Germany (Lonely Planet, 6th Edition) - Andrea Schulte-Peevers [5]
Patrick Leigh Fermor’s A Time of Gifts (1977) is a keen and readable account of the author’s epic journey on foot from Holland to Turkey, passing through the Rhine and Danube valleys, in the years before WWII.
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INTERNET RESOURCES
Deutsche Welle (www.dw-world.de) The online version of the German international broadcasting service has news and background information about Germany, on-demand audio and video feeds and newsletter sign-ups.
Deutschland Online (www.magazine-deutschland.de) Online version of Deutschland Magazine, with interesting features on culture, business and politics.
Deutschland Portal (www.deutschland.de) The ultimate gateway to online information about Germany.
Facts about Germany (www.tatsachen-ueber-deutschland.de) An excellent and comprehensive reference about all aspects of German society, including education, culture, media, foreign policy and the economy.
German National Tourist Office (www.germany-tourism.de) Official site packed with information on all aspects of travel to and within Germany.
Online German Course (www.deutsch-lernen.com) Free language lessons for absolute beginners and moderately advanced students.
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Events Calendar
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JANUARY TO MARCH
APRIL
MAY
JUNE
JULY & AUGUST
SEPTEMBER, OCTOBER & NOVEMBER
DECEMBER
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Germany has a packed schedule of festivals and special events. Mentioned here are those celebrated either throughout the nation or in specific regions. For more merriment, see the Festivals & Events sections in the destination chapters.
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JANUARY TO MARCH
KARNEVAL/FASCHING Feb or Mar
The pre-Lenten season is celebrated with costumed street partying, parades, satirical shows and general revelry, primarily in Düsseldorf, Cologne and Mainz, but also in the Black Forest and Munich.
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APRIL
WALPURGISNACHT 30 Apr
The pagan Witches’ Sabbath festival Click here has Harz villages roaring to life as young and old dress up as witches and warlocks and parade through the streets singing and dancing.
MAIFEST 30 Apr
Villagers celebrate the end of winter by chopping down a tree (Maibaum), painting, carving and decorating it, and staging a merry revelry with traditional costumes, singing and dancing.
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MAY
MUTTERTAG 2nd Sun
Mothers are honoured, much to the delight of florists, sweet shops and greeting-card companies.
HAFENGEBURTSTAG early May
Five-day festival in the Hamburg harbour area Click here.
WAVE-GOTIK-TREFFEN late May
The world’s largest Goth gathering Click here takes over Leipzig during the long Whitsuntide (Pentecost) weekend.
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JUNE
VATERTAG May/early Jun
Father’s Day, now also known as Männertag (Men’s Day), is essentially an excuse for men to get liquored up with the blessing of the missis. It’s always on Ascension Day.
AFRICA-FESTIVAL early Jun
Europe’s largest festival of African music Click here, held in Würzburg.
KIELER WOCHE late Jun
Kiel Week is a huge festival for salty types, with yachting regattas and nonstop partying on the Baltic Sea.
CHRISTOPHER STREET DAY late Jun
Major gay-pride celebrations erupt in Berlin, Cologne and Hamburg, but also in Dresden, Munich, Stuttgart and Frankfurt.
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JULY & AUGUST
SHOOTING FESTIVALS
Over a million Germans (mostly men) belong to shooting clubs and show off their skills at marksmen’s festivals. The biggest one is in Hanover; the oldest, in Düsseldorf.
WINE FESTIVALS
As soon as the grapes have been harvested, the wine festival season starts, with wine tastings, folkloric parades, fireworks and the election of local and regional wine queens. The Dürkheimer Wurstmarkt is one of the biggest and most famous.
SCHLESWIG-HOLSTEIN MUSIC FESTIVAL mid-Jul–Aug
Leading international musicians and promising young artists perform during this festival Click here in castles, churches, warehouses and animal barns throughout Germany’s northernmost