Favourite Places in Germany - Your recommendations, please!

connewitz

I should tell you, that I traveled around a lot since the tender age of 6 and this is a long time ago! All the places I have recommended I have seen. And I just wanted to give a note for the history buffs: many castles in Germany and the most of them intact and can be visited, museums galore and if you have an interest in the darker history than I would recommend to visit the Concentration camp in Buchenwald (near Weimar).
A visit to Dresden is full of history and when you have time than go across the border to Czechoslovakia. Here accommodation is affordable and so are food and the famous czech beer.
I got going and I do have to apologize for me rambling on like this! Sorry!!!:o

John C

connewitz wrote: »

.........
.....Now more about places in Germany.
Other places to see are:Spreewald (near Berlin) with it waterways, the Harz (once like a boarder between East - and West-Germany) with long and beautiful hiking places, the romantic Wernigerode Castle and the colourful town of Wernigerode, the Brocken (1142m high) is the highest mountain there, Thueringen is an open land with lots of little lakes and rivers. Good for hiking (The Rennsteig) and there are many castles. The Wartburg by Eisenach is the most famous one. You can go up to the castle riding a donkey!!! ......
..........

Above is a partial quote.

Connewitz: Well done on all this information. Here in Bayern/Bavaria we hear and see mainly about Munich, Nuremberg, the Bavarian Alps and Bavarian churches.

It would help if we looked at ARD, ZDF (RTE1, Network2;) ) more and not just the Bayern Programm. (local TV). Most of the persons at work have not seen the above sights.

connewitz

John C wrote: »

Above is a partial quote.

Connewitz: Well done on all this information. Here in Bayern/Bavaria we hear and see mainly about Munich, Nuremberg, the Bavarian Alps and Bavarian churches.

It would help if we looked at ARD, ZDF (RTE1, Network2;) ) more and not just the Bayern Programm. (local TV). Most of the persons at work have not seen the above sights.

Hi John C and Guten Morgen! You are in a very beautiful spot of Germany and it would take you months to see everything Bavaria has to offer. I do not know how good your German is so I can not say that you should watch more TV but it would be a start to switch to other programs.;) It is also normal to go ti places near you. The places I did recommend are in former East-Germany - a good drive away from where you are!!! My hometown was Leipzig and if you live near Munich then you would have to travel for 6 hours by car to go there! But maybe you can make it sometimes to visit this places. Until then I wish you a very nice time in Germany! What are you doing there by the way? Don`t melt away in the heat and try to enjoy the german summer!:cool:

jb-ski

John C wrote: »

Above is a partial quote.

Connewitz: Well done on all this information. Here in Bayern/Bavaria we hear and see mainly about Munich, Nuremberg, the Bavarian Alps and Bavarian churches.

It would help if we looked at ARD, ZDF (RTE1, Network2;) ) more and not just the Bayern Programm. (local TV). Most of the persons at work have not seen the above sights.

hi John C,

as every Bavarian will proudly confirm, they are in the best region of Deutschland already, so they don't need to see the rest!

as for Tv, unless you're in the darkest corner of Niederbayern, i doubt if your work colleagues are restricting their viewing to BR

connewitz

jb-ski wrote: »

hi John C,

as every Bavarian will proudly confirm, they are in the best region of Deutschland already, so they don't need to see the rest!

as for Tv, unless you're in the darkest corner of Niederbayern, i doubt if your work colleagues are restricting their viewing to BR

You hit the nail on the head! Lol!:D The Bavarian people are really like this! But I do like them. They can be a bit strange at the beginning but after a while they are welcoming people. I do think that this is typical German. We are a bit reserved at the beginning and then (when we do know the other people better) we are a very friendly bunch!:)
If you want to see more of Germany than open up your mind and go by car, train or bus and you will discover a lot of other beautiful places. From Munich you could travel to Tuebingen or Heidelberg. This are both very old cities with medieval flair in a beautiful surrounding. And if the other places are too far away,cut the corner and visit Austria or Switzerland.:rolleyes:

John C

connewitz wrote: »

You hit the nail on the head! Lol!:D The Bavarian people are really like this! But I do like them. They can be a bit strange at the beginning but after a while they are welcoming people. I do think that this is typical German. We are a bit reserved at the beginning and then (when we do know the other people better) we are a very friendly bunch!:)
If you want to see more of Germany than open up your mind and go by car, train or bus and you will discover a lot of other beautiful places. From Munich you could travel to Tuebingen or Heidelberg. This are both very old cities with medieval flair in a beautiful surrounding. And if the other places are too far away,cut the corner and visit Austria or Switzerland.:rolleyes:

Es gibt so viele schöne Sehenswürdigkeiten und Städte in Bayern.

Eine Auswahl wo ich in Deutschland war:
Schloss Linderhof, Neuschwanstein und Herrenchiemsee; Wieskirche, Starnberger See, Ammersee, Nürnberg, Eichtätt.
Tübingen, Heidelberg, Karlsruhe in Baden Württemberg.
neuen Bundesländer: Dresden, Görlitz, Frankfurt am Oder Chemnitz, Kaemenz, Annaberg.
Grosstädte: München, Hamburg, Düsseldorf, Stuttgart, Essen, Duisburg, Köln, Frankfurt am Main.
Ich bin nur durch Thüringen gefahren.
Österreich und die Suisse habe ich auch besucht.

Die Hitze in Deutschland ist vorbei. Heute den 24.07 haben wir 15 C und leichten Regen.

Hier in Oberbayern haben 90% der Haushalte folgende Fernsehprogramme ARD, ZDF, BR, SAT1, RTL und PRO7 u.a.
Ein paar Haushalte haben noch nur ARD, ZDF und BR. Manchmal schaue ich BR (Bayerische Rundfunk = Bavarian tv). Sendungen sind "Wir in Bayern", "Abendschau" und die Nachrichten Sendung "die Rundschau". Es ist selten, dass ich "die Tagesschau" bzw. "Heute" anschaue.
Tagesschau ist im ARD. ARD = Arbeitsgemeinschaft der öffentlich-rechtlichen Rundfunkanstalten der Bundesrepublik Deutschland.
"Consortium of public broadcasting institutions of Germany". It is called das erste Programm =the first channel)
ZDF =zweites Deutsches Fernsehen, second German channel.

SAT1, RTL und PRO7 sind privaten Sender, die von Werbung finanziert sind. Eine Werbepause dauert etwa zwölf Minuten.

Dieser Post ist teils "off topic" "Favourite places in Germany".

jb-ski

John C,

i'm glad to see you edited out the 'mindestens......... ' bit.

i'm enjoying this thread and i realise it's in Languages section,
but i get the impression it's kind of an anything to do with Germany free-for-all.

so i choose to write in English, and enjoy reading all the posts in both English & German,
but if the language police insist on German only posts, then i'll say Servus all.
Now that's the Grantler in me coming out!:)

now i'm way off topic, sorry folks.

BTW do you really watch BR?:eek:

'Tatort' has got to be one of my favourite programmes, and please don't laugh,
but i really enjoy 'Wetten Dass'. (via sat tv obviously)

connewitz

jb-ski wrote: »

John C,



so i choose to write in English, and enjoy reading all the posts in both English & German,
but if the language police insist on German only posts, then i'll say Servus all.
laugh,

Hi jb-ski! I think we should write in English because it does not say "this is a German thread for Germans only". There are people with an interest in Germany who can`t speak or read German - so keep it open for them!
Would anyone of you be so kind and think with me for a minute of the poor people which died yesterday in Duisburg at the "Love Parade"? It is soooo sad!!!! I still try to come to terms with it. I do know it has nothing to do with places in Germany but I thought it would be nice if we could just give one minute to this young German people! Thanks!

jb-ski

connewitz wrote: »

jb-ski wrote: »

Would anyone of you be so kind and think with me for a minute of the poor people which died yesterday in Duisburg at the "Love Parade"? It is soooo sad!!!! I still try to come to terms with it. I do know it has nothing to do with places in Germany but I thought it would be nice if we could just give one minute to this young German people! Thanks!

+1 this is absolutely tragic. there are 19 people dead according to the latest news i've seen. my thoughts are with all the bereaved families.

connewitz

jb-ski wrote: »

connewitz wrote: »

+1 this is absolutely tragic. there are 19 people dead according to the latest news i've seen. my thoughts are with all the bereaved families.

Thank you so much, jb-ski! I was at the love parade myself in 1994 (still young and hyper then ) and it was an experience I will never forget. So it has really gotten on my nerves to see the videos of this last parade. As far as the German authorities consider it was the last one ever. Shame after such a long and successful time for all ravers. But it was a scandal what did happen in Duisburg and I am so sorry for all the families and friends who have lost a loved one!

jb-ski

Re Duisburg
check this out

http://www.tz-online.de/nachrichten/deutschland/loveparade-internet-kommentatoren-prophezeiten-tragoedie-853369.html



it seems pretty clear that the venue was totally unsuitable for such an event.

connewitz

jb-ski wrote: »

Re Duisburg
check this out

http://www.tz-online.de/nachrichten/deutschland/loveparade-internet-kommentatoren-prophezeiten-tragoedie-853369.html



it seems pretty clear that the venue was totally unsuitable for such an event.

Did read a lot in other German newspapers and it is the same story all over again! No security concept, if panic should break out. One way in and out of the venue was absolutely ridiculous!:mad: But all investigations will bring nobody back to life! I do hope, that the people who are responsible for this tragedy, will have to go to court and there will be no whitewash! Duisburg is not half the size of Berlin and as I was there (in Berlin) we could go through the Tierpark (zoo) and the streets in Berlin are wide and open, so even 1 million people where never in danger of being stomped to death!

prinz

Just on the Love Parade, it is a terrible tragedy for those who lost their lives, or their family or friends but it was only a matter of time before this happened IMO. Was at the parade in 2003 in Berlin and even in Berlin there were places where crowd crushing was an issue.

John C

jb-ski wrote: »

John C,
......Partial quote..............
BTW do you really watch BR?:eek:

'Tatort' has got to be one of my favourite programmes, and please don't laugh,
but i really enjoy 'Wetten Dass'. (via sat tv obviously)

Jawohl ich schaue Bayerisches Fernsehen oft an.
Apropo Tatort am Samstag abend waren vier Episoden des Tatort Serie im BR ausgestrahlt. Eine Episode war vom Jahr 1975.
Wir können Deutsch und Englisch hier haben.
Summary of above. I often watch Bavarian television (BR). There were four episodes of "Tatort" on BR on Saturday evening, one from 1975.
Tatort Crime Scene is a crime series.

Zurück zum Thema "Favourite Places in Germany".
Bayerische Städte, die ich besucht habe: Peiting, Schongau, Weilheim, Murnau, Garmish, Oberammergau, Mittenwald, Kempten, Lindau, Traunstein, Passau, Cham und viele andere mehr.

Manchmal habe ich den Weißwurstäquator überquert.
Städte: Hannover, Göttingen, Düren, Aachen, Ulm, Mainz, Trier, Saarbrücken und andere Städte, die in Irland wenig bekannt sind.
Weißwurst = white sausage, eaten before noon on Fridays in Bavaria.
der Äquator = the equator. Weißwurstäquators = Bavarian border. This is slang German and the exact area is not clearly defined.

About that accident in Duisburg. It is very tragic but we can't change anything. Life goes on. It will be a long, long time until the close friends and relatives come to terms with the loss of their loved ones.

connewitz

John C wrote: »

Zurück zum Thema "Favourite Places in Germany".
Bayerische Städte, die ich besucht habe: Peiting, Schongau, Weilheim, Murnau, Garmish, Oberammergau, Mittenwald, Kempten, Lindau, Traunstein, Passau, Cham und viele andere mehr.

Manchmal habe ich den Weißwurstäquator überquert.
Städte: Hannover, Göttingen, Düren, Aachen, Ulm, Mainz, Trier, Saarbrücken und andere Städte, die in Irland wenig bekannt sind.

You should really try to see the side of the former East-Germany. What you have visited until now is all in the Alten Bundeslaender.
Give it a try. Well worth it!!!

John C

connewitz wrote: »

John C wrote: »

Zurück zum Thema "Favourite Places in Germany".
Bayerische Städte, die ich besucht habe: Peiting, Schongau, Weilheim, Murnau, Garmish, Oberammergau, Mittenwald, Kempten, Lindau, Traunstein, Passau, Cham und viele andere mehr.

Manchmal habe ich den Weißwurstäquator überquert.
Städte: Hannover, Göttingen, Düren, Aachen, Ulm, Mainz, Trier, Saarbrücken und andere Städte, die in Irland wenig bekannt sind.

You should really try to see the side of the former East-Germany. What you have visited until now is all in the Alten Bundeslaender.
Give it a try. Well worth it!!!

Danke für den Hinweis. Wie früher erwähnt, habe ich im Berlin, Dresden, Frankfurt am Oder, Chemnitz und Annaberg besucht.
Einige Kumpels hier stammen aus den neuen Bundesländer. Kaemenz, Annaberg, Strasburg(Uckemark) und Berlin-Neukölln. Eine Familie ist seit dem Jahr 1994 in Bayern. Ihre Kinder sind jetzt volljährig. Sie sprechen sehr selten über Dresden und Kaemenz. Sie fahren meist nur zweimal im Jahr nach Sachsen. Ihre Eltern besuchen öfter.

Dieser Vorschlag, die neue Bundesländer zu besuchen ist an sich eine nette Idee. This suggeston of visiting the new German States is per se a nice idea. In meinem Fall wird es nicht gleich stattfinden.
Wir bekommen wenig Urlaub im Sommer. In Oktober habe ich Urlaub. Dann fliege ich nach Irland und nicht nach Berlin.

connewitz

Ich wollte dir nicht auf die Fuesse treten!
I can understand that you rather go home to Ireland than visit more places in Germany! Sorry if I did sound pushy!
People who left the former GDR had their reasons and it is not up to anyone to judge them. Thousands went to Bavaria. That`s why some Bavarians call for a higher wall! (No joke!)
I was only writing about the former GDR because it seems to be left out by many Travel agencies like it never exist and is not worth a visit. Nothing personally! Sorry again and I do hope you will enjoy your time in Ireland with your family!:D

John C

Mein Besuch in Sachsen war wunderschön. Ich war drei Tage da. Es hat mir gefallen. Der sächsische Akzent war nichts neues für mich. In meinem Arbeitsumgebung und mit Kumpels habe ich diesen Akzent gehört.

Der ICE Zug war nicht besonders schnell. Auf der Rückfahrt hat einige Waggons gefehlt. Pannen passieren in Deutschland sowohl als auch in Irland. Ich habe meinen reservierten Sitzplatz bekommen. Es war viel bequemer und billiger als mit dem Auto.

Eine interessante Stadtführung war "Goethe's Universität Tage in Leipzig". Sie war meist in der Fußgängerzone. Am Ende haben wir einen Weintrunk im Auerbachs Keller gehabt. Es war in dem Raum wo Goethe seine Inspiration für Faust bekommen hat. Die Bilder sind super.

Ein Rundgang mit dem Bus war super. Wir sind außerhalb den alten Stadtmauern gefahren. Der Reiseführer hat ein Ortsteil "Connewitz" erwähnt. So weit sind wir nicht gefahren.

Ich habe die Thomaskirche und die Nikolakirche besucht.

Das Wetter war ähnlich wie April in Irland. "Sunny spells and scattered showers." Die Duschen waren länger als eine irische Dusche. Einige Orte haben Dauerregen und Hochwasser gehabt. Mein Regenmantel war stets dabei.

Es freut mich, dass ich ein Bruchteil Sachsen gesehen habe.

connewitz

John C wrote: »

Mein Besuch in Sachsen war wunderschön. Ich war drei Tage da. Es hat mir gefallen. Der sächsische Akzent war nichts neues für mich. In meinem Arbeitsumgebung und mit Kumpels höre ich diesen Akzent gehört.

Der ICE Zug war nicht besonders schnell. Auf der Rückfahrt hat einige Waggons gefehlt. Pannen passieren in Deutschland sowohl als auch in Irland. Ich habe meinen reservierten Sitzplatz bekommen. Es war viel bequemer und billiger als mit dem Auto.

Eine interessante Stadtführung war "Goethe's Universität Tage in Leipzig". Es war meist in der Fußgängerzone. Am Ende haben wir einen Weintrunk im Auerbachs Keller gehabt. Es war in dem Raum wo Goethe seine Inspiration für Faust bekommen hat. Die Bilder sind super.

Ein Rundgang mit dem Bus war super. Wir sind außerhalb die alte Stadtmauer gefahren. Der Reiseführer hat ein Ortsteil "Connewitz" erwähnt. So weit sind wir nicht gefahren.

Ich habe die Thomaskirche und die Nikolakirche besucht.

Das Wetter war ähnlich wie April in Irland. "Sunny spells and scattered showers." Die Duschen waren länger als eine irische Dusche. Einige Orte haben Dauerregen und Hochwasser gehabt. Mein Regenmantel war stets dabei.

Es freut mich, dass ich ein Bruchteil Sachsen gesehen habe.

Hi John! I was really touched by your report! It is now 3 years ago that I was in Leipzig after being born and raised there for over 45 years!
I`v got the feeling that you enjoyed it very much. Did you see the giant wine barrel in "Auerbach`s Keller"? Just so that you know - this was something where only the VIP`s of East Germany could go! I have seen it after the wall came down!
The Connewitz part is a large kind of suburb. It is the melting pot of Leipzig. Lots of culture, gastronomy, pubs and out of this world shops!
I am amazed that you did not visit the "Voelkerschlachtdenkmal". This is a very famous monument in Leipzig (near Connewitz).
But like I said. I am glad that someone has seen a little bit of the other side of the wall. (Sounds like the dark side of the moon!:o)
Thank you soooooooo much for sharing this!:D
And by the way - great writing in German!!!!!!!:cool:

John C

connewitz wrote: »

Did you see the giant wine barrel in "Auerbach`s Keller"? Jawohl.

I am amazed that you did not visit the "Voelkerschlachtdenkmal". (Monument to the battle of nations)Doch, habe ich ihn gesehen.

O.g. Post war eine Kurzfassung. Summary

connewitz

John C wrote: »

O.g. Post war eine Kurzfassung. Summary

Hallo John!
Dachte mir schon, dass es nur eine kurze Zusammenfassung war.
Hast bestimmt jede Menge mehr gesehen.
Danke fuer deine Zeilen! Ich hab mich riesig gefreut und du hast mir den Schubs gegeben mal wieder nach Deutschland zu fliegen.
Ich vermisse Leipzig und die Riesenauswahl an Allem!
Wohne hier in Irland in einem sehr kleinen Ort (Monasterevin) und da gibt es nur ein Chinarestaurant und sonst nur Chippers.:eek:
Viel Spass noch im Bayernland!:)

John C

Erfurt ist die Landeshauptstadt des Freistaats Thüringen.

Diese Woche war ich da; Inter City Express von München nach Saalfeld und Nahverkehrzüge nach Erfurt.

Erfurt ist eine gut behaltene mittelalterliche Stadt.

Was mir gefallen hat: die Altstadt, der Dom, die alte Synagoge und die Krämerbrücke.

Häuser wurden auf beiden Seiten dieser Krämerbrücke gebaut. Statt einer Mauer bzw. eines Geländers, gibt es Häuser.

Erfurt hat eine Straßenbahn. Etwa 200.000 Personen wohnen in Erfurt.

Das Wetter war sonnig und trocken.

Lawrence1895

My hometown would be Dortmund.

There is of course the Westfalenstadion (I refuse to call it 'Signal Iduna Park'), the biggest football stadium in the country, which is even massive when empty.

Or the nearby Westfalenpark, you can go up that huge tower, the sight from up there is stunning, you can overlook the whole Ruhrgebiet (Ruhr Valley?) when the waether is fine.

Or more for insiders and football enthusiasts: The Borsigplatz in the North Inner City, that's where Borussia Dortmund was founded. Football history at it's best, so to speak.

Jagera

I feel sorry for any German person whose path I cross with when I move back to Dublin soon, for I will chew their ear off with the multiple stories of numerous places I have visited in the south west area of Baden-Württemberg over the last 2 years.

I can't really list every small village I have been too which impressed me, there's too many. Just the most recent two though: Sulzberg and Hausen im Wiesental - just in the last 2-3 weeks only.

Similarly with a fantastic holiday in Bavaria earlier this year. Takes your breath away.

I plan to continue learning German when I get back to Dublin, and we are leaving the option well clear for the possibility of moving to Germany to live, permanently.

Chuck Stone

Bodensee. Friedrichshafen has the Zepplin museum which is very interesting.

If you do go to Bodensee you should take a trip on one of the boats that goes down the Rhine towards the Rhine Falls (Switzerland), Europe's biggest waterfall. It really impressive and you pass thru loads of little germanic towns.

tricky D

Lars1916 wrote: »

My hometown would be Dortmund.

There is of course the Westfalenstadion (I refuse to call it 'Signal Iduna Park'), the biggest football stadium in the country, which is even massive when empty.

The Kop (Südtribüne) there is massive - 25,000 standing on the terrace. The setup and prices are also incredible. It was something like €15 for a Bundesliga game including trams from city centre. Beers were good value too.

Lawrence1895

tricky D wrote: »

The Kop (Südtribüne) there is massive - 25,000 standing on the terrace. The setup and prices are also incredible. It was something like €15 for a Bundesliga game including trams from city centre. Beers were good value too.

I know, I had a season ticket there between 1986 and 2004...and then I moved to Dublin

John C

Am Montag bin ich nach Lübeck gefahren.
Die Stadt ist super. Sie hat eine fabelhafte Umgebung.
Lübeck ist eine alte Hansestadt. Das Autokennzeichen ist HL. Die andere Städte die ich ein "H" für Hanse kenne, sind: HH Hamburg, HB Bremen und HRO Rostock.
Das Wetter heute ist trocken und 30 Grad hier.

John C

Letzen Samstag bin ich mit der Bahn nach Kaiserslautern im
Bundesstaat Rheinland-Pfalz gefahren.
Es hat weniger als 100.000 Einwohner.

Die Innenstadt war schön. Am Samstag abend gab
es einen Halloween Fest. Dies war nicht im Irischem
Tradition sondern im Amerikanischem Stil.
Auf der Bahnlinie S2 von Mannheim nach Kaiserslautern gab
es eine Haltestelle Frankenstein (Pfalz).

Kaiserslautern hat keinen Zivilflughafen. Der Amerikanische Luftwaffenstützpunkt Ramstein ist 10 km westlich von
Kaiserslautern. Der Lärm war nicht schlimm.

John C

It was sunny and dry in Switzerland last week. I drove along Lake Constance to Schaffhausen to see the Rhine Falls.
The water flow was not as spectacular as shown in an earlier post in this thread. Nonetheless I was glad that I drove there.