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Getting married in Germany involves going to the magistrate’s office (Standesamt) because only marriages performed in the Standesamt are legally valid. Many people stop at just this: however, there are some traditions, especially if you are of the Christian faith, related to weddings. If a religious ceremony is being held, -
Täglich Brot – German bakeries When you ask German expats what they are missing most since they have left their country, they will sooner or later mention bread. Germans tend to have a special relationship not only to bread but bakery produce in general. When visiting Germany, you will soon -
Munich has a wealth of superb museums, of which three stand out as particularly spectacular jewels in an inspiring cultural crown. The three are inextricably linked by their roots, mingled as they are with one another, with the Wittelsbach family collection, and, especially, with King Ludwig I of Bavaria (25 -
Almost Unthinkable – Jewish UK-Citizens apply for German Passports Somewhat 72 years after the end of World War II, hundreds of Jewish British citizens are applying for a German passport and have a realistic chance of getting one. As that would absolutely be unthinkable in many Jewish communities around the -
Helmut Schmidt, Chancellor of West Germany between May, 1974, and October, 1982, died 10 November 2015. Yesterday would have been his 99th birthday. Schmidt also served as West Germany’s Minister for Finance, Minister for Economics, and Minister for Defense. He worked for and with such illustrious German public figures as -
While this superb boutiquey museum was established in Baden-Baden eight years ago (2009) to honor the renowned Russian jeweler Peter Carl Fabergé, it houses much, much more than examples of and information about Fabergé’s spectacular creations between 1885 and 1917 for Tsar Alexander III (1845-1894) and Tsar Nicholas II (1868-1917). -
English is the language of advertisement and marketing and it is also often used by German companies to address international customers (or at least to pretend to do so). In the early past, German companies advertised their products with German phrases. The reasons were simple: It was the language of -
The market of printed books might still be strong and the rise of e-books might be slower than many expected. But printed papers and magazines already feel the heavy burden of the digital age increasing the more electronic mobile devices spread around the globe. As we still are in the -
Referring to itself as “the museum in the river,” the Weserburg is being unnecessarily and endearingly modest as well as delightfully symbolic. This superb museum contains one of Germany’s—and the world’s—most significant assemblages of modern art and, as such, is certainly the jewel in the crown as far as the -
Hamburg is not only one of the most beautiful cities in Germany but also one of the most expensive. Thus the prices for flats and houses are lower than, for example, in Munich or Stuttgart, and although it is in the middle also cheaper than in some smaller cities where -
Now I will note that I am an American, and as such, found some differing customs between the US and Germany when a child is born. For example, baby showers are NOT held in Germany, out of a belief it is unlucky to celebrate the birth of a child before -
Learn to use German in context with quizzes The key to learning a language is context. Learning in context gives meaning to the vocabulary and grammar one learns. If you just learn vocabulary by using lists, you are likely to use the words wrongly. Grammar often only starts making sense, -
Walter Gropius (18 May 1883—05 July 1969) was a renowned German-American architect and academic authority who founded the Bauhaus in Weimar in 1919. The Bauhaus was an advanced academic institution focusing on applied arts, architecture, and design which conflated the teachings of the Weimar Academy of Arts and the Weimar -
Germans will be obliged to take integration test – Re-education upon failure Today, the German office for migration and refugees (BAMF) published a report which admitted a partial failure of their current approach of teaching migrants and refugees the German language and culture via so-called Integration Courses (Integrationskurs). Yet -
Weißwurst, Bratwurst, Schweinebraten: Germany’s cuisine is known as good and robust – and also as very meat-based. When it comes to traditional dishes, it is not always easy to find something suitable for vegetarians or even vegans. But besides the lack of meatless meals, there is a growing number of -
In many countries, birthdays are an occasion to celebrate that the person involved has survived another year. Germany is no different in this respect, but the traditions there are a bit different than what people in the UK or in the United States might be familiar with! First: never wish -
The Situation of Church and State in Germany In times of religiously legitimized fundamental terrorism, religion is obviously still playing a big role in the ways of the world. Though it’s easy to think the world would be quite secularized, the great religions are in fact gaining in numbers. And -
Of course, Germany is well known for its favorite beverage beer. Drinking it is common and important, but thus it can also lead to some unpleasant moments when you don’t know how to handle the thousands of years of drinking culture. Let’s face the most important rules. Drinking in Public -
So your qualifications are not considered enough for studying at a university in Germany? Time to check out the Studienkolleg – a preparatory course especially meant for international students to be able to study in Germany. There are two main types of Studienkolleg; basically, ones attached to a university, and -
Historically, the lands we know today as the nation of Germany were in reality governed by an loose conglomeration of princes and nobles, each with their own lands (even in the days of the Holy Roman Empire). With the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in the early 19th century, -
After closely following the course of the US-Election, a couple of new terms entered my vocabulary – terms such as “Filter-Bubble” or “Fake-News”. And as Americans are always a little faster than most Germans in all things social media, I was not surprised when Fake-News and Filter Bubbles made the, -
The Location of the Palace of Sanssouci Frederick II of Prussia (Frederick the Great) (24 January 1712―17 August 1786), a strong supporter of benevolent despotism, built his magnificent rococo palace in a 290-hectare park in Potsdam, just southwest of Berlin, between 1745-1747 as a respite from the official court in -
It is a wet morning in September of either 7 or 9 AD, and the might of Rome is on the move. In response to a series of reports of unrest by their ally Arminius, chieftain of the Cherusci and trained veteran of Roman campaigns, Governer Publius Quinctilius Varus -
The Relationship between Rome and Germania When we typically think of relations between Rome and the Germanic peoples across the Rhine, it tends to be colored by warfare, conquests, and the eventual fall of the western empire around the fifth century. Popular media and popular thought tends to depict those -
Elections seem to be really trendy at the moment. 2016 had a rather big one and 2017 will see important elections in the Netherlands, France, and Germany. So, we thought we’d take a look the German electoral system. In the light of recent events, it’s particularly interesting to compare it -
She was the Time magazine’s person of the year 2015, and people refer to her as the mightiest woman in the world: Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel. If she wins the election in 2017 for the fourth period, she will be head of government as long as her longtime mentor Helmut -
A museum for the “Naschkatze”! Wherever one may live on any of the five continents, it’s impossible to think of chocolate without thinking of Germany, for German chocolate sets the benchmark (“der Höhenfestpunkt”) for two very close, competent rivals, Swiss chocolate and Belgian chocolate. The difference is that German chocolate -
Beer garden Eden The days are getting longer, the temperature is rising and suddenly it is summer. One of the best things you can do in Germany during the warm season is to visit a beer garden, especially when you are somewhere in the south of the country. Especially in -
CSU – Christlich Soziale Union Bayerns The CSU is a particular case in German politics. On the federal government level, the party is part of the CDU/CSU fraction and thus of the German government. It acts as sister party to the CDU, but is more traditionalistic, conservative and currently takes -
Since the early medieval period and the formation of what became the Holy Roman Empire, Christianity has been strong in the lands we now know as Germany. However, even with trade, politics, and other considerations shaping its history, religion in Germany is still an interesting subject. Religion in the Constitution -
Part One: Ante-Third Reich Motion pictures were initially developed in the 1870s by the British American photographer Eadweard Muybridge, building on France’s Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre’s development of the positive photographic process and on England’s William Henry Fox Talbot’s negative photographic process, in order to prove the theory of the wealthy horse -
There are numerous differences between the Anglo-American style of democracy and the German way of organizing legislature, but one of the most obvious ones is the number of relevant parties. Now, it’s of course not a valid method to put the British and the American model on the same end -
When the German national soccer team won the World Cup in 2014, the whole country got on a razzle-dazzle. The fans of the team were expecting the cup for many years, and it was a kind of a relief to finally become the best Mannschaft of the World for the -
In the year of 2016, many beloved celebrities have gone, for example, the singer Prince or Lemmy from Motörhead. But another man died who was something like an icon for many people, not only in Germany. Bud Spencer died on June 27th. But his movies, his bon mots and all -
Ulm, a city in Baden-Württemberg with a population of roughly 120,000, has many worthwhile cultural sights. One of its more unexpected and especially delightful sights is its Museum of Bread Culture on the northern edge of the Old City. In 1955, Willy Eiselen (1896-1981) established the museum and, along with -
Politics influence everything, so it is always good to be informed. But for knowing what you are talking about, you have to have the necessary information about the system you are living in. So let’s try to make a quick overview of the political system of the Federal
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