Facts of Germany

A blog about Germany for the Davidson County Community College Social Media class.

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Tourist Attractions: Heidelberg

Heidelberg is a city of romance and it will capture your heart because it offers character and charm in abundance. Heidelberg is well-known the world over and is a constant favorite among worldwide travelers. The main attraction for those who visit Heidelberg, is the Old Bridge across the river and the Heidelberg Castle that sits on the slopes of Mount Konigstuhl some seventy meters above Neckar. It is the paradox of seeing something so wonderful in a state of such beautiful ruin that gives Heidelberg Castle and its park such a fascinating atmosphere. The essence of German romanticism, it is like experiencing something from a different world. The magnificent ruins that are overgrown with ivy, reflects the influence and majesty of the castle's former dwellers, the Wittelsbach dynasty. Built as a fortress with towers, casemates and moats in around 1300, this castle perched high above the town developed over four hundred years into a symbol of the feudal power of the Palatinate Electors of the time. The oldest still noticeably residential building is the Ruprecht wing with its brilliant Renaissance fireplace.

Another charming place is the wine cellar. The minute visitors go into the cellar, they are greeted by the cellar master and court jester Perkeo. He works twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. He is also made of bronze and somewhat small, but yet friendly. The cellar also house one of the largest wine kegs in the world, The Great Vat, in which it has a capacity of 220,000 liters or 58,000 gallons. The Great Vat was installed in 1751 with a direct connection by pump to the main banqueting hall. There was not once any hearsays of wine shortage on the Heidelberg Castle formal meals.

 One must-go place when visiting Heidelberg Castle is its garden. Its visitors has spent hours in the garden and still find the garden unseen exquisiteness. In the garden visitors will see several large grottos which are on the upper balcony, there are several beautiful statues and fountains and little benches with their history. The most noticeable statue is Father Rhine, representing the most important river of Germany. The statue rests on a stone bed, surround by water.  He is not that hard to recognize; there is not too many white statues of a half-naked man with a long beard around.

The great arch famous as Elisabeth's Gate is located near the entrance. Belief says the gate was built in a single night by Prince Elector Friedrich V in 1615 as a birthday present for his English princess, Elisabeth Stuart. The charming little gate was severely weather warn and was partially restored in 1949. The unique pillars are significant with their leaf work and creative floral-patterned. It definitely is a must see, while visiting the Heidelberg.

 Today, the Heidelberg Castle is amongst the most significant Renaissance structures north of the Alps and the castle is visited by many tourists each year, not merely for of the gorgeous structures and statues, but also a due to the beauty of destruction and its rich history. 

Heidelberg Castle: The Great Vat Wine Keg – Largest in the world.

  The Heidelberg Castle – Heidelberg Germany

   Old Bridge The first Heidelberg Bridge was built by Karl Theodor 1742-1799 in which explains it's official name "Karl-Theodor-Brücke". The bridge was rebuilt 9 times; more than likely it was a victim of flooding. In 1788, it was finally rebuilt entirely in stone and braced by 8 posts. The double-armed bridge gate comes from the late middle ages. The towers served the bridge keeper not only as an apartment, but also as a dungeon for prisoners. In 1945 both rooms above the gateway were renovated as artistic apartments.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heidelberg

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Heidelberg_Castle_and_Bridge.jpg

http://www.guide-to-castles-of-europe.com/heidelberg-castle.html

http://jdombstravels.com/heidelberg-castle/

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Tourism in Germany

In visiting the country of Germany one of the tourist attractions that should be visit is in Cologne, Germany and it is the Cologne Cathedral (Kolner Dom). It can be seen from almost every location in the city center.  The Cologne Cathedral is the second tallest building in Cologne after the telecommunications tower. The Cologne Cathedral attracts more than six million visitors each year and is one of Germany’s most popular tourist attractions. The two huge towers are the tallest dual spires in the world and offer a whimsical view of Cologne and the neighboring areas

The Cologne Cathedral is located on the site of a 4th century Roman temple, followed by a square church known as the "oldest cathedral" commissioned by Maternus, who was the first Christian bishop of Cologne. A second church built on the site, the "Old Cathedral," was completed in 818 and burned down on April 30, 1248. The construction of the current Gothic church began in the 13th century and because of interruptions, it took more than six-hundred years to complete. The new structure was built to house the relics of the Three Magi, taken from Milan by Holy Roman Emperor Fredrick Barbarossa and given to the Archbishop of Cologne, Rainald von Dassel in 1164. The cathedral treasury contains priceless artifacts that include St. Peter's shrine and chain, and the Gero Cross, the oldest intact life size crucifix in the western world and other attractions include the stained glass windows, carved choir stalls and 14th century paintings.

The foundation stone of Cologne Cathedral was laid on August 15, 1248, by Archbishop Konrad von Hochstaden, and the choir was consecrated in 1322. After this initial rapid progress, construction work gradually came to a standstill, and by the year 1560, only a torso had been built. Only with the 19th century Romantic eagerness for the Middle Ages and the commitment of the Prussian Court did construction work resume. 1824 saw the adding of the towers and other substantial parts of the cathedral, mostly permitting to surviving medieval designs and ideas. The completion of Germany's largest cathedral was celebrated as a national event in 1880, six-hundred and thirty-two years after construction had begun. The celebration was attended by Emperor Wilhelm I.

The cathedral suffered 14 hits by World War II aerial bombs but did not collapse and reconstruction was completed in 1956. In 1996, the cathedral was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List of culturally important sites and in 2004, it was placed on the "World Heritage in Danger" list.

A number of traditional events are held in and around the cathedral, including the organ concerts that take place every Tuesday in summer, and the choir presentations are  held once a month from September to June in front of the shrine casing the relics of the Three Kings. A secular feature of Cologne is its famous carnival in which it is a time of year when the people of the city really let their hair down. This is definitely a must see in visiting Germany.

Links:

http://www.koelner-dom.de/index.php?id=home&L=1

http://www.cologne.de/what-to-do/the-cologne-cathedral.html

http://www.cologne-tourism.com/attractions-culture/cologne-cathedral/cathedral-building-history.html

http://www.sacred-destinations.com/germany/cologne-cathedral

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Germany Nightlife

If you are a night owl, Germany is definitely the place for you to be. It has a flourishing nightlife, with bars and clubs that often don't close until dawn. Two of the best cities to have an awesome night out would be Berlin, and Frankfurt, Germany.

The nightlife in Berlin, Germany is said to mind-blowing, surprising, disorientating, and freaky and is probably the best clubbing city in Europe. The clubber culture has become a life style and music is a religion. Nightlife in the city of Berlin has become so intense due to th3 transformation of Berlin into the world techno capital is very much linked to the German reunification and the fall of the Berlin Wall. When the wall came down, so did all the prior arrays of behavior. The people were taking advantage of their recently attained freedom, which is why the clubbing scene developed in such a unique way and over such a short period of time. Inside abandoned factories and commercial buildings that had to be taken down, clubs started to grow at full speed. Looking to express themselves, Berliners found inside those clubs a new individuality. The top ten clubs in Berlin are Berghain, Katerholzig, Sisyphos,, Salon zur Wilden Renate, the KitKat, Chalet, ://about blank, Stattbad, Watergate, and the Tresor, Frankfurt, Germany is very well-known around the world as the European Union’s nightlife capital, which offers a wide range of nightlife opportunities to suit any taste. From private clubs, exclusive and intimate lounges to the most progressive night clubs in the world. It is said that Frankfurt’s nightlife destination is unlike any other. Some of the hottest night clubs in Frankfurt includes,  Cocoon Club by Sven Vaeth, Velvet Club, Adlib, Mantis Roofgarden, Club Travolta, Gibson, King Kamehameha Club, APT, Odeon, Sansibar, Living XXL, Monza, M8 Club, M9 and of course Kane and Abel. The Frankfurt nightlife offers a little something for everyone, for example, a Nite Tours that includes a range of these world-class venues that will provide guests from around the world a Frankfurt nightclubs experience unlike anything they’ve ever seen. Individual party maniacs, couples, small groups, convention groups, birthday parties, stagette parties and celebrations or events of any kind will enjoy the tremendous vibe and energy of Frankfurt nightlife.

The pre-partying starts at about eleven each night, whereas the partyers gather at local pubs or bars to have drinks or dinner before heading out to the actual party or club for later on in the night. The main party does not began until two in the morning and sometimes last until eight in the morning. The main parties focus on techno music and dancing. After the night parties are the after-hours clubs which open at eight am and some times last until noon.

After that, partygoers can return to their home or to their hotels and sleep it off, the partyers then began to get ready for another night of partying. In all conscience, not a lot of sleep happens in Germany when it comes to the nightlife.

Links:

http://www.theguardian.com/travel/germany+bars

http://www.inyourpocket.com/germany/frankfurt/nightlife-culture/clubs

http://www.studentuniverse.com/travel-guides/germany/nightlife-in-germany

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German Culture and Traditions

Tradition and Values:

Germans place a high priority on structure, privacy and punctuality. The German people embrace the values of thriftiness, hard work and industriousness. There is a great emphasis on making sure that “the trains run on time.” They are enduring people who struggle for perfectionism and precision in all parts of their lives. The do not admit faults, even teasingly, and seldom hand out compliments. At first their attitude may seem unfriendly, but there is a powerful sense of community and social integrity and a yearning to fit in.

  Germany’s Greeting Method:

The greetings in this culture consist of the most common the handshake. The man is to wait until tell women puts her hand out before shaking it. Also crossing someone else's handshake is inappropriate. Some gestures used in this culture are not chewing gum in public it is inappropriate. Talking with your hands in your pockets is disrespectful. Instead of crossing the fingers for good luck they simply squeeze their thumb.

Language of Germany:

Languages are German that is the official language, Deutschland  and the other two are Bavanrian and Halle, and they write in English.

  How women and men are treated in Germany’s Society:

Men and woman have differently roles; males need to listen more, aggress less, and cooperate more. Husbands of working women are supposed to do an equal share of the housework and child care. Women do most of the housework, and they take care of the children. Women think they are doing too much housework, so they want men to be less aggressive.

  Religion of Germany:

Christianity remains the dominant religion, with about 50 million, or 62 percent, identifying themselves as Christian. This group is split about evenly between Catholics and Protestants. The second largest religion is Islam with 4 million observers, making up 5 percent of the country's total population, and that is followed by Buddhism and Judaism.

  Business Culture of Germany:

The need for uniformity spills over into the business life of Germans. There is a loyal faithfulness to hierarchy and decisions are often made by a small group of leaders. Meetings are high controlled, and since opinions have often articulated in advance, there is not much patience for conflicting perspectives or discussion. There is a high regard for engineers in Germany, as evidence by the country’s accomplishments in the automotive industry. Due to this high level of respect for hands-on-expertise, businesses have a tendency to be headed by technical experts rather than lawyers or those with financial backgrounds. Workers at all levels are judged seriously on their ability and diligence, rather than interpersonal skills. Communication with coworkers as well as outsiders tends to be direct and not always diplomatic.

  Sports and Recreation of Germany: Germany is a world leader in tennis, track and field, cycling and swimming is very popular and almost every town has a public swimming pool. The national sport is soccer; Tennis is also popular, thanks to players such as Boris Becker, who was the youngest unseeded player to win at Wimbledon. He has since won a number of major tournaments, including two more at Wimbledon. Steffi Graf has won many women's tournament. In winter, skiers flock to the German Alps. Germany has many popular ski resorts that attract skiers from around the world. Germans excel at winter sports, and have won Olympic gold medals for lunge, bobsled and speed skating. Enthusiasts to enjoy almost any sport. Windsurfing and sailing are enjoyed. Cycling is another popular thing to do

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Dating and Marriage in Germany:

The dating in Germany is different than that in the United States. They each pay for their own food and entertainment unless a special occasion. Legal marriages are performed by the city hall religious ones are optional. Young people may often live together before or instead of marriage. Germany has built its reputation on careful planning and exacting engineering values, it's no surprise that this bleeds into nuptials as well. An engaged couple is required to give the government six weeks' notice before their wedding. But once the party starts, it's not unusual for it to last up to three days. The legal part of the proceedings is the civil ceremony and can be as simple as the bride, the groom and the official. Next comes the wedding gala, and this is where the fun really begins. Guests bring old dishes and toss them at the couple's feet, the shattering glass signifying good luck. This is called Polterbend, which means "an evening with lots of racket." Once all of the dishes have been broken, the couple sweeps up the shards to symbolize that nothing in their marriage will be broken again. Another German wedding tradition happens when the wedding guests caravan the bride's belongings to her new home, where the groom greets her with beer.

  Funerals:

The German custom, the funeral takes place 3 to 4 days after the person passes.  For the funeral service, relatives, friends and acquaintances gather in front of the mortuary and then accompany the deceased together with a priest and ministrants, in black and violet robes respectively.  The coffin is placed in the church in front of the high altar.  The priest says the requiem at the coffin, sprinkles it with Holy water and uses incense.  While the bells are tolling, the coffin, accompanied by the mourners is taken to the open grave and four pall-bearers lower the coffin into the grave.  The priest then gives a short speech.  Next the priest says some prayers and begins the prescribed ceremonies. 

  Holidays and Celebration in Germany:

Germany celebrates many of the traditional Christian holidays, including Christmas and Easter. German Unification Day on October 3 marks the reuniting of East and West Germany and is the only federal holiday. While the country’s big beer bash is called "Oktoberfest," its starts each year on a Saturday in September and ends 16 to 18 days later, on the first Sunday in October. The tradition started in 1810, with the wedding of Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria to Princess Therese von Sachsen-Hildburghausen.

  http://www.everyculture.com/Ge-It/Germany.html

http://www.agtv.vic.edu.au/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=63&Itemid=73

http://www.mapsofworld.com/germany/about/culture.html

https://sites.google.com/site/natapornthoheng/cultural-values/german-cultural-values

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German Cuisine

Germany is said to be the land full of culinary delights. Cozy gatherings with food and drink are the essence of German. German cuisine has many times been categorized as starchy and full of fat, which can be accredited to the lack of variety in the rural German countryside up to the last 200 years. Germany has benefited from a close relationship with Italy and France and embraced many of their spices and cooking methods, but always with a German twist. The regional cuisines vary according to the geography and their closeness to waterways, where transportation and trade historically took place. Left over from earlier times, preservation of foodstuffs, through salting, smoking, curing or pickling is still common in preparing meats, vegetables and fish. For example the popular dishes such as Sauerbraten, which is roast beef cured in vinegar and wine; also Matjes, which is pickled herring or Sauerkraut.

Meat is one of the primary elements of Germany’s cuisine and has been for considerably of the country’s history. Pork is the most frequently used meat in German cuisine. Roasted meat called Braten, fried boneless pieces of meat called Shnitzel and sausages are a few meat dishes of Germany. Among poultry, chicken is most common, although goose, turkey and duck are enjoyable for Germans. Wild Game is also one of Germany’s cuisine, such venison, boar and boar, which is available year round. Lamb and goat is a meat that is not as popular. Sausage is a major German food in which there are more than a thousand different and distinct varieties of sausage can be found throughout the country, and include common German cuisine ingredients like sauerkraut and spices such as coriander, paprika, nutmeg and ginger.

  Potatoes are a major staple of Germany’s diet. It is a common side dish in most German meals which are prepared and cooked in several ways. Potatoes are often fried in German cooking in a batter to make potato pancakes or cut into thin slices. German fried potato dishes include Kroketten, which is mashed potatoes battered in eggs and bread crumbs. Another potato dish is Shupfnudeln, where potatoes are formed into noodle-like shapes, dipped into a batter and briefly cooked in salt water and fried.

  Knodel, or dumplings, accompany many meals, especially in the north. In the south, a tiny version called Spatle is more common. Germans enjoy bread with every meal, with rye, sourdough and pumpernickel beards are more common than white bread. Soft pretzels can be found most anywhere in Germany. Spargel which is asparagus, served with a sauce or in soup is popular in the spring time. Cabbage, beets, and turnips are commonly incorporated into German meals.

Breakfast, or früstück, consists of rolls with jam, cheese, eggs, and meat. Coffee or tea may also be served. The zweites früstück (literally second breakfast) is a mid-morning snack eaten at work or school. Students may have belegtes brot (literally covered bread), a small sandwich of meat or cheese, and a piece of fruit. Germans eat their big meal of the day, mittagessen, around noon or later, sometimes lasting two hours. The meal almost always begins with suppe which is soup), and several more courses follow. In the afternoon, kaffee, snack with coffee is often served, consisting of pastries and cakes. Abendbrotsupper, plainly bread of the evening is a lighter meal than lunch, usually offering an open-faced sandwich of bread with cold cuts and cheese, eaten with a knife and fork, and perhaps some coleslaw or fruit. Pretzels and sweets may be enjoyed, especially by children, any time during the day.

  Beer is also considered the staple beverage in Germany. There are more than 1,200 individual breweries in Germany that produces multiple varieties of beer. Because of this German beer brewing is one o the country’s primary culinary industries. German beer varieties such as Pilsener, Kolsch, and Weissbier serve as the base of commercially popular beers from all over the world.

  Today, Germans still fall back on their rich heritage, serving wild game, lamb, pork and beef with old and new ways of preparing them and their side dishes. Popular spices are mustard, horseradish and juniper berries, which are found, for instance, in the Luneburger Heath. Still, modern German chefs have started to create newer, lighter fare, incorporating traditional foods into their menus.

  The three primary types of sausage commonly produced and consumed in Germany are as follows:

• Bruhwurst - scalded sausage: Hot water or steam is used to scald this sausage, a unique cooking method that gives the Bruhwurst its name. Perhaps the best known sausage of this variety is the frankfurter, the basis for standard hot dogs.

• Kochwurst- cooked sausage: Originally eaten only at special occasions, Kochwurst sausages are usually boiled. Blood and liver sausages are considered Kochwurst.

• Rohwurst - fresh sausage: Perhaps the most popular sausage, Rohwurst is made from the leanest beef or pork, combined with bacon, salt and various spices.

Fun fact on German Cuisine:

Beer is officially considered a food in Bavaria.

There are over 300 kinds of bread in Germany.

There are also bread museums.

Gummy bears were invented by a German.

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Germany: Art and Music

Germany has a vast history in art and music. Whether it’s paintings, architecture, or musical compositions; Germany has a lot of big names under its belt, such as Albrecht Durer, Casper David Friedrich, Johann Sebastian Bach, and Ludwig van Beethoven. The fact of the matter is this: Germany is a country with a rich history in the arts and is a worthwhile place to go visit in order to see some of the masterpieces within its borders.

                First let’s talk about Germany’s music. Germany is very well known for its music from the incredibly famous composers who were born there. Of course, the music of the great composers is not the only kind of music popular in Germany. In modern times, electronic music is increasing in popularity in Germany. Two big electronic music stars are Paul van Dyk and Sven Vath, who is considered the “Godfather of Techno”. Here is a link to a remix that Paul van Dyk made of a song by Linkin Park; just for fun.

Next is Germany’s architecture. Germany itself has buildings coming from many different periods in time. There are baths from the time of Emperor Constantine’s reign, cathedrals from the middle Ages, and architecture from the Renaissance, the Baroque period, and from the art nouveau period.  A lot of the work from these time periods is located within a building from the same period. Those that aren’t, however, can be found at museums scattered throughout Germany. In fact, these museums are a huge tourist spots. Here is a list of museums and what they show:

“The most famous example of classicist German art in Berlin is, of course, the Brandenburg Gate. In the palaces of Schloss Charlottenburg and Schloss Sanssouci, you will find Baroque and Rococo architecture at its finest. 

Kassel is famous for its classicist Schloss Wilhelmshöhe. Darmstadt, on the other hand, is worth a visit too: admire the cosy art nouveau houses in the city’s German art colony Mathildenhöhe.

The city of Hamburg features a splendid town hall in late 19th-century historicist style, the former pride and joy of its wealthy citizens. It is also famous for its five big Gothic churches with the red-brick architecture typical of Northern Germany. St Michael is still the best-known landmark of the city-state.

As for the Rhineland, the magnificent cathedral in Cologne is actually the third-highest church building in the world and the most popular tourist attraction in Germany. Moreover, the cathedral of Aachen, where you’ll find both the imperial chapel of Charlemagne and his possible burial site, is only a short train journey away.

Munich is the perfect starting point to explore either medieval castles throughout Bavaria or the Baroque architecture of monasteries such as Weltenburg (which is famous for its beer as well).”

-German Art and Architecture, InterNations

                In conclusion, Germany is a “hot-spot” for the arts. Whether it is from old classics or a more modern look or sound, Germany is filled to the brim with many different forms of art. If ever visiting Germany, one should always make time to appreciate all the forms of art that Germany has to offer.

http://www.internations.org/germany-expats/guide/16030-culture-shopping-recreation/german-art-and-architecture-16025

http://www.tatsachen-ueber-deutschland.de/en/culture-and-media/main-content-09/music.html

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German Trade

Germany is the third largest importer and exporter in the world, accounting for more than half of the European Union’s international trade. Since January 1, 1995, it has been part of the World Trade Organization existing both as an individual nation and as part of the European Community in the WTO until November 30, 2009. Germany exports various things but its main export is in the field of engineering which includes, high quality cars and railway vehicles. It is poor in raw materials and mainly imports them but it is the largest exporter of engineered products.

Its primary exports – commodities: machinery, motor vehicles, computer and electronic products, chemicals, electrical equipment, metals, textiles, transport equipment, pharmaceuticals, foodstuffs, rubber and plastic products. Germany’s primary imports – commodities: data processing equipment, vehicles, machinery, metals, electrical equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, agricultural products, pharmaceuticals, oil and gas. Primary exports partners: About 69% of exports of goods "made in Germany" were transported to European countries. 57% of all goods were delivered to the member states of the European Union. The second important sales market for German goods in 2013 was Asia with a share of about 16%, followed by America, with a share of 12%. Africa and Australia / Oceania only accounted for small percentages of German exports which was 2% and 0.9%, respectively. The majority of German imports also came from Europe 71%, followed by Asia 18% and America 8%. Goods from Africa and Australia / Oceania played just a subordinate role in imports too 3% and 0.4%, respectively. In 2013 the top country of destination for German exports was France followed by the United States and the United Kingdom. Germany exported goods worth 100.3 billion euro to France 9.2% of total German exports, 88.4 billion euro to the United States 8.1% and 75.6 billion euro to the United Kingdom 6.9%. Most of the goods imported to Germany originated from the Netherlands. The countries ranking second and third were the People's Republic of China and France. Germany imported goods worth 89.1 billion euro from the Netherlands 9.9% of total German imports, 73.6 billion euro from the People's Republic of China 8.2% and 64.1 billion euro from France 7.1%. Russia is certainly a major trading partner of Germany. When put in relation to the worldwide trade relations of the German export region, the reliance of businesses on Russia is controlled.

Germany’s Top 10 Exports:

The following export product groups represent the highest dollar value in German global shipments during 2013. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of overall exports.

Machinery: $253,926,429,000 - 17.5% of total exports

Vehicles excluding trains and streetcars: $250,946,878,000 - 17.3%

Electronic equipment: $141,816,711,000 - 9.8%

Pharmaceutical products: $74,318,113,000 - 5.1%

Plastics: $67,990,424,000 - 4.7%

Optical, technical and medical apparatus: $66,469,145,000 - 4.6%

Aircraft, spacecraft and equipment: $46,315,038,000 - 3.2%

Mineral fuels including oil: $45,724,470,000 - 3.1%

Articles of iron or steel: $33,908,189,000 - 2.3%

Organic chemicals: $33,406,511,000 - 2.3%

Well-known global brands from Germany: Mercedes Benz, BMW, Adidas, Audi, Porsche, Volkswagen, Bayer, BASF, Bosch, Siemens, Lufthansa, SAP and Nivea.

Links

http://www.tradingeconomics.com/germany/balance-of-trade

http://www.conmoto-consulting.com/germany-most-important-us-trade-partner-in-the-eu/

http://www.worldstopexports.com/germanys-top-10-exports/2061

http://www.worldsrichestcountries.com/top-germany-imports.html

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/german-imports-outpaced-exports-at-start-of-2014-2014-03-11

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World War II Part 2

Part II

  After the invasion of Poland, Britain and France declared war on Germany. Swiftly, Germany began taking over other European nations, with one of the first few being Norway and Denmark. This was partly due to British blockades that had been around Germany since before the war. So, to safeguard Swedish iron ore shipments, Hitler ordered the invasion and occupation of Norway and Denmark.

In May of 1940, Hitler ordered an attack on France and the Low Countries (Luxembourg, Belgium, the Netherlands, etc.). He did this despite the objections of many of his senior military officers.  With Luxembourg, Belgium and France they were successful. In fact, France was taken down so fast that Hitler gained a massive amount of popularity.

After the victory, the peoples of the occupied countries were forced to produce war material for the Germans, so that Germany would not have to enforce its own people to do so. Not only this, but from the French, German officers seized precious materials, weapons and locomotives to pay for the war effort and occupation. This put pressure on those occupied, as they ran out of resources and food; several countries experienced famine, Greece within the very first year of occupation.

This led Hitler to attempt to make peace with Britain and Winston Churchill; they were rejected. At this, Hitler ordered aerial attacks on Royal Air Force airbases and radar stations. This became known as the Battle of Britain, which Germany lost. Once Hitler realized that he could not achieve the air superiority necessary to completely defeat Britain, he simply ordered nightly air raids on British cities.

On June 22, 1941, Hitler violated his pact with Russia and sent 5.5 million Axis troops to attack Russia. Hitler’s reasons for doing so was a) acquiring Lebensraum and b) acquiring Russia’s natural resources for the continuation of the war. This struck Germany’s people with surprise and fear: they didn’t know how long the war would last and if they could handle or win a war on two fronts.

On December 7 of 1941, Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, with Germany, four days later, declaring war on the United States. Then, almost two years later, there was D-Day, and then finally the Battle of Berlin. At this point, Hitler and his staff lived in the underground fuhrerbunker. Once the Soviets had been blocks away, Hitler and Eva Braun both committed suicide in the fuhrerbunker, and later one of his generals surrendered Berlin for an indefinite period of time. Hitler’s successor (as Reich Chancellor), Goebbels, and his wife committed suicide after murdering their six children. These were not the only suicides that had happened, though. As the war drew to a close, suicide rates shot up, especially in areas being invaded by Soviet redcoats.

It is estimated that the number of Germans who died range from 5.5 million to 6.9 million people, with 2.2 million being estimated as civilian deaths.. This could be all from bombings of Germany, suicides, death of German resistance, and Nazi euthanasia. Mass rapes of German women also took place.  

  http://www.historyonthenet.com/Chronology/timelinenazigermany.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Germany_during_World_War_II#World_War_II

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Germany's Society and Demographics

The population of Germany is about eighty-two million people. It is a modern, cosmopolitan and open-minded country. Most people are well-educated and enjoy a high standard of living, as well as sufficient freedom to be able to plan their lives as they themselves see fit. Family is central to demographic change. It is the place where affection, responsibility, unity and solidarity play a special role. Lifestyles and birth rates have changed over the past decades. This has been accompanied by a different notion of what family is. Along with the classic nuclear family, unmarried couples and single-parent families have gained growing acceptance. A significant element in the choice to have children is being able to balance family and work obligations. The one thing has not changed, women still take on most of the family-related responsibilities and have to bring together these with salaried employment.

  Germany like most major industrial countries, its society is facing the challenge of solving problems of demographic trends, in particular the aging of society. Twenty years after unification, have the social concerns of the division of Germany been completely overcome. Due to globalization Germany has taken a pathway that has made it a modern immigrant society with progressively ethnic cultural diversity, and has increased its efforts to mix the migrants in the center of society.

The socio-economic change over the past few years has accelerated through the concerns of the worldwide economic and financial crisis that has led to the development of new social risk situations and to greater change in society in terms of economic living conditions approaching. The Federal Government’s latest report on poverty and wealth states that one in four Germans counts as poor or has to be protected from poverty through state subsidies. The EU states those households as “poor” that have less than sixty percent of median income at their disposal.

 At the instant there is around 780 euros for three trends are characteristic of demographic developments in Germany: a low birth rate, increasing life expectancy and an aging society. Germany's birth rate began a steep decline in the early 1970s, around the time birth control pills hit the market. For the last forty years, the number of births across Germany has been far below what is needed to sustain its population. Germany's fertility rate of 1.34 children per woman is now the lowest in Western Europe, and its 8.4 annual births per thousand people is one of the lowest in the world together with Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore and Bosnia-Herzegovina. The latter ratio is important because it explains the future mix of young people with old. In Germany, there are now around thirty-four elderly that are sixty-five and older people for every 100 people in the workforce. Due to the low birth rates and other trends, this old age dependency percentage could double by 2060. This means that for every one hundred people of working age, there could be sixty-eight people in retirement. This type of population development would make today's pension and social security system financially unsustainable. One other factor affecting population aging is increasing life expectancy. Over the last century, life expectancy in Germany has increased by over 30 years. If current trends continue, a baby boy born in 2050 could expect to live to be eighty-three, a baby girl may live to be eighty-eight. This is good news because it reflects Germans' health and high living standards. Rising life expectancy, however, also presents the challenge of more elderly people collecting pensions longer into old age.

http://www.difu.de/publikationen/demographic-change-and-its-consequences-for-cities.html

http://www.goethe.de/ges/soz/soz/en10330993.htm

http://www.dw.de/demographic-change-to-hit-germany-hard/a-16516797

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WWII Part 1

You can’t exactly have a blog about Germany without discussing World War II. It was a pivotal point in history for Germany and shouldn’t be left out. It was the most widespread war in history, being the cause of 50 million civilian and officer deaths.

The beginning of World War II started at the end of the first World War. Germany, for having aided Austria-Hungary, was punished by accepting all responsibility, disarm itself, and relinquish territories. Germany was also made to pay reparations of 132 billion Marks (about $442 billion). This was what they had to do in order to have a Treaty with the Allies (US, France and Russia). Economists had said that this price (in reference to the reparations) was too harsh and it wouldn’t be proactive. This ended up being the case. Germany’s solution had been to print more money, devaluing it. This, along with the Great Depression, left Germany’s money worthless. People would literally burn their money because it cost more to buy wood for a stove than any of the banknotes that they might have had on their person.

With all this, resentment built up in Germany towards other European nations, which led to a very nationalistic point of view. This presented opportunities for change in the German government, especially for the Nazi party.

Hitler hadn’t actually led the Nazi party until July of 1921; two years after its actual formation. From then on, the Nazi party steadily gained popularity (although, it seemed that after an attempt to overthrow the government that it would not be the case; after being arrested, during the actual court trial, Hitler used the trial as a platform and ranted for hours against the current government. By the time the trial was over, he had gained support and the judge presiding sympathized with Hitler and only gave him a five year sentence.), until in 1933, Hitler was appointed Chancellor by then President, Hindenburg. From then on, the Nazi party gained power. In less than two years, Hitler became Fuhrer (a combination of Chancellor and President) of all Germany. Within the country, Hitler banned all relationships between Jew and destroyed Jewish shops and synagogues, established relations with both Italy and Japan, eliminated women’s rights (he stated that “world is her husband, her family, her children, and her home”), made it compulsory for boys to join Hitler’s Youth, and violated the Treaty of Versailles...all before the war even began.

An important event to note, as well, is the Munich agreement. It allowed Germany to have the Sudetenland region of Czechoslovakia in return for peace. Hitler violated this and invaded Czechoslovakia. This was the unofficial start of the war. The official start of the war began with Britain issuing a statement that if Germany should invade Poland, Britain would go to its aid. It was at this time that Germany formed an alliance with Russia (stating that both would split Poland upon its capture), with Britain allying with Poland in retaliation. Germany and Russia invaded Poland and, through the use of blitzkrieg (lightning war), won.

  This was part 1 of the WWII section in this blog. The other half of the section on WWII will be posted later on today. I hope you guys found this educational! Thank you and good night/morning!

  http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Holocaust/nsdap.html

http://www.historyonthenet.com/Chronology/timelinenazigermany.htm

http://fcit.usf.edu/holocaust/TIMELINE/nazirise.HTM

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Versailles

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Germany_during_World_War_II

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A geographic map of Germany.

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Top German Electro & House Music 2012 [ Clubbing Dancefloor Party]

German Electro FunHouse 2.0 http://soundcloud.com/jovi-rizzo/rizzoline-wo-geht-die-party-ab http://www.mixcloud.com/jovirizzo/fun-house-30-by-jovi-rizzo/ htt...

On the previous topic of music, Electro & House music are quite popular in Germany, especially in clubs and parties. So, here's some of the top German Electro music of 2012.

[factsofgermany-blog]

Music of Germany

Over the centuries, German-speaking musicians and composers have made significant gifts to music. Classical music has a long and proud tradition in Germany in which it is valued throughout Germany and children are encouraged and supported to learn about classical music, may it be playing an instrument or singing in choirs. Germany claims the utmost famous composers, performers and producers of the world that were born and raised in Germany or lived and created their musical accomplishments there. It is the biggest music market in Europe and is the third largest in the entire world. It carries the status of being an important musical nation that is based on composers such as Johann Sebastian Bach, Richard Strauss, Johannes Brahms, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Franz Schubert, Robert Schumann, Richard Wagner, Handel, and Ludwig van Beethoven. Along the development of classical music reigns a long tradition of popular folk music in German speaking areas, which remains solid in Germany today.

In the 1920s, musical advances in the United States began to impact modern German music, and later in the era, German musicians also began to take notice of growths in Great Britain. In the 1970s, the German band The Scorpions appeared on the international music scene with their English-language rock and heavy metal songs. In the 1980s, the German Neue Deutsche Welle movement thrust a number of German singers onto the international music charts: Falco with "Der Kommissar" and "Rock Me Amadeus", Trio with "Da Da Da", Peter Schilling with "Major Tom", and Nena with her hit "99 Luftballoons". In the 1990s, the German band Rammstein became widespread among heavy metal fans around the world. Several German artists are now making a name internationally in a variety of genres. The once widely accepted notion that English lyrics were a essential for success is increasingly being abandoned in favor of producing songs with native German-language texts. The new term Deutschrock and up-and-coming bands like Glashaus, Juli, and Silbermond are indications of the expanding place of German in the contemporary music section. In the present day there are a wide array of musical fashions of Heiner Goebbels, who combines music and theater, whereas Helmut Lachenmann takes the potentials of instrumental expression to the extreme. Wolfgang Rihm reveals how in the way it is developing it appears possible for music once again to become more understandable. With his sense of the zeitgeist and the understandings of his fans, at the other end of the musical spectrum the pop singer Herbert Grönemeyer has been enjoying success with songs in German for years now. The Punk rockers “Die Toten Hosen“, the heavy-metal band Rammstein and the teenage fan group “Tokio Hotel” also come in the category of German superstars. Over the past few years, young artists such as the singer Xavier Naidoo, of the group “Söhne Mannheims” has been successfully centering their work on American soul and rap. Especially in this certain scene, several new musicians from immigrant families for example, Laith Al-Deen, Bushido, Cassandra Steen and Adel Tawil are emerging as stars. Lately, the success of the Berlin band “Wir sind Helden” has influenced an entire new wave of young German bands. The founding of the “Pop Academy” in Mann­heim plainly demonstrated the wish to put German pop music on an international basis.

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Toccata and Fugue in D Minor (Best Version Ever)

I don't know who performed this, but it's by far the best recording I've ever heard!! Enjoy!!

This very popular piece is created by Johann Sebastian Bach...a famous German composer of the Baroque period.

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German Politics and Government

Germany is a federal republic. In fact, it’s full length name is the “Federal Republic of Germany”. It consists of 16 states and has been independent as of October 3, 1990. Their executive branch has a chief of state/president (who runs for a five year term), a chancellor (who runs for a four year term), and a cabinet chosen by the president. Their legislative branch consists of a Federal Council and a Federal Parliament, with the Parliament having an election every four years, and the Council not having any election but is chosen by the state level government. The judicial branch is made up of the highest courts, the Federal Court of Justice and the Federal Constitutional Court, and then lesser courts, such as the Federal Administrative Court, the Federal Finance Court, the Federal Labor Court, and etc.

There are several political parties within the German government. There's the Alliance '90/the Greens, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), the Christian Social Union (CSU), the Free Democratic Party (FDP), the Left Party (Die Linke), and the Social Democratic Party.

The Alliance '90/the Greens is a green political party, of the merged Alliance 90 and the German Green parties. Their policies are anti-nuclear energy, environmental protections, and better control on transportation (such as kerosene control for airplanes and new speed restrictions on both highways and rural roads).

The Christian Democratic Union (CDU) is a, as the name states, christian democratic and liberal-conservative political party. The party platform itself is emphasizing the "Christian understanding of humans and their responsibility towards God". The base their policies off of political Catholicism, catholic social teaching, political Protestantism, fiscal conservatism, and national conservatism. 

The Christian Social Union (CSU) is a christian democratic and conservative political party in Germany. It is the smallest of Germany's five political parties. It is the sister party to the CDU, with the CSU located solely within Bavaria, and the CDU all throughout Germany.

The Free Democratic Party (FDP) is a liberal and classical liberal party in Germany. It was founded in 1948 by the remnants of former liberal political parties from before WWII. Their policies are as follows: creating jobs by creating incentives for private investments, to have a bracket income tax, keeping the use of nuclear power, and limited government involvement in the lives of the people.

The Left Party is a democratic socialist party. The party desires to increase government spending in public investments, education, research and development, culture, and infrastructure. They also seek to increase taxes for large corporations. They believe that the financial markets should be more heavily regulated by the government in order to reduce speculation of bonds and derivatives. They seek to strengthen anti-trust laws and empower cooperatives to decentralize the economy.

The Social Democratic Party (SDP) is also a, despite the redundancy, a social democratic party. It was initially established as a Marxist party. After many reforms since it's creation, they now seek social democracy and a societal arrangement in which freedom and social justice are placed as the greatest importance. They say that freedom, justice and social solidarity form the basis of social democracy. 

So, now I've updated the German politics section. Now, I'm going to go through and update even more of my posts (since they have to be 500 words long). This is going to take a while. Have a nice day!

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/gm.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alliance_'90/The_Greens

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_Democratic_Union_(Germany)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_Social_Union_in_Bavaria

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_Democratic_Party_(Germany)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Left_(Germany)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_Democratic_Party_of_Germany#Party_platform

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Fun Fact of the Day

In Germany, a set of caves called the Fairy Grottoes were called "the world's most colorful caves" by the Guinness Book of Records.

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Factoid of the Day #4

Germany has a holiday in October, called German Unification Day, to celebrate the day that East and West Germany reunited.