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About Germany

Germany (German: Deutschland) is a country in Central Europe and a founding member of the European Union. It is bordered to the north by Denmark, to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic, to the south by Austria and Switzerland, and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium and the Netherlands.

Regions

Germany is a federal republic consisting of 16 states (so-called "Bundesländer" or short "Länder"). Grouped roughly by geography, these are:

North

• Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania (Mecklenburg-Vorpommern)
• Lower Saxony (Niedersachsen)
• Hamburg
• Schleswig-Holstein
• Bremen

West

• North Rhine-Westphalia (Nordrhein-Westfalen)
• Rhineland-Palatinate (Rheinland-Pfalz)
• Saarland

Middle

• Hesse (Hessen)
• Thuringia (Thüringen)

East

• Brandenburg
• Berlin
• Saxony (Sachsen)
• Saxony-Anhalt (Sachsen-Anhalt)

South

• Baden-Württemberg
• Bavaria (Bayern)

Cities

Germany has numerous cities of interest to tourists; these are the top five travel destinations.

• Berlin - the reunified and reinvigorated capital of Germany; known for its division during the Cold War - and the Berlin Wall. Today its a metropolis of diversity with elegant clubs and galleries and traditional restaurants. It is also a haven for shoppers.
• Hamburg - Germany's second-largest city, famous for its harbour as well as its liberal and tolerant culture. Don't miss the Reeperbahn with its night clubs and casinos. Hamburg is also popular for its many musicals.
• Munich (München) - Bavaria's beautiful capital city and Southern Germany's leading city, site of the famous Oktoberfest and the gateway to the Alps.
• Cologne (Köln) - Germany's fourth-largest city, 2000 years old with its huge cathedral, romanic churches, and archaeological sites, also well known for its carneval and its Christopher-Street-Day parade. Don't forget to try the local cuisine and of course the beer-called "Kölsch".
• Frankfurt - Germany's leading financial center, transportation hub, seat of the European Central Bank (ECB), international trade fair center (Book Fair, Motor Show), hub of multicultural activity (30% Immigrants), and site of numerous world-class museums and theaters. It is also Germany's only city with enough skyscrapers to have a skyline.
• Dresden - World-famous for its Frauenkirche and historic center, the city offers more than the average traveller knows. Great festivals, all kinds of cultural entertainment, vibrant night life, and surrounded by beautiful natural vistas. There is a reason it was once called Elb-Florence.
• Leipzig - 2nd biggest city after Berlin in Eastern Germany. Leipzig was the most important city during the German revolution in 1989. It has many interesting sights, shops, bars and is popular for its Zoo, its huge train station, the monument of the battle of nations and the fairs (for example Book Fair, GamesConvention)

Die Romantische Strasse (The Romantic Street)

The Romantic Street is the most famous scenic route in Germany. It starts in Wuerzburg and ends in Fuessen. Most important points to visit on the Romantic Street are the cities: Wuerzburg, Harburg, Donauwoerth, Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Landsberg am Lech and Augsburg. Most notable wider areas are: Taubertal, Nördlinger Ries and Lechrain.
For cyclists there´s a special route available called "Radwanderweg Romantische Straße". 

List of all cities along the Romantic Street

• Würzburg 
• Tauberbischofsheim 
• Lauda-Königshofen 
• Bad Mergentheim 
• Weikersheim 
• Röttingen 
• Creglingen 
• Rothenburg ob der Tauber 
• Schillingsfürst 
• Feuchtwangen 
• Dinkelsbühl 
• Wallerstein 
• Nördlingen 
• Harburg 
• Donauwörth 
• Augsburg 
• Friedberg 
• Kaufering 
• Landsberg am Lech 
• Hohenfurch 
• Schongau 
• Peiting 
• Rottenbuch 
• Wildsteig 
• Steingaden und Wieskirche 
• Halblech 
• Schwangau 
• Neuschwanstein 
• Hohenschwangau 
• Füssen

The world's most famous beer culture is centered around Southern Germany's leading city (Munich), where beer is traditionally served in 1 liter mugs (not in Kneipen (pubs) and Restaurants); Munich is also the site of the annual Oktoberfest, Europe's most visited festival and the world's largest fair.

German cars such as Audi, BMW, Mercedes, Porsche and Volkswagen (VW) are famous internationally for their quality.

By car

Germany has a world-famous network of excellent roads and Autobahn (motorway) with no toll or fees for cars (trucks have to pay), but gasoline prices are kept high by taxation. In April 2006 prices float around 1,30 € per litre. At petrol stations you'll have the choice between Diesel, "Benzin" (unleaded gasoline), Super and SuperPlus (high octane). Here and there you might find "Erdgas", too; this is compressed natural gas not gasoline. In Germany, you may first fill up your tank and pay afterwards.
Car rentals are available in most cities, and one-way rentals (within Germany) are generally permitted without an additional fee. When renting a car, be aware that most cars in Germany have manual gearbox (stick-shift), so you might want to ask for a car with an automatic gearbox if that's what you're used to.

Especially in Eastern Germany you will note small, green, permanent arrows at traffic lights, pointing to the right. When the lights are red, you are still ordered to halt, but if there are no cars approaching, you are allowed to careful turn right, despite the red traffic light. (The whole system does not apply if there are no green arrows).

Watch out for cyclists on sidewalk lanes.

The police will show blinking signs reading "Polizei Halt" (police, stop) if they want to stop you. Stay calm and friendly, hand over the driving license and car papers (if you rent a car, you will have a copy of the rental contract) when you are asked to. In most cases that is all what happens and if you respect traffic signs and eventual speed limits it is very unlikely that you get stopped at all.

Speed limits (for cars) are the following in Germany (unless otherwise shown): 

• max. 5 km/h on "Spielstraßen" (marked by a blue/white sign showing playing kids) 
•  max. 50 km/h inside towns and cities (including "Kraftfahrtstraßen" (marked by a sign showing a white car on a blue ground) 
•  max. 100 km/h outside towns and cities 
•  There is no general speed limit on "Autobahnen" and - outside of towns and cities - also on "Kraftfahrstraßen" if there is any kind of barrier between lanes of different direction. However the recommended speed is 130 km/h and if you drive on the autobahn for your first time and are not yet used to the usual heavy traffic you should not exceed that speed.

Vehicles with a maximum speed of less than 60 km/h are not allowed on "Autobahnen" or "Kraftfahrstraßen".

Using the Autobahn

German drivers tend to drive faster and more aggressively than you might be used to, especially on the parts of the highway system without speed limit, which is taken literally.
Always have a look over your shoulder when changing lanes. Especially motorbikes may seem to appear out of nowhere within a second.

Use the right lane if it's free, even if everybody seems to prefer the left and middle lanes (where they exist). Overtaking cars on the Autobahn is only allowed on the left side. Overtaking / Passing cars on the right is prohibited and you will be be fined. Exceptions are in traffic jams or at low speed within city limits.
Never ever reverse on a highway when you missed an exit. Go to next exit and make a U-turn.

Autobahns have an emergency lane where you're allowed to stop only in case of a breakdown. For everything else, always use the frequent service areas, as it is illegal to run out of gas on the Autobahn. Note that it is dangerous to stay in the car on the emergency lane! Arrows on the small posts along the Autobahn guide you to the next orange emergency phone. These will automatically connect you free of charge with an emergency call center which will help you get the police, an ambulance or just a mechanic. These phones should be the preferred choice over using your mobile since they transmit your exact location.
In some areas emergency tracks are used as extra lanes in times of heavy traffic. But this is always announced by electronic light signs.

In case of a breakdown you may also call the ADAC, by members the world's largest automobile club. The number is +49 180 2222222 from fixed lines and 22 22 22 from mobile phones regardless of network. On the Autobahn, the ADAC must come to you free of charge. In other situations, there may be costs involved if you're not a member. If you're a member of a foreign AA or automobile club, you may want to check if the ADAC honours your membership.

Typical dishes

Rinderroulade mit Rotkraut und Knödeln: this dish is quite unique to Germany. Very thin sliced beef rolled around a "pickled gherkin" until it looks like a mini barrel (5cm diameter) flavoured with tiny pieces of onion, German mustard, ground black pepper and salt. The meat is quick-fried and is then left to cook slowly for an hour, meanwhile red cabbage and potato dumplings are prepared and then the meat is removed from the frying pan and gravy is prepared in the frying pan. Knödel, Rotkraut and Rouladen are served together with the gravy in one dish.

Schnitzel mit Pommes frites: there are probably as many different variations of Schnitzel as there are restaurants in Germany. They have in common a thin slice of pork often covered in egg and bread crumbs that is fried for a short period of time and it is often served with fries (that's the Pommes frites part). Variations of this are usually served with different types of gravy: such as Zigeunerschnitzel, Zwiebelschnitzel, Holzfäller Schnitzel and Wiener Schnitzel (as the name suggests, an Austrian dish - the genuine article must be veal instead of pork, which is why most restaurants offer a Schnitzel Wiener Art, or Viennese-style schnitzel which is allowed to be pork). In the south you can often get Spätzle (pasta that Swabia is famous for) instead of fries with it. Spätzle are egg noodles typical of south Germany - most restaurants make them fresh. It is very common to find Schnitzel on the menu of a German restaurant, it might even be the most common dish in German restaurants.

Rehrücken mit Spätzle: Germany has maintained huge forests such as the famous Black Forest, Bayrischer Wald and Odenwald. In and around these areas you can enjoy the best game in Germany. Rehrücken means venison tenderloin and it is often served with freshly made noodles such as Spätzle and a very nice gravy based on a dry red wine.

Wurst "sausage": there is no country in the world with a greater variety of sausages than Germany and it would take a while to mention them all. "Bratwurst" is fried, other varieties such as the Bavarian "Weißwurst" are boiled. Here is the shortlist version: "Rote" beef sausage, "Frankfurter Wurst" boiled pork sausage made in the Frankfurt style, "Pfälzer Bratwurst" sausage made in Palatine style , "Nürnberger Bratwurst" Nuremberg sausage - the smallest of all of them, but a serious contender for the best tasting German sausage, "große Bratwurst", Landjäger, Thüringer Bratwurst, Currywurst, Weißwurst ... this could go on till tomorrow. If you spot a sausage on a menu this is often a good (and sometimes the only) choice. Often served with mashed potato, fries or potato salad.

Modified: 19.02.2007 19:06:12 CET
Source: http://wikitravel.org/en/Germany

 

 

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