culture every year.

  The Oktoberfest in Munich

The Carnival in Cologne 

Inside of a beertent on the Okotberfest :

Climate, Geology and Flora & Fauna

Germany has a temperate seasonal climate and is situated in between the oceanic Western European and the Continental Eastern European climate. Winters are quite mild, but cold enough for snow and summers tend to be warm, temperatures can reach 37°C .                                                                

The highest point of Germany is the so called “Zugspitze“, a 2962 meters  high mountain in the Alpes.

About one-third of the country is covered with woodlands and consists of trees like oak, ash, elm, beech, birch, pine, fir, and larch.                         

The animals include deer, red foxes, hares, and weasels.                  

Migratory birds include various species of songbirds, storks, geese, and other larger fowl that fly into Germany from Africa.                                    

Herring, flounder, cod, and ocean perch are also found near the coastal waters.

 

This is a climate diagram of Berlin, Germany.

The German Flag

The German Flag :

The German flag is black, red and gold. It evolved over many centuries, starting in the Roman Empire.

the black-red-gold horizontal stripes were then fixed down in the revolutionary 1984/1994.

In between, there have been several modifications for example while the Nazism (Hitler), but after the second World War was over the 1948 version was used again.

the center of the flag is the coat of arms of Germany, an eagle.

<- The Nazi Flag

Germany's food - specialities

General

The traditional German cuisine varies from region to region. Sometimes it is related to the cultures of Germanys neighbour countries. Apart from this various immigrant groups have expanded the range of cooking traditions in Germany.

The prices of food and most non-food are in former East Germany still lower than in the west

You will find a very wide range of variations of bread and sausage. Famous dishes are for example the roast goose with red cabbage, smoked pork with sauerkraut, roast pork with potato dumplings and various stews. But there are also very old and simple foods, such as toast or Leberkäse (a type of meat loaf).                                                              

Potatos are eaten in many different variations and you will also find the traditional dumplings and Spätzle (a specialty from Southern Germany, made by boiling small lumps of dough made from flour and eggs).

Regional specialitys are for instance the Bavarian veal sausage in Bavaria, the Wiener in Frankfurt, the ravioli in Baden-Württemberg or the Thuringian bratwurst. As a dessert there are often stewed fruit or cheese dishes served.

Apart from this Germany is internationally known for its centuries-old brewing tradition. Most Germans prefer a regionally produced beer. Cider and a wide variety of wines are also drunk. But wine is more common in the west and south than in the north and east, because there the wine can be better grown for climatic reasons.

Mineral water, most often sparkling, is the most consumed refreshing drink in Germany. Also fruit juice , especially apple juice, is comparetevely much drunk.

The first meal of the day is usually a breakfast based on bread, rolls or pretzels. In addition to hearty bread toppings like cheese and sausage, sweet ones like honey, jam or chocolate cream are popular. Also boiled eggs or cereals with milk are commonly eaten. With it coffe or tea is drunk. Traditionally the hot meal is eaten for lunch and in the evening you eat a snack consisting of bread and cheese.

Sweet biscuits, cakes and cream cakes such as black forest cake include the traditional menu. They are served for afternoon coffee, as well as fresh waffles. Successfully exported Sweets from Germany are inter alia the marzipan, the Stollen of Dresden, industrially produced chocolate products, fruit gums like HARIBO and nibbles.

A typical german 3 course meal :

As an appetiser we start with Obatzda and Pretzels, which is a cheese cream eaten with Pretzels or bread.

We‘ll go on with typical roast pork served with potato dumplings and sauerkraut.

An Apfelstrudel with hot Vanilla Sauce will finish our 3 course menu.

  <- Obatzda with Pretzls

 <- Roast Pork with potato dumplings 

<- Apfelstrudel with Vanilla Sauce

Stretch of waters in Germany

Rivers

The six biggest rivers of Germany are Rhine, Elbe, Weser, Ems, Oder and Donau. The first four of them flow into the North sea, the Oder flows through the East sea into the Atlantic ocean and the Donau flows into the Black sea.
The Rhein is 865 kilometres long and is one of the busiest waterways in Europe.
The Donaus is 674 kilometres long and it's most important inflows are Iller, Lech, Isar und Inn.


Sea

Germany doesn't have mant coasts, it only borders on the East Sea and on the North Sea.
Both are rather cold seas - usually the water makes less than 20 degrees in the summer, even if the sun is shining and it is really hot. So if you're looking for hot beach - holidays, you better go to italy or for example greece.

The capital Berlin

Berlin

Berlin is the capital and with 3,3 million people the largest city of Germany.

Berlin is influenced by a temperate seasonal climate. Around one third of the city's area consists of forests, parks, gardens, rivers and lakes.

 After World War 2 the city was divided into East Berlin and West Berlin, surrounded by the Berlin Wall from 1961 to 1989. Then the German reunification came in 1990 and the city was once more designated as the capital of all Germany, like in the Kingdom of Prussia (1701–1918), the German Empire (1871–1918), the Weimar Republic (1919–33) and the Third Reich (1933–1945).

Berlin is a world city of culture, politics, media, and science and is a popular tourist destination.

The city is well known for its festivals, diverse architecture, nightlife, contemporary arts and public transportation networks.

On the picture you can see the skyline of Berlin with all it's most popular landmarks; from left to right you see : Reichstag, Fernsehturm Berlin, Berliner Dom, City hall, Brandenburg Gate