Njemačka - Germany

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(Podaci posljednji put ažurirani 26. travnja 2021.)

Njemačka (njemački: Deutschland), službeno Savezna Republika Njemačka (Bundesrepublik Deutschland) je najveća država u Srednja Europa. Njemačka je politički, ekonomski i kulturno utjecajna i najveća je Europska unija država članica prema broju stanovnika i ekonomskom učinku. Poznat po cijelom svijetu po "njemačkom inženjeringu", kao i po vodećim svjetskim bankarskim i osiguravajućim kućama, posjetitelji mu se jednako dive zbog šarma starog svijeta i Gemütlichkeit (udobnost). Odbacite svaku percepciju Njemačke kao jednostavno homogene i čeka vas zemlja iznenađujuće regionalne raznolikosti.

Regije

Njemačka je savezna republika koja se sastoji od 16 politički moćnih država (tzv Bundesländer - skraćeno na Länder) koji ponekad odgovaraju povijesnim regijama koje prethode jedinstvenoj njemačkoj državi, dok ponekad nasumce bacaju u istu državu vrlo različite narode, odvajajući ih od sličnijih srodnika preko državnih crta. Tri od ovih Bundesländer su zapravo gradovi-države: Berlin, Bremen i Hamburg. Države se mogu grubo grupirati prema zemljopisu kako je navedeno u nastavku, iako postoje i druge skupine. Dugo je vremena bila najuočljivija kulturna podjela između sjevera i juga, no zbog nasljeđa hladnog rata danas je primjetnija podjela između istoka i zapada.

Regije Njemačke
 Severna Njemačka (Bremen, Hamburg, Donja Saska, Mecklenburg-Zapadno Pomorje, Schleswig-Holstein)
Zapuhani vjetrovima i popularna odredišta za odmor na obalama Sjevernog mora i Baltičkog mora
 Zapadna Njemačka (Sjeverna Rajna-Vestfalija, Falačko Porajnje, Saarland)
Vinska zemlja i moderni gradovi oštro su presječeni dahom Srednja Rajna i Moselle dolinama
 Srednja Njemačka (Hesse, Tiringija)
Zeleno srce Njemačke, s nekim od najvažnijih povijesnih i financijskih gradova i drevnom Tirinškom šumom
 Istočna Njemačka (Berlin, Brandenburg, Saska, Saska-Anhalt)
Ekscentrična i povijesna prijestolnica Berlina, te obnovljeni povijesni Dresden, "Firenca na Labi"
 Južna Njemačka (Baden-Württemberg, Bavarska)
Schwarzwald, Alpe i Oktoberfest. Njemačka iz Lederhosen, Dirndl, prikazi razglednica sa slikama i tvrtke visoke tehnologije.

Gradovi

Hofbräuhaus u München
Nürnberg stari grad, pogled sa zapada

Njemačka ima brojne gradove od interesa za posjetitelje; ovdje su samo devet najpoznatijih turističkih odredišta. To su uglavnom veći gradovi Njemačke. Neki, poput Berlina i Hamburga, stoje poput urbanih otoka u ruralnijim krajolicima, drugi, poput Düsseldorfa i Frankfurta, dio su gradskih područja zajedno s drugim gradovima.

  • 1 Berlin - Ujedinjeni i oživljeni glavni grad Njemačke; metropola raznolikosti s nekim od najpoznatijih svjetskih klubova, trgovina, galerija i restorana. Kao rezultat razdvajanja na dva desetljeća tijekom hladnog rata, Berlin se sada može pohvaliti s više opernih kuća i muzeja po glavi stanovnika nego u većini drugih mjesta na svijetu.
  • 2 Bremen - Njegovo staro tržište, Schnoor, Böttcherstrasse, The Viertel i njegov pomorski štih čine Bremen izvrsnim urbanim iskustvom.
  • 3 Köln (Köln) - Osnovali su ga Rimljani prije 2000 godina i poznat je po ogromnoj katedrali (druga po veličini na svijetu), romaničkim crkvama, arheološkim nalazištima i živahnoj staroj gradskoj četvrti. Kölnski karneval glavni je ždrijeb oko veljače.
  • 4 Dresden - Jednom nazvana "Firenca na Labi", poznata po Frauenkirche (najfinija barokna katedrala izvan Italije) i svojoj povijesnoj povijesti Altstadt, koji su obnavljani nakon što su uništeni tijekom Drugog svjetskog rata. Zwinger i Residenzschloss su svjetski poznati muzeji.
  • 5 Düsseldorf - Njemački glavni grad za kupovinu koji također ima široku paletu fascinantnih novih arhitektura. Četvrt "Altstadt" i nasipi Rajne imaju živopisan noćni život.
  • 6 Frankfurt - Veličanstveni horizont, financijsko i prometno središte Europe, sjedište Europske središnje banke (ECB) i važan sajam. Mali rekonstruirani centar s drvenim kućama, važnim muzejima i galerijama oko Museumsufer poput Schirn Umjetnička dvorana, Städel i Senckenberg Prirodnjački muzej.
  • 7 Hamburg - Drugi po veličini njemački grad poznat je po luci, brojnim kanalima i mostovima Speicherstadt, Michelova crkva i nova koncertna dvorana Elbphilharmonie, živahni noćni život oko St. Paula s Reeperbahnom, njegovi mjuzikli i festival Hafengeburtstag.
  • 8 München (München) - Treći po veličini njemački grad i glavni grad Bavarske poznat je po Oktoberfestu, Hofbräuhausu, raznolikoj kulturnoj ponudi, uključujući opere, kazališta i muzeje, živopisan noćni život, mnoge glazbene festivale, svoje pivske vrtove i surfanje rijekama, i kao ulaz u Alpe.
  • 9 Nürnberg (Nürnberg) - Bivši Reichsstadt sa srednjovjekovnim dodirom, stari grad je dijelom obnovljen nakon teških bombardiranja u ratu, uključujući gotiku Kaiserburg i glavne crkve. Također možete posjetiti okupljališta Nacističke stranke, Dokumentacijski centar i Sudnicu 600, gdje su održana suđenja za ratne zločine u Nürnbergu.

Ostala odredišta

Baltičko ljetovalište Binz na Rügen, Najveći njemački otok
  • 1 Obala Baltičkog mora (Ostseeküste) - Jednom kad je igralište za okrunjene glave, ovo područje ponovno dolazi na svoje nakon što je Hladni rat isključio velik dio svijeta. Mjesto poznatog Strandkorb slika summita G8 2007. godine.
  • 2 Bavarske Alpe (Bayerische Alpen) - Njemačka možda u naj klišeiranijem, ali ujedno i najljepša; lijepo skijanje zimi, planinarenje ljeti i Schloss Neuschwanstein samo su najočitije atrakcije.
  • 3 Crna šuma (Schwarzwald) - Vjerojatno ćete pomisliti na "sat s kukavicom" ili pitu od višanja, i bilo bi vam oprošteno, ali u ovoj je regiji mnogo više od toga.
  • 4 Istočnofrizijski otoci (Ostfriesische Inseln) - Među najpopularnijim njemačkim mjestima za ljetni odmor, oni otoci u Waddenom moru bez automobila i dalje vide manje međunarodnih posjetitelja nego što zaslužuju.
  • 5 Frankonska Švicarska (Fränkische Schweiz) - Omiljeno među pjesnicima s početka 19. stoljeća koji su nadjenuli ime, ovo krško područje poznato je u svijetu po svom penjanju i ima nekoliko lijepih špilje.
  • 6 Harz - Davno zaboravljen zbog njemačke pregrade koja je prolazila kroz njega, Harz danas privlači turiste vrhunskim planinarenjem i mističnim romantizmom planine Brocken koja slovi za privlačenje vještica (kao što je spomenuto u Goetheovom Faust).
  • 7 Bodensko jezero (Bodensee) - Najveće njemačko jezero "Švapski ocean" (kao što je to u šali) istovremeno nudi alpsku panoramu i vodene aktivnosti.
  • 8 Dolina Srednje Rajne (Mittelrheintal) - Dio rijeke Rajne nalazi se pod zaštitom UNESCO-a između Bingena / Rüdesheima i Koblenza; dolina je poznata po svojim vinima.
  • 9 Sjevernofrizijski otoci (Nordfriesische Inseln) - Mirni otoci s odmaralištima na obali Sjevernog mora, posebno Sylt poznat je po otmjenim slavnim gostima i netaknutom krajoliku.

Shvati

Povijest

rimsko Carstvo

Vidi također: rimsko Carstvo
Rekonstrukcija starorimske utvrde južno od Limes Germanicus na Saalburg

U prvom stoljeću poslije Krista, nakon niza vojnih pohoda, Rimljani su uspjeli osvojiti ono što je danas većina zapadne i južne Njemačke od germanskih i keltskih plemena koja su tamo živjela. Granice Rimskog carstva bile su označene "limetama". Odjeljak koji razdvaja carstvo od germanskih plemena (Limes Germanicus) bila je dugačka 568 km, protežući se od ušća Rajne do Dunava u blizini Regensburg. Dijelovi uzdignute obale i dalje se mogu vidjeti i šetati. Međutim, u rimsko doba Limes je bio sve samo ne kruta granica i trgovina, a povremene rimske vojne ekspedicije utjecale su na većinu današnje Njemačke barem do četvrtog stoljeća nove ere.

Nekoliko gradova koji su i danas važni u Njemačkoj Rimljani su osnovali kao vojne baze, a kasnije i naselja, uključujući Mainz, Wiesbaden, Köln i Bonn. Baden-BadenIzvore su cijenili i Rimljani, koji su izgradili kupališta čije se ostatke može posjetiti pod prigodno nazvanim Römerplatz (Rimski trg). Najupečatljiviji rimski ostaci u Njemačkoj mogu se naći u Trier, najstariji njemački grad. Tu spadaju Porta Nigra, najveća rimska gradska vrata sjeverno od Alpa i amfiteatar Trier.

Sveto rimsko carstvo i srednji vijek

Vidi također: Frankovci, Hanza
Aachen Katedrala - karolinški oktogon
Kuća ceha tkalaca, Augsburg

Karlo Veliki, kralj Franaka, okrunjen je za cara Svetog Rimskog Carstva na Božić 800. godine pape, papa Lav III. Karlo Veliki je često povezan s Francuskom, ali njegovo je carstvo bilo ogromno; njegov je glavni grad bio u Aix la Chapelleu, danas na njemačkom jeziku poznat kao Aachen. Ostaci zimske carske palače Karla Velikog ( Kaiserpfalz) može se vidjeti u gradu Ingelheim. Korijeni moderne njemačke povijesti i kulture potječu iz postkarolinškog Svetog Rimskog Carstva.

Počevši od ranog srednjeg vijeka, Njemačka se počela dijeliti na stotine malih država, s jakim regionalnim razlikama koje traju do danas, na primjer u Bavarska. U tom se razdoblju povećala moć lokalnih knezova i biskupa, a njihovo nasljeđe bili su mnogi spektakularni dvorci i palače poput zamka Wartburg u Eisenach, Tiringija. Od 1200-ih godina trgovina s baltičkim područjem stvorila je Hanza i bogate gradske države kao što su Lübeck i Hamburg. I drugi su gradovi dolazili do izražaja s unutrašnjih trgovačkih putova, kao npr Leipzig, Nürnberg i Köln.

Kako se njemačko društvo postupno mijenjalo iz feudalne strukture u merkantilistički sustav, cehovi ili Zünfte obrtnika osnovani su i postali glavni čimbenik njemačke ekonomije i društva. Neke srednjovjekovne cehovske dvorane još uvijek stoje i danas ih se može posjetiti. U ovom je razdoblju došlo i do porasta bankarskih obitelji poput Fuggera, čiji su dužnici bili pape i carevi, i utjecali su na rast gradova poput Augsburg.

U srednjem vijeku i ranom novom vijeku Sveto Rimsko Carstvo (od čega je većina danas Njemačka, Austrija, Mađarska, Češka i dijelovi okolnih zemalja) sastojalo se od oko 2000 polusamostalnih teritorija koji su svi bili u manje-više tehničkoj podređenosti. caru. Sveto Rimsko Carstvo nije bilo - kako je Voltaire slavio, - ni Rimsko ni sveto ni carstvo. Iako neka sitna vojvodstva nisu bila više od nekoliko zaselaka, važni gradovi stekli su status Reichsstadt (ili Reichsstädte u množini) što ih je u osnovi učinilo gradskim državama podložnim samo caru. Njihovo nekadašnje bogatstvo još se uvijek može vidjeti na mjestima poput Rothenburga ob der Tauber i Nördlingen. Iako je bilo nekih ozbiljnih napora u modernizaciji od 15. do početka 17. stoljeća, Sveto Rimsko Carstvo je na kraju izgubilo sve osim nominalne središnje političke moći. A u opadajućim godinama nije uspio održati ni mir između svoja dva najmoćnija birača u to vrijeme, Austrije i Prusija, čije će suparništvo dominirati sudbinom područja njemačkog govornog područja veći dio 19. stoljeća.

Ranonovovjekovna Njemačka

Wartburg, Eisenach, sagrađena 1068. Martin Luther boravio je u dvorcu zbog sigurnosti, 1521.-1522.

Razdoblje religijske reforme i znanstvenih otkrića obilježilo je 1517. objavljivanje 95 teza Martina Luthera u Wittenberg, koja je pokrenula Protestantska reformacija. Luther bi nastavio prevoditi Bibliju na centralnonjemački narodni jezik u Wartburgu, čineći mnogo na standardizaciji njemačkog i isključivanju sjevernih dijalekata kao "donjenjemački" ili "nizozemski". Sveto carstvo podijelilo se između katolika i nekoliko ogranaka protestanata, dok su regionalne sile nastale iz ujedinjenijih teritorija katolika Bavarska i protestantska Saska i Brandenburg (kasnije poznata kao Pruska). Protestantsko-katolički sukob dosegnuo je vrhunac u Trideset godina rata, koja je opustošila mnoge njemačke teritorije. Trebalo je proći 100 godina dok njemačko stanovništvo nije naraslo na predratnu razinu. Vladari Saske (ali ne i njezino stanovništvo) prešli su na katoličanstvo tijekom vladavine Augusta Snažnog, koji je to učinio kao preduvjet da postane kralj Poljska, izgubivši tako istaknuti položaj među njemačkim protestantima od Pruske.

Vladari bogatijih vojvodstava i kraljevstava Njemačkog Carstva podržavali su razvoj umjetnosti i znanosti, poput djela Johanna Sebastiana Bacha, zaposlenog kod izbornika Saska, ili djela Goethea i Schillera koji su oboje imali visoko plaćene sinekure Weimar tijekom svojih najproduktivnijih godina kao književnici. Richard Wagner (rođen u Saskoj) pronašao je voljnog zaštitnika u Ludwigu II Bavarskom, koji je također dao sagraditi mnoge palače koje su danas voljene od strane turista, ali je bankrotirao njegove osobne financije. Među značajnim znanstvenicima bili su Daniel Fahrenheit, Alexander von Humboldt, Carl Wilhelm "na sreću" Scheele i, u matematici, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz napravio je veliki napredak u oba Leipzig i Hannover.

Tijekom baroknog razdoblja u umjetnosti i arhitekturi, mnogi su njemački vladari stvorili veličanstvene kraljevske rezidencije i obnovili svoje glavne gradove kako bi odražavali njihovu moć i ukus. Sjajne kreacije tog razdoblja uključuju Dresden i Potsdam.

Carska Njemačka

Vidi također: prvi svjetski rat
Deutsches Eck (Njemački kutak) u Koblenz, gdje se Moselle pridružuje Rajni; s konjičkim kipom cara Williama I. Od kasnih 1870-ih nadalje, puno kipova i poprsja Williama postavljeno je u cijeloj Njemačkoj.
Mase se okupljaju 1932. godine da proslave Weimarski ustav. Trg ispred Reichstag, tada i sada opet, ima ime Platz der Republik.

The Napoleonski ratovi okončao posljednji privid njemačke države kad je rimsko-njemački car Franz II odlučio odstupiti 1806. Razne njemačke države kasnije je povezivala konfederacija koja je u osnovi bila vojni savez s manje "saveznih" ovlasti od današnje EU. Ovu je konfederaciju zasjenio sukob između liberalne buržoazije i reakcionarne aristokracije s jedne strane i između Pruske i Austrije s druge strane. 1848. izbila je jedna od tih napetosti kada su liberalna nacionalistička oporba i neki elementi s lijeve strane zatražili centraliziraniju njemačku državu, okupljajući parlament i konstituirajuću skupštinu u Paulskirche u Frankfurt. Revolucija nije uspjela jer su revolucionari proveli puno vremena raspravljajući se treba li Austrija biti dio nove Njemačke ("großdeutsch") ili ne ("kleindeutsch"). U konačnici, titula njemačkog cara ponuđena je pruskom kralju Friedrichu Wilhelmu IV., Ali on je ponudu odbio jer je "ukaljana" ponudom buržoazije, a ne njegovih "jednakih" po rangu. Radikalniji elementi borili su se do 1849. godine, a neki revolucionari izgubili su živote, ali umjereniji elementi pomirili su se s vlastima i kasnije će podržati Prusko carstvo, dok su radikaliziraniji elementi sve više gravitirali socijalizmu i radikalnoj opoziciji svim stvarima monarhijski. Ne premala manjina također je odabrala izgnanstvo, uglavnom u Sjedinjenim Državama gdje su "četrdeset i osam" poput Franza Siegela i Carla Schurza bili među najoduševljenijim pristašama Sjevera u Američki građanski rat i među prvima koji su se zalagali za emancipaciju.

1866. - 1871. (Nakon odlučujućih ratova s ​​Austrijom i Francuskom) Prusija koju je vodio Bismarck ujedinila je Njemačku kao nacionalnu državu nazvanu Njemačko carstvo (Deutsches Reich, ili Kaiserreich). Bila je to federalno organizirana država koja je držala pojedine države sa svojim kraljevima, vojvodama i prinčevima. Neke su države, poput Bavarske ili Württemberga, čak zadržale vlastite vojske, željeznice i poštanske usluge. Države i njihova prebivališta i dalje su bila važna kulturna središta. Carstvo je kombiniralo tradicionalne institucije poput monarhije s elementima moderne demokracije kao što je demokratski izabrani parlament (Reichstag) i političke stranke. Na razini Reicha postojalo je opće biračko pravo za odrasle muškarce, ali pojedine su države biračko pravo - ili težinu glasova - mogle vezati za imovinske zahtjeve, što je Prusija učinila za sve državne izbore. Nadalje, germanizam i pravni progoni kočili su aktivnosti političkih stranaka koje su bile u sukobu s Bismarckom i / ili Kaiserom. Prvo je bijes režima pao na politički katoličanstvo s izričitim zakonima koji zabranjuju političke propovijedi protiv vlade, no kasnije su izdvojeni socijaldemokrati i socijalisti. Bismarck je slijedio pronicljivu "mrkvu i štap" u pogledu radničke klase. S jedne strane, radnički klubovi osumnjičeni za naklonost lijevog krila - čak i ako su izvana bili "samo" društveni klubovi posvećeni atletici, pjevanju ili nogometu - policija je zabranila ili uznemiravala, dok je u isto vrijeme Bismarck prolazio kroz najnaprednije i za svoje vremenski izdašno zakonodavstvo o socijalnoj sigurnosti. Državno zajamčene mirovine, zdravstveno osiguranje i isplate u slučaju bolesti, ozljeda ili smrti datiraju od tog vremena i iako im je primarna svrha bila zaustaviti ustanak u pupoljku, uvelike su poboljšali situaciju rastućeg urbanog proletarijata. Unatoč tome, socijaldemokratska stranka povećala je svoj udio glasova, a Wilhelm II je otpustio Bismarcka i ubrzao progon. Slijedom toga, socijaldemokrati su se promijenili iz radikalne i revolucionarne stranke u sve veću "lojalnu oporbu". Stranka je 1914. glasala za zajmove za financiranje Prvog svjetskog rata kako bi dokazala svoje domoljublje. Wilhelmov likujući "Ich kenne keine Parteien mehr, ich kenne nur noch Deutsche" (više ne znam nijednu stranku, znam samo Nijemce) nakon što je čuo da su vijesti još uvijek poznate u Njemačkoj.

Kako su trgovinske barijere postupno padale, Njemačka se našla kao središte kasnijeg razdoblja industrijske revolucije i uspostavila se kao glavna industrijska sila. U tom su razdoblju osnovane velike tvrtke, uključujući neke koje su preživjele do danas, a tehnološke su se inovacije odvijale u raznim poljima, istaknute stvaranjem automobila od strane Karla Benza i Gottlieba Daimlera u Baden-Württemberg. Od osnutka 'Bismarckova carstva' do prvog svjetskog rata njemačka je proizvodnja doživjela razvoj od jeftine masovne robe niske kvalitete (za koju su Britanci razvili "znak upozorenja" Napravljeno u Njemačkoj) za neke od najboljih dobara u svojim poljima, reputaciju koju do danas uživaju mnogi industrijski proizvodi u Njemačkoj. Njemačka se također počela penjati na prvo mjesto u prirodnim znanostima i medicini, dok je Nobelova nagrada do Drugog svjetskog rata odlazila Nijemcima gotovo jednako često kao danas Amerikancima. Imena poput Paula Ehrlicha (medicina), Maxa Plancka (kvantna fizika), Roberta Kocha (teorija klica) ili Alberta Einsteina (koji je do svog života živio u Švicarskoj annus mirabilis 1905) još uvijek su poznati širom svijeta i po njima je nazvano nekoliko istraživačkih instituta na dobrom glasu.

Milijuni Nijemaca emigrirali su u inozemstvo, posebno u Ujedinjene države, gdje su postali dominantna etnička skupina, posebno u Stari zapad. Iako je njemačko-američki identitet nestajao tijekom svjetskih ratova, i dalje je vidljiv u Američka kuhinja s jelima poput hamburgera i Wiener kobasice (poznate i kao Hrenovka). Kanada imao grad po imenu Berlin u području velike njemačke imigracije; preimenovano je Kitchener, nakon britanskog generala, 1916. Australija također je primio velik broj njemačkih imigranata; lokalizirana verzija šnitela prihvaćena je kao standardna australska kafana, dok su njemački imigranti imali glavnu ulogu u pokretanju australske industrije piva i vina. Njemačka imigracija dogodila se i u zemljama Latinske Amerike i iako nije uvijek brojna, često je ostavljala trag u ekonomskoj ili kulinarskoj povijesti zemalja odredišta.

Weimarska Republika

Na kraju Prvog svjetskog rata (1914.-18.), Car (Kaiser) Wilhelm II bio je prisiljen na abdikaciju. Revolucionarni odbor pripremio je izbore za nacionalnu skupštinu u Weimaru koji je Reichu dao novi, republički ustav (1919.). Prijelazno razdoblje naziva se "novembarskom revolucijom", a republika se kasnije obično naziva "Weimarska republika". Međutim, Njemačka je ostala "Njemački Reich" do 1945. godine, što je prvi članak weimarskog ustava koji dovodi raspravu o tome treba li novi ustavni poredak nazvati "Njemački Reich" ili "Njemačka Republika" na kompromisnu formulu "Njemački Reich je Republika ". Tijekom revolucije nakratko se činilo kao da bi Njemačka trebala postati socijalistička / komunistička država kakva je bila Rusija prije dvije godine, ali socijaldemokrati su na kraju zajednički s konzervativcima i reakcionarima iz doba Kaiserreicha zgnječili bilo što s njihove lijeve strane, ubijajući istaknute socijalisti Rosa Luxemburg i Karl Liebknecht u procesu. Ova percepcija izdaje ogorčila je mnoge komuniste, a za razliku od Francuske ili Španjolske, snage lijevo od socijaldemokrata nikada nisu uspostavile zajednički cilj s demokratskim strankama da zaustave uspon fašizma. Umjesto toga, KPD (komunistička partija) i NSDAP (nacistička stranka) često su glasovali zajedno na prijedloge nepovjerenja i populističke, ali nerealne račune.

The Bauhaus Dessau, škola za primijenjeni dizajn, iz 1920-ih

Mladu republiku mučili su golemi ekonomski problemi proizašli iz rata (poput hiperinflacije 1923.), posebno zbog reparacija koje je Njemačka morala platiti saveznicima kao rezultat Versajskog sporazuma, kao i sramote zbog ponižavajući poraz u Prvom svjetskom ratu. Drugi je problem bio taj što su mnoge elite (suci, državni službenici, pa čak i političari) bile otvoreno monarhističke i u najboljem su slučaju imale pristup "pričekaj i vidi" prema novom sustavu, što je dovelo do pravosudnog sustava koji je bio snishodljiv prema političkom nasilju s desne strane i drakonski kad je bila riječ o komunističkoj pobuni. Kako je rekao ljevičarski književnik Kurt Tucholsky: "Republika joj je bila slijepa na desno oko". Dajući samo jedan primjer, 1923. godine dogodio se pokušaj desničarskog puča koji su vodili Adolf Hitler i general I svjetskog rata Erich Ludendorff i komunistička pobuna u Hamburgu. Dok je Hitler osuđen na kratku zatvorsku kaznu, Ludendorff je oslobođen. Komunistički pobunjenici nisu imali te sreće - izrečene su oštre zatvorske kazne ili čak smrtne kazne. Pojedinačna politička atentata nisu se razlikovala, a nekoliko poznatih ličnosti u vladi i gospodarstvu - od kojih su mnoge bile centrističke ili čak desne centra i nesrazmjeran broj njih židovskog porijekla - ubijeno je od desnice Freikorps i Konzul organizacije uz virtualnu nekažnjivost. Poznate žrtve uključuju ministra financija Matthiasa Erzbergera (Središnja stranka, politički katolička), industrijalca i ministra vanjskih poslova Waltera Rathenaua (Njemačka demokratska stranka, liberalni), koji je imao ključnu ulogu u organizaciji ratne industrije u Prvom svjetskom ratu, te nekoliko političara umjerenog do krajnje lijevo.

Inflacija i politička previranja doveli su do rasta radikalnih stranaka, slijeva ponajviše KPD (Komunistička partija) i zdesna NSDAP (nacistička stranka). Iako je pokušaj puča 1923. naizgled diskreditirao naciste - barem izvan Bavarske - i KPD je izgubio potporu tijekom ekonomskih dobrih vremena između kraja hiperinflacije i Velike depresije, na izborima 1930. godine zabilježile su povratak obje radikalne stranke u puna snaga i virtualni kolaps političkog desnog centra (socijaldemokrati, dok su neki glasovi od komunista izgubili relativno stabilno), kao i pokupljanje glasova bivših neglasača doveli su do sve većih dobitaka za NSDAP i KPD dok nije bilo mogućnosti formiranja većine u Reichstagu bez glasova komunista ili nacista. 1930. ujedno je i posljednji put da je Weimarska Republika imala vladu koja se mogla osloniti na pozitivnu većinu u Reichstagu prije uspona Hitlera. Svi se kabineti između tada i 1933. godine oslanjali na opsežne "hitne" ovlasti Reichspräsidenta (koji je mogao imenovati ili otpustiti kancelara na vlastiti račun, bez savjetovanja s Reichstagom), a parlament je sve više postajao mjesto neprijateljima demokracije da svoje pozornice postave teatra, a ne središta političke rasprave i moći. Reichstag nikada nije izgubio pravo na glasanje o nepovjerenju i zaista, Hindenburg je morao raspustiti Reichstag i proglasiti nove izbore (što bi opet mogao učiniti sam), kako bi spriječio prijedlog za izglasavanje nepovjerenja kancelarki iz pretjecanje.

U razmjerno dobroj ekonomskoj klimi sredinom 1920-ih mnoge su banke i poduzeća uzimali relativno jeftine kratkoročne zajmove za financiranje dugoročnih investicija koji su uvelike izlagali gospodarstvo u padu Wall Streeta 1929. Iako su 1920-ih vidjeli oporavak Njemačko gospodarstvo zbog američkih ulaganja, Velika depresija dovela je do povlačenja ove investicije. Kao rezultat toga, njemačko je gospodarstvo bilo osakaćeno, a vladina deflacijska politika, kao i globalna tendencija ka protekcionizmu, samo su pogoršali situaciju. To je omogućilo snažnim protudemokratskim snagama (poput KPD-a i NSDAP-a) da iskoriste svojstvene organizacijske probleme weimarskog ustava. A od izbora 1930. nadalje, u Reichstagu više nikada nije bilo prodemokratske većine bilo koje vrste.

Nacionalsocijalistička partija (koja se često naziva jednostavno 'nacisti') preuzela je kontrolu osvojivši mnoštvo razočaranih njemačkih glasača koji traže promjene. Početkom 1933. godine, tada 84-godišnji predsjednik Reicha Paul von Hindenburg - visoki general tijekom Prvog svjetskog rata - postavio je nacističkog poglavara Adolfa Hitlera za kancelara. Hindenburg je također koristio svoje predsjedničke ovlasti za podršku Hitlerovoj diktaturi u nastajanju. Povjesničari se i dalje svađaju oko Hindenburgovih motiva. Možda je podcijenio Hitlera ili je barem djelomično simpatizirao Hitlerov autoritarni stil. Kad je Hindenburg umro 1934. godine, Hitler se istodobno proglasio predsjednikom, Führerom i kancelarom, što je očito kršenje slova i duha ustava, a od tada nadalje kontrolirano i samostalno.

Nacističko doba

Vidi također: Svjetskog rata u Europi, Sjećanje na holokaust

1933. godina svjedočila je usponu na vlast nacionalističke i rasističke nacionalsocijalističke njemačke radničke (nacističke) stranke i njezine Führer, Adolf Hitler. Pod nacističkom diktaturom demontirane su demokratske institucije i ojačana policijska država. Židovi, Slaveni, Cigani, hendikepirani ljudi, homoseksualci, socijalisti, komunisti, unionisti i druge skupine koje se nisu uklapale u nacističku viziju Velike Njemačke suočili su se s progonom, te su robovali ili ubijani u logorima smrti. Europski Židovi i Cigani bili su obilježeni potpunim istrebljenjem. Mjesto prvog nacističkog koncentracijskog logora u Dachau kao i nekoliko drugih sada su spomen obilježja.

Wewelsburg (u blizini Dortmund), rekonstruirana je pod nacističkom vlašću, koristila su je SS vođa i proširena s SS kultnim mjestom; to je sada hostel za mlade s povijesnim muzejom i spomen obilježjem za zatvorenike koncentracijskih logora

Hitlerove militarističke ambicije stvaranja novog (trećeg) Njemačkog Carstva u srednjoj i istočnoj Europi dovele su do Drugog svjetskog rata, koji je nacistička Njemačka izgubila i koji je ostavio svečani trag na kontinentu, a posebno u Njemačkoj. Zbog dva prethodna "njemačka carstva", nacističko doba na njemačkom se često naziva "drittes Reich"(treće carstvo) među ostalim oznakama.

Hitlerova vanjska politika postajala je sve militarističnija i agresivnija. Međutim, čelnici Francuske, a posebno Britanije bili su oprezni prema novom europskom ratu, a kako je Njemačka stekla puno ustupaka diplomacijom između 1919. i 1933., neki nisu ni vidjeli problem u dopuštanju Hitleru da se izvuče prkoseći ili razbijajući Versajski ugovor. Povjesničari još uvijek raspravljaju je li Hitler imao veliki master plan ili se svaki put samo kockao kako bi vidio koliko daleko može ići, ohrabren nikad zaustavljanjem, ali krajnji rezultat ostaje isti. Njemačka je napustila Društvo naroda (1933.) anektirala područje Saara nakon što se plebiscit dogovorio prije Hitlerovog dolaska na vlast (1935.), remilitarizirao Porajnje (1936.), pomogao nacionalističkoj (Francovoj) strani u španjolskom građanskom ratu unatoč Ligi nacija sporazum da se izbjegne rat (1936.-1939.), uključujući bombardiranje njemačkih zrakoplovnih snaga Guernica (1937.). Njemačka je također anektirala i napala Austriju (1938.) i zauzela agresivno držanje protiv Čehoslovačke što je rezultiralo danas zloglasnim Minhenskim sporazumom (1938.) u kojem je Čehoslovačka bila prisiljena odreći se Sudeta bez konzultacija u vezi s tim. Kada je Njemačka napala Poljsku 1. rujna 1939., dajući kao opravdanje očito lažirani poljski napad, Francuska i Velika Britanija konačno su se osjećale vezanima za savezništvo i objavile rat Njemačkoj 3. rujna. Međutim, na zapadu se nije dogodilo malo napadačke akcije do ofanzive 1940. od strane nacista koja je dovela do pada Francuske i povlačenja britanskih trupa preko Dunkirk. Kad je Hitler izdao svog nekadašnjeg saveznika Staljina i napao Sovjetski Savez, "Blitzkrieg" nije uspio jer ni Moskva ni Lenjingrad su zarobljeni, a na kraju su Sovjeti uspjeli preokrenuti tok s užasnim gubicima na obje strane, uključujući jezive povrede ljudskih prava i masakre, posebno počinjene od strane SS-a i Wehrmachta nad civilima na napadnutom području. 1944. godine saveznici (posebno Amerika, Britanija i Kanada) iskrcali su se u Normandiji, dok je Hitler i dalje vjerovao da je iskrcavanje finta s glavnim potiskom koji dolazi preko Calaisa, a Sovjeti su neprestano napredovali, što je kulminiralo zauzimanjem Berlina u travnju 1945. godine. , predaja u svibnju 1945. (različito se slavila kao 8. ili 9. svibnja) i zarobljavanje posljednjih nacističkih pobuna u Schleswig Holstein kasnije tog mjeseca. Godine suđeni nacističkim ratnim zločincima Nürnberg iako su mnogi izbjegli presudu i završili u arapskom svijetu, Latinskoj Americi ili čak samoj Njemačkoj, ponekad na visokim vladinim, akademskim ili industrijskim položajima.

U kasnijoj fazi rata saveznički bombaški napadi donijeli su razaranja u gotovo svaki veći njemački grad (kao što je to njemačko ratno zrakoplovstvo učinilo s Rotterdamom, Varšavom, Londonom, Coventryjem i drugim gradovima u ranijim fazama rata). Nakon izgubljenog rata okupirana je zemlja izgubila veći dio istočnih teritorija i suočila se s velikom izbjegličkom krizom, milijuni Nijemaca poplavili su se prema zapadu u ono što je ostalo od Njemačke, te iz drugih zemalja u kojima su značajne njemačke manjine izbjegavale vojni i politički utjecaj pobjedničkog Sovjetskog Saveza.

Poslije rata

Vidi također: Europa hladnog rata
Bonn's Haus der Geschichte (Kuća povijesti) o povijesti Savezne Republike, s automobilom Mercedes koji je koristio Konrad Adenauer, prvi poslijeratni kancelar

Nakon razornog poraza u Drugom svjetskom ratu (1939–45), Njemačka je bila podijeljena na četiri sektora, pod nadzorom britanskih, francuskih, sovjetskih i američkih snaga. Velika Britanija i SAD odlučili su spojiti svoje sektore, a slijede francuski. S početkom hladnog rata Njemačka se sve više dijelila na istočni dio pod sovjetskom kontrolom i zapadni dio koji su kontrolirali zapadni saveznici. Zapadni dio pretvoren je u Saveznu Republiku Njemačku (FRG ili BRD za njemačko ime), kapitalističku, demokratsku zemlju sa Bonn kao zapravo glavni grad, koji se često nazivao Zapadnom Njemačkom.

Zona pod sovjetskom kontrolom postala je komunistička / autoritarna Njemačka demokratska republika (NDR) u sovjetskom stilu, obično zvana Istočna Njemačka. To je obuhvaćalo današnjicu Länder od Saska, Saska-Anhalt, Tiringija, Brandenburg i Mecklenburg-Zapadno Pomorje. Berlin, koji je zemljopisno ostavljen u Istočnoj Njemačkoj, imao je poseban status jer je bio podijeljen između Sovjeta i Zapada, s tim da je istočni dio služio kao glavni grad DDR-a i zapadni sektor Berlina (Zapadni Berlin) biti zapravo eksklava Savezne Republike.

Sudbine Istočne i Zapadne Njemačke znatno su se razlikovale u političkom i ekonomskom razvoju. The East saw heavy demontage - for example very close to every rail line lost its second track and electrification in the immediate postwar era, some having never regained them - and only a gradual switch to economic aid by the occupying power. Thanks to Western aid, the economy and industrial base in West Germany was quickly rebuilt, resulting in the Wirtschaftswunder (economic miracle). The East became a socialist, centrally-planned economy with almost all of its economy nationalised, and increasingly lagged behind the West as this system proved much less efficient or conducive to growth. The limitations of personal freedoms, ever-present censorship and secret police led many of the East's citizens to attempt to flee to the West. However, compared to the other Soviet Bloc countries like Čehoslovačka, Poljska, Mađarska, or even the Soviet Union itself, the East Germans were (on average) wealthier.

In 1961, the Berlin Wall was erected around West Berlin as part of a heavily guarded frontier system of border fortifications to deter inhabitants from East Berlin from defecting to the more prosperous West. Today some remnants of the era are now museums, such as the former prisons in Berlin-Hohenschönhausen or Bautzen. While many pieces of the Berlin Wall were destroyed outright or sold to enthusiasts around the world, parts have been preserved in their original location as monuments or art installations. The most widely known such installations is the eastside gallery in central Berlin. If you want to avoid the tacky Checkpoint Charlie in Berlin, Bernauer Straße (the street which had windows walled shut, as the houses were in the East and the street in the West) is more accurate — if chilling — with its museum and monument.

United Germany

Dresden's Frauenkirche, destroyed in World War II, became a symbol of German unity and German–British reconciliation because of the common efforts to rebuild it in 1994–2005

Germany was reunited peacefully in 1990, a year after the fall and collapse of the GDR's communist regime and the opening of the iron curtain that separated German families by the barrel of a gun for decades. The re-established eastern states joined the Federal Republic on 3 October 1990, a day since celebrated as a national holiday (Tag der Deutschen Einheit, day of "German national unity", or "Reunification Day"). The united Berlin became the capital of the unified Germany again, and with all federal government branches gradually moving there in the 1990s, the city saw a continued construction and economic boom, putting the city among the European hotspots.

Reunification meant that the affluent West helped the East rebuild its economy, while also accepting the willing migrants freely. This has not been without social and political tensions, but ultimately reunification is regarded as a success, with many cities of the East regaining their former glory (e.g. Dresden) and industrial might (e.g. Leipzig). The legacy of the GDR is still palpable in a slightly higher unemployment, a slightly lower standard of living and a more even distribution of wealth in some areas of the East, and with numerous mementos to socialism like the huge statue of Karl Marx in the city of Chemnitz, which was called Karl-Marx-Stadt during the period of communist rule. The DDR museum in Berlin offers a way to experience the peculiar, and sometimes absurd, life in the erstwhile East Germany.

While the major cities of the East are once again growing, rural areas and minor towns have been hit hard, and some appear to be on a terminal decline, having lost half their inhabitants to the big cities since 1990, with only elderly people remaining. However, even some places in the West are beginning to encounter problems once characteristic of the post-reunification East, such as dilapidated public infrastructure, empty municipal coffers and shrinking population figures. The overall downward trend was reversed - at least for the short term - due to the influx of refugees in 2015 and there seems to be a trend of re-urbanisation driving up housing costs in major cities, but the decline of rural areas seems to be only getting worse.

In the years after reunification Germany faces challenges such as the climbing average age of its population and partially the integration of inhabitants who immigrated recently. Germany enjoys the benefits of European cooperation and the digital revolution. A very visible modern development are the wind turbines, praised for providing sustainable energy and criticised for their impact on the landscape.

Ekonomija

Frankfurt is the largest financial centre in continental Europe. It is also an important city in German history with many emperors being crowned or elected here and the first draft at a modern German constitution written in its Paulskirche in 1848

As one of the 10 biggest economies in the world by total GDP Germany is regarded as an economic powerhouse not only within Europe, but also globally. Much of Germany's economic reputation stems from the export orientation of many of their companies, both those who grew to be large multinationals, but also mid-sized enterprises. Germany is known as an exporter of various kinds of machinery and technology, be it consumer goods like automobiles, and all kinds of machinery for all branches of industry, mining and agriculture. Creative industries, high-tech start-ups and the service sector also play an increasing role for Germany's economical output.

A pretty unique feature of Germany's economy is the relative decentralization: you will find large companies headquartered in many different German cities and Länder, not only in or around the capital as in many other European centres. The result of that is not only the widespread relative wealth and high living standards, as well as elegant and tidy appearance of both large cities and small towns, but also the additional tourist opportunities. You can visit the factories and company museums of BMW in München or Mercedes and Porsche in Stuttgart. More and more factories are also built to be more than manufacturing plants, but also experience centres, like the BMW and Porsche plants in Leipzig ili gläserne Manufaktur of VW in Dresden, the latter now builds electric cars.

The global importance of the German economy and its geographically distributed nature has its reflection in the transportation network of the country. Aerodrom u Frankfurtu is an important air traffic hub for Europe and the main one for Germany's flag carrier Lufthansa. That said, many other airports have numerous intercontinental connections, as well as busy intra-European and domestic traffic, including those in Berlin, München, Düsseldorf, Köln i Hamburg. The somewhat unsatisfactory airport situation in the capital - in part a legacy of partition - was finally remedied by a new "Berlin Brandenburg International Airport", after it had a laughing stock due to numerous delays and problems with planned openings in the early 2010s before finally opening a decade late and several times over budget in autumn 2020. There is also a dense network of railway lines within Germany and to neighbouring countries, many of which have been upgraded to high-speed standards (served by Germany's state operator Deutsche Bahn's Inter-City-Express vlakovi). The Autobahn (motorway) network is world-famous for its quality and comprehensiveness, as well as the lack of speed limits on certain stretches. Unlike most of its neighbours, Germany does not have any tolls (for cars, that is) for the vast majorities of its highways yet. The Autobahnen are also used by many bus companies, which offer a low-cost alternative to airlines and railways.

Politika

The Bundestag in Berlin is the legislature. It gathers in this historical building from 1894, which is called Reichstag.

Germany is a federal republic, consisting of 16 federal states (Bundesländer). The federal parliament (Bundestag) is elected every four years in a fairly complicated system, involving both direct and proportional representation. The parliament elects the Federal Chancellor (Bundeskanzler), who serves as the head of the government. The Bundesländer are represented at the federal level through the Federal Council (Bundesrat). Many federal laws have to be approved by this council and this can lead to situations where council and parliament block each other if they are dominated by different parties. The Federal Constitutional Court (Bundesverfassungsgericht) has the right to pass judgement on the constitutionality of laws.

The head of state is the Federal President (Bundespräsident). He or she is not involved in day-to-day politics and has mainly ceremonial and representative duties. There is a tendency to nominate elder statesmen to the role which (as of 2020) is filled by former vice-chancellor and minister of the exterior Frank-Walter Steinmeyer. While the president lets his party membership "rest" during his time in office and the office is supposed to be non-partisan, all but one (Joachim Gauck) had had a clear party-affiliation prior to taking the office.

The two largest parties are the centre-right CDU (Christlich Demokratische Union, Christian Democratic Union) and the centre-left SPD (Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, Social Democratic Party of Germany). Due to the proportional voting system, smaller parties are also represented in parliament. They cover a full spectrum of political views from free market economy, environmentalism to far left socialism. Still, the number of different parties is relatively low because a party is only represented if it gained at least 5 % at the elections. While Germany for a long time did not have a far-right populist party at the federal level - unlike most of the rest of Europe - the "Alternative für Deutschland" (AfD) now fulfills this role to much controversy.

Germany is subdivided into sixteen states which retain a great deal of political power, including education, setting the closing hours of stores and local rail traffic.

Demografski podaci

German Unity Day celebration, 2013 in Stuttgart

Being a federal republic, Germany is very much a decentralised country, which does justice to the cultural differences between the regions. Some travellers will perhaps only think of beer, Lederhosen and Oktoberfest when Germany comes to mind, but Germany's famous alpine and beer culture is mostly in Bavarska i München. The annual Oktoberfest is Europe's most visited festival and the world's largest fair. Germany's south-western regions, however, are well known for their wine growing areas (e.g. Rheinhessen i Falačka) and Bad Dürkheim on the "German wine route" (Deutsche Weinstraße) organises the biggest wine festival worldwide with over 600,000 visitors annually.

Immigration has also played a large part in Germany over the past 50 years, with approximately 20% of the total population being either foreign or of a 'migrant background' (Germans and non Germans who moved to Germany after 1949 or have at least one parent that did). Many cities have large communities of Turks, Poles, Italians as well as people from Southern and Eastern Europe or the Middle East. Immigration of various types also played a role before that, but in most cases descendants of e.g. refugees from the former German territories east of Oder and Neisse or descendants of French Huguenots are distinguished from other Germans by little more than their last name if that. Although the Jewish community was virtually wiped out by the Nazis, high levels of immigration from the former Sovjetski Savez since its collapse in 1991 have resulted in a large number of Soviet Jews settling in Germany, and Germany now once again has one of the world's largest Jewish communities, and the fourth largest in Europe after France, the United Kingdom and Russia.

Many cities have a vibrant LGBT scene, especially Berlin i Köln. Berlin's tourism agency and other tourism organisations actively attract gay and lesbian travellers to their cities. Laws legalising gay marriage were passed and implemented in 2017. Homosexuality is widely accepted in society. Open homosexuals have attained high political office, including the mayorships of Berlin and Hamburg, vice-chancellor and foreign minister and even some rural and conservative places have elected openly gay mayors. Views on homosexuality have traditionally been more negative in rural areas and among blue collar workers, but even here acceptance is increasing, as is visibility. Some people of Middle Eastern descent - including urban youth - also have more negative views of homosexuals and homosexuality as do people on the extreme political right.

Struja

Electricity is supplied at 230 V and 50 Hz and power failures are very rare. Almost all outlets use the Schuko socket, and most appliances have a thinner but compatible Europlug. Travel adapters of all kinds are widely available in electronics stores, but they are often rather expensive.

Razgovor

Vidi također: Njemački rječnik riječi
Bad Hersfeld: statues of Konrad Duden, famous dictionary author, and Konrad Zuse, computer pioneer, both citizens of the city

The official language of Germany is njemački (Deutsch). The standard form of German is called "Hochdeutsch" (High German). It's understood by all and spoken by almost all Germans. However, every region has its own dialects, which might pose a challenge even to those who speak German well, even native speakers. This is usually noticeable only in the south and rural areas of the north and east. Dialect remains a strong part of the local identity in Bavaria, Saxony, southern Rhineland and Hesse, Württemberg and Baden. The general rule is that the Main River divides north Germany from the south in both language dialects and local culture. Dialects are losing ground to various extent throughout Germany, not least because of unsavoury associations of ruralness, lacking education and the prejudice that dialect as the home language would impede acquisition of "proper" standard German in school.

'Sie' or 'Du'?

Politeness in German is important, and you should generally refer to other unacquainted people with the formal and polite form of 'you' which is "Sie". The informal version of 'you' is "du" and can be used if both of you are already very familiar, or if the person is a child. These days younger people, roughly below the age of 30, can use "'du'" between complete strangers, except in some professional contexts. Verb endings will also change depending upon which you use.

Many Germans have learned some Engleski at school (a compulsory subject in the West since the 1980s), so you should be able to get by. However, while many Germans claim to speak it fairly well, actual proficiency varies tremendously across most social, generational, and even geographic dimensions; some Germans have near-native fluency on par with the Netherlands and the Nordic countries, while others maybe barely utter a few sentences. Generally speaking, people in large and cosmopolitan urban areas such as Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, and Stuttgart speak very good English, whereas people from more industrial regions, such as much of Rhine-Ruhr, smaller urban areas (Hanover, Kiel, Münster), rural areas, and most of east Germany may not possess as much fluency. Furthermore, younger people will usually be able to converse in English, whereas older generations tend to not speak any English at all.

Since language ability is a measure of social standing it may be difficult to persuade many Germans to speak German to you if they know you are a native English speaker. Saying that you are (even if pretending to be) a non-native English speaker can get around this situation. That said, Germans who are actually truly fluent and confident in English usually have no issue speaking German with you.

You'll meet German words on traffic signs; this one signs a detour

Germans tend to be direct, and will often answer in English with short responses. Since it's polite to reply "Bitte" if someone thanks you, Germans may literally translate this with "please" instead of "here you are" or "you're welcome".

Other languages are spoken in Germany as well. A surprising number of Germans speak francuski, often with really good proficiency. In parts of Eastern Germany, a small Slavic community of 50,000 also speaks Sorbian. Many people who grew up in the formerly communist East Germany were taught to speak ruski and there's a sizable community of former residents of the Soviet Union who immigrated after 1990 and tend to speak Russian. turski is spoken by many in the large ethnic Turkish community. Due to immigration, it is becoming more common to find other foreign languages such as talijanski, Polirati, Španjolski and various Jugoslavenski languages, although many do not speak the language of their parents or grandparents, let alone on a native level.

Virtually all movies, in addition to foreign shows broadcast on German TV are dubbed into German. If you wish to watch the newest movies in English, they may be shown without dubbing at select theatres at the biggest cities for a little premium fee. Look for the symbol OmU ili OmengU (Original with subtitles). An even rarer treat is the cinema showing movies in their original version bez subtitles - those usually only exist in cities of half a million or more. Niche films and shows shown on high-brow channels like arte (a French-German channel) or 3sat (a German-Swiss-Austrian channel) may sometimes be shown with their original audio and subtitles due to the cost of dubbing niche media, but those are rare even on these niche channels.

Uđi

Uvjeti za prijavu

The Dutch–German border, near Winterswijk. The crossings to the western neighbours of Germany hardly look different from any other path.

Germany is a member of the Schengen Agreement.

  • There are normally no border controls between countries that have signed and implemented the treaty. This includes most of the European Union and a few other countries.
  • There are usually identity checks before boarding international flights or boats. Sometimes there are temporary border controls at land borders.
  • Likewise, a Visa granted for any Schengen member is valid in all other countries that have signed i implemented the treaty.
  • Molim te vidi Travelling around the Schengen Area for more information on how the scheme works, which countries are members and what the requirements are for your nationality.

Recognised refugees and stateless persons in possession of a valid travel document issued by the government of any one of the above countries/territories (e.g. Canada) are exempt from obtaining a visa for Germany (but Ne other Schengen country, except Mađarska, Nizozemska i Belgija, and for refugees, Slovačka) for a maximum stay of 90 days in a 180-day period.

Citizens of Australia, Canada, Israel, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea and the US are eligible to obtain a residence permit, or Aufenthaltstitel (authorising a stay of more than 90 days and permission to work), upon arrival in Germany, but before the end of the 90-day period of visa-free entry. Before obtaining such status, they are not allowed to work, with the exception of some specific occupations (such as artists). Nationals of Honduras, Monaco and San Marino can also obtain such a permit, but this is issued only if they may not work on the residence permit. Other nationals will need to obtain a visa before if they intend to stay in Germany for longer than the 90-day period, even if they are visa-free for that period for a stay in the Schengen area, or if they intend to work.

Authorised members of the British and US military need to possess only a copy of their duty orders (NATO Travel Order) and their ID card to be authorised entry into Germany. The passport requirement, though, applies to spouses and dependents of military personnel, and they must obtain a stamp in their passports to show that they are sponsored by a person in Germany under the Status of Forces Agreement.

There are no land border controls: travel between Germany and other Schengen states, including Switzerland, is easy. However, plain-clothes officers of the German border police are known to ask travellers for their ID especially on the border between Bavaria and Austria.

When crossing a border in an international Eurocity train (especially to/from the Czech Republic and Poland) you will almost always be asked for ID.

There are a number of ways to get into Germany. From neighbouring European countries, a drive with the car or a train or bus ride are perhaps the easiest and most comfortable options; visitors from further away will probably be using air travel.

Avionom

Aerodrom u Frankfurtu is Germany's busiest and one of the world's key aviation hubs

Major airports and airlines

The most important airports are Frankfurt (FRA IATA), München (MUC IATA) i Berlin Brandenburg Airport (BER IATA). Düsseldorf (DUS IATA), Köln (CGN IATA), Hamburg (HAM IATA) i Stuttgart (STR IATA) also have many international flights.Frankfurt is Germany's main hub (as well as one of Europe's main hubs) and the destination of most intercontinental flights. Munich is a growing secondary hub. Travellers can easily fly into Frankfurt and Munich on Germany's flag carrier Lufthansa, which is a member of Zvjezdani savez.

Flag carriers usually have - at the very least - flights from their main hub to Frankfurt Airport and all main airline alliances codeshare and cooperate for flights to one of more of Germany's major airports. Few countries are more than one connection away.

The airports of Frankfurt, Düsseldorf and Köln/Bonn are on the InterCityExpresshigh-speed rail mreža. Berlin Airport is served by local trains, S-Bahn and Intercity trains (on the Rostock-Berlin-Dresden route) but while the station is capable of accommodating an ICE it does not do so as of late 2020. Leipzig Halle airport (LEJ IATA) is served by both local and Intercity trains. Most other airports are either connected via the urban public transport network or have their own commuter rail station. However, this is not always the case with lesser "regional" airports, frequently used by no frills airlines, with "Frankfurt"-Hahn being a particular example having no rail connection and a bus that takes about 2 hours to Frankfurt as the only mode of public transport.

Lufthansa passengers travelling from Frankfurt Airport have the option to check in at Cologne or Stuttgart train stations and travel to Frankfurt airport by ICE, dropping off their luggage immediately at Frankfurt airport long distance railway station. If doing so, be sure to book the train journey as a Lufthansa connecting flight (i.e. in advance together with the flight); otherwise, vas are responsible for any missed connection. All major German airports and most airlines also offer pruga & letjeti, a program that allows you to get a ticket to/from the airport and anywhere on the German rail network. Most of the time this has to be bought at the same time as the plane ticket, but some airlines allow you to buy it in addition to the plane ticket later on. For more see željeznički zračni savezi.

Minor and budget airlines

Vidi također: Flying on a budget
Don't expect much of the secondary, "budget" airports like Memmingen

Flying can be the cheapest way to get to Germany and from there to other European countries. Before booking a budget flight, compare carefully as their destinations are often a bit out of the way and after adding all the fees, taxes, additional bus tickets to get to their airports, you might end up at even higher prices than you would pay for a discounted Lufthansa ticket. Also according to a 2013 VCD (Verkehrs Club Deutschland) study, inner-European flights are more expensive than a train ticket booked on the same day as the flight would be in over 80% of the time.

The major airports for budget airlines jesu Berlin Brandenburg Airport (particularly its "Terminal 5" which has seen better days) (BER IATA), "Frankfurt"-Hahn (HHN IATA) and Weeze (NRN IATA) as well as smaller airports with fewer choice of destinations like Memmingen (FMM IATA) (110 km (68 mi) from Munich). Some of the smaller airports are former military airports from the cold war era. They are far away from urban centres. Don't be tricked by the name: Frankfurt-Hahn is actually 130 km (81 mi) from the city of Frankfurt. Düsseldorf-Weeze was forced by a court decision to change its name, as Düsseldorf is 85 km (53 mi) to the south east. No frills airlines are notorious for changing the airports they serve at short notice and several airports that used to have dozens of flights daily have reverted to slumbering general aviation fields.

There are budget flights from almost every city in Europe to Germany. The major budget airlines in Germany are easyJet, Ryanair, Eurowings, i Wizz Air (for flights from Eastern Europe) which all offer several connections to many countries throughout Europe. The main hubs for easyJet are Berlin-Brandenburg and Dortmund, for Ryanair Hahn and Weeze and for Eurowings Cologne/Bonn and Stuttgart. Most of those airlines also fly into and out of other airports but usually with a more limited choice of connections.

For budget flights from European holiday destinations, for example around the Mediterranean, some of Germany's other carriers are Kondor (also from main tourist destinations throughout the world) and TUIfly. The classical "holiday charter" airlines offer a number of - often seasonal - connections largely from Mediterranean destinations. While they still sell most of their seats as parts of package deals as the name indicates, almost all of them sell tickets unbundled and if they want to get a plane that would otherwise be half-empty full, you can get some amazing deals indeed. Antalya (Turkey) has several daily connections even to relatively minor German airports during the holiday season.

Vlakom

Glavni članak: Rail travel in Germany

Regular train services connect Germany with all neighbouring countries. Almost all neighbouring countries (especially Švicarska, Poljska, Nizozemska, Danska, Češka Republika i Austrija) and even some non-neighbouring countries (e.g. Italija i Mađarska) are quite well connected with "EuroCity" trains. They are a little bit slower and sometimes slightly less comfortable than the European high-speed trains but nevertheless reach up to 200 km/h. They are a worthwhile way to travel – not only for budget travellers (although budget airlines might sometimes be cheaper) or landscape viewers (especially the Rhine valley lines). When booked in advance Deutsche Bahn offer vrlo competitive prices to many European destinations under their "Europa-Spezial" brand, with tickets starting at €39 (or less for short "hops" across the border) one way (you can usually book no earlier than 180 days in advance); however, you cannot change the train or date of travel and refunds are limited. If you miss the train that usually means the ticket becomes worthless.

Several European high-speed trains cross into and out of Germany:

Frankfurt central railway station with ICE 3M Nederlandse Spoorwegen
  • The ICE brings you at 300 km/h top speed from Frankfurt (3.25 hr), Cologne (2.5 hr) or Düsseldorf (2.25 hr) to Amsterdam. The train journey from Frankfurt do Pariz (320 km/h) using the ICE will take about four hours; going from Hamburg do Pariz can take eight and a half hours. There is also an ICE line from Frankfurt to Brussels via Cologne.
  • The Thalys brings you from Cologne (Köln) to Paris in approximately four hours and to Brussels in about two hours.
  • The TGV brings you from Marseille, Lyon i Strasbourga to Frankfurt, and from Paris, and Strasbourg to Munich.
  • Između Stuttgart i Milano you can travel with one stop in Zurich, the fastest trans alpine train connection. The Italian and German lines feeding into the Gotthard Base Tunnel (which opened in late 2016) are being upgraded. The German and Swiss railways plan to introduce new services along this route for the 2018 schedule.

Standard rail fares are quite high, but there are a number of special fares and discounts available – see the "Get Around" section for more information. Konkretno, Bahncard reduction applies for the whole journey as long as it starts or ends in Germany. If you have some time on your hand taking local trains to the border on a domestic ticket might actually be cheaper, especially to/from the Czech Republic and Poland.

Brodom

Trajekti

Kiel, Schleswig-Holstein: ferries link Kiel to many Scandinavian locations
View to the rear of a Finnlines ferry from Helsinki to Travemünde

International ferry services exist, notably to Skandinavija. Some of the most popular connections are listed below:

There are also ferries crossing Bodensko jezero to and from Švicarska.

Krstarenja

Rostock is by far the most important cruise port in the country. Other ports also see some cruises, including Hamburg i Kiel, the latter mostly for cruises passing through the Kiel Canal.

River cruises along Rajna i Danube also cross international borders. The Main Donau Kanal is popular with river cruises as it allows easy access to both Rhine and Danube and makes Nuremberg reachable by boat.

Autobusom

The German intercity bus market has grown and changed significantly since it was fully liberalised in the 2010s. Most operators have folded and Flixbus dominates both the German domestic market and international routes. Intercity buses in France were legalised shortly after Germany and it is France-based "Blablabus" that became the first serious challenger to Flixbus after they cornered the market. Most operators from Central and Eastern Europe that predate liberalisation still exist but have mostly been pushed aside by the rapid growth, so you are unlikely to see them advertised much. Newer non-German entrants to the market include Student Agency/Regiojet from the Czech Republic. New routes appear and disappear quickly, so don't take outdated information from other sources for granted.

By tram

Germany is served by two foreign tram systems with connections across the border. The Basel tram has one line to Weil am Rhein, whereas the Strasbourga tram system has a line to Kehl. As both Switzerland and France are part of the Schengen Area, there are no border controls. However, when going to/from Switzerland, you pass a customs border as Switzerland is not in the EU and thus there may be a customs inspection.

Zaobiđi se

On the whole transportation is efficient and fast, though last minute tickets can be a bit on the expensive side. All modes of transportation are up to a high modern standard, including a dense network of airports, high speed rail services connecting most major cities and regional trains reaching almost every settlement of any size, one of the densest and best maintained highway networks on earth (with stretches where the speed limit is shrug emoji), and intercity bus services introduced in 2013.

Avionom

A graphic representation of the busiest flight routes in Germany - data from 2015

Given the size of Germany, there are few routes where flying makes sense. Business travellers are increasingly drawn to high speed rail services as they offer better overall travel times on all but the longest routes and flights are almost never cheaper than other options. That said, most airports have at least flights to Frankfurt airport and any one of either Hamburg airport, Munich airport, Cologne-Bonn airport or Berlin airport, mostly as feeder flights for their long distance services or catering to business travellers.

Domestic flights are also more prone to cancellation or weather delays. Strikes are at least as common on airlines as they are on the railways and when only some flights have to be cancelled, domestic flights are invariably the lowest priority. Don't worry though, you might be given a voucher for a train to complete your journey regardless.

Lufthansa or its subsidiaries are the only airlines on many domestic routes. Because of a fast connection by train from Berlin to Munich offering travel times competitive with aviation, and the Coronavirus in 2020, Easyjet has withdrawn and Lufthansa scaled back its domestic flights. DB meanwhile is increasing its frequencies on many busy routes — Hamburg Berlin will see a train every half-hour starting December 2020 — and can sometimes charge "premium" fares for business travellers with few other options.

The picture is a bit different for Germany's islands, but with the exception of Sylt none of them see service from any airport much farther away from the coast than "their" harbour.

  • Lufthansa Germany's former flag carrier has greatly reduced its domestic network. Some routes were turned over to subsidiary Eurowings to be run on a "no frills" basis, whereas some feeder flights have been replaced by trains, bookable through Lufthansa if you are booking an international flight with them
  • Eurowings Lufthansa's no-frills subsidiary is based in Düsseldorf and also serves some domestic routes in Germany

Some islands, such as Sylt or some East Frisian islands have small airports of which Sylt is also served by Lufthansa and Eurowings. Other operators include:

  • Sylt Air mostly flies Hamburg-Sylt
  • OFD (kratica za Ostfriesischer Flugdienst; East Frisian flight service) flies from Northern Germany to several islands, mostly the East Frisian islands

Vlakom

Glavni članak: Rail travel in Germany

Germany's railway system is usually fast, on time and reliable and if you book tickets in advance (180 days before departure at the earliest) it can be surprisingly affordable. Regional trains are now run by a variety of private operators as well as Deutsche Bahn subsidiaries, but they can all be booked through bahn.com. Long distance trains on the other hand are almost all run by Deutsche Bahn. Those few that aren't have to be booked through the operating company. To give you a hint of just how dense the German railway system is: the biggest town without any rail service has barely over 60,000 inhabitants and you've probably never heard of it.

Long distance

an InterCity-Express 1 EMU in Köln (Cologne/Bonn Airport Station)

All major cities are linked by DB's ICE (InterCity-Express) and regular InterCity trains. ICE is a system of brzi vlakovi that are capable of speeds up to 330 km/h. They can be expensive, with a 1-hr trip ( Frankfurt do Köln, around 180 km) costing around €67 one-way (normal price "Flexpreis" without any discount). However, unlike high-speed trains in most other countries (e.g. France), taking the ICE on a "Flexpreis" fare does not require a reservation or bind you to a particular train.

If you want to save money, try for discounted "Super Sparpreis" ili "Sparpreis" tickets, starting at €19.90 or €29.90, respectively regardless of distance. As those tickets are sold mainly to attract people to use less popular routes and times, you should try looking for them on off-peak times (Tuesday at noon is the time when trains are emptiest, according to statistics). You cannot change the train or departure time with the "Super Sparpreis" tickets and you will incur a change fee (plus fare difference) for changes to a "Sparpreis" ticket. However, if you miss a train due to a delay on another train you can use the next train, if you have a confirmation for the delay. With a BahnCard 25 or a BahnCard 50 you will get a 25% discount on the Sparpreis (reduced fare) tickets.

"Sparpreis" and "Flexpreis" ICE tickets include a DB City-Ticket, which gives passengers access to most local public transport networks to allow them to get to the station where they will commence their main train journey and from the station where they terminate their main train journey to their final destination (e.g. hotel). This is particularly useful if your actual origin and final destination are not covered by DB's railway network.

Seat reservations are not mandatory but are recommended, especially when you travel on weekends or holidays. This means that with an Interrail ili Eurail pass you can use domestic ICE trains without supplement (except for international ICE trains)

Next are the regular InterCity (IC) and EuroCity (EC) trains. The latter connect the larger European cities and are virtually identical to the regular ICs. These trains are also fairly comfortable, even if they lack the high-tech feeling of the ICE. The rolling stock used for IC services varies widely with both old coaches from the 1970s and 1980s and much newer ones - sometimes on the same train - as well as bilevel (Doppelstock or Dosto in German) multiple units that only entered service in 2015. Most older rolling stock, including the first two generations of ICE (dating to the 1990s) have since undergone extensive refurbishment. Eurocities on the other hand are often composed of cars from several different countries with the style and quality difference that implies.

On the major lines, an ICE or IC train will run each hour or so during the day, and even certain minor cities of touristic importance like Tübingen ili Heringsdorf are connected on a daily or weekly basis. Before you shell out the money for the ICE ticket, you may want to check if it actually makes a significant time difference. ICE trains travel faster than other IC trains only on specially equipped high-speed routes. There are also long distance trains operated by other companies than Deutsche Bahn, usually running over secondary routes. Virtually all of them are marketed by Flixbus under its Flixtrain marka. Other than that international trains such as Thalys or TGV serve stations in Germany and sometimes even domestic routes to an extent. However, a number of operators have announced plans to offer some train service, especially in the sleeper train business, as DB has abandoned that service completely. Usually DB only sells tickets for other operators if a cooperation exists or if forced to by law (e.g. all regional trains). DB tickets are not usually sold by other operators either.

Regional travel

Regional and local trains in Germany come in several flavours:

  • GNJEV (InterRegioExpress). The same as RE, but goes between two regions (Bundesland).
  • PONOVNO (Regional-Express). Semi-express trains, skips some stations. On many routes, this is the highest available train category.
  • RB (Regional-Bahn). Stops everywhere except that it may skip some S-Bahn stops.
S-Bahn-Logo.svg S-Bahn station Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof tief
  • S-Bahn. Commuter network for a city or metropolitan area but can travel fairly long distances. S-Bahn trains do not offer a toilet, with the exception of those in Bremen, Dresden, Hanover, Leipzig, Nuremberg and some S-Bahn Rhein-Neckar trains.

Within a region (Bundesland), it is often possible to get a budget (Länderticket) valid for one day. It can be used for RE, RB, most S-Bahn and some bus connections within the Bundesland, some local urban rail networks are included as well, though not necessarily all. It is available as a single or group ticket. Prices for Ländertickets vary from region to region, but start generally at about €23-27 for one person and usually between €3 and €5 for any additional member of your group up to a party of five. More information is provided at the Website of Deutsche Bahn as well as in the get around section of most Bundesländer.

While regional trains are more and more operated by companies other than Deutsche Bahn and carrying a livery other than DB red, in practice this makes little to no difference as svi regionalni vlakovi podliježu franšizi, a država propisuje sve, od voznih redova do voznih sredstava, a operateri koji primaju subvencije, kao i cijenu karte. Na postajama koje opslužuju možete vidjeti automate za karte ili šaltere za nekoliko regionalnih željezničkih operatora, ali Deutsche Bahn je sa vrlo ograničene iznimke - prisiljeni su vam prodati kartu i za njih, a Ländertickets će i tamo biti prihvaćeni. Iako se mnogi operateri koji nisu DB slijede gore opisanu shemu, neki su odlučili svoje usluge imenovati drugačije od RB ili RE, no i dalje će često slijediti razliku između (polu) "ekspresnog" i "lokalnog".

Općenito, lokalni vlakovi nemaju na brodu uslugu hrane ili pića, ali ponekad prodavač prolazi kroz sjedala kako bi prodao (obično precijenjena) pića i grickalice. Neke linije i operatori - poput Metronom - također imaju automate u svojim vlakovima.

Grupne karte za vlak

Moguće je jeftino se kretati regionalnim vlakovima kad okupite malu grupu. Postoje neka upozorenja:

  • Cijena karte obično ovisi o broju putnika s relativno visokom osnovnom cijenom i malim dodatkom za svakog drugog člana grupe do pet godina. Ako se vaša grupa sastoji od više od pet osoba, kontaktirajte Deutsche Bahn o posebnim ponudama za veće grupe.
  • Te ulaznice jesu samo vrijedi na Regionalni vlakovi (RE, RB i S-Bahn) i neki lokalni prijevoz (podzemna željeznica i autobus), ovisno o gradu. Uzimanje ICE ili IC s takvom kartom nije moguće.
  • Iako su neke ulaznice za Ländertickets dostupne za prvu klasu (pod uvjetom da doplatite), vrijede samo za drugu klasu, ako nije drugačije naznačeno.

Ako znate svoj plan putovanja, možete dogovoriti grupu na Internetu, kupiti kartu i započeti. Grupne ulaznice možete kupiti putem aplikacije DB Navigator. Sve karte vrijede od 09:00 sati radnim danom i od ponoći u subotu i nedjelju. Njihova valjanost obično završava u 03:00 sljedećeg dana.

Autobusom

Vidi također: Putovanje autobusom na daljinu u Njemačkoj

Postoje deseci svakodnevnih usluga iz većine većih gradova, koji su često znatno jeftiniji od vlakova. Većina autobusa nudi sadržaje poput Wi-Fi-ja i utičnica, a neki mogu čak i prevoziti bicikle.

Osim njih, postoji vrlo gusta mreža regionalnih i lokalnih autobusnih linija. U ruralnim područjima, međutim, mnoge linije prometuju samo jednom dnevno. Oznake regionalnih i lokalnih brzih autobusnih linija obično sadrže slova CE (lokalno), E (regionalno oko Hamburga; u ostalim područjima E se koristi za posebne vožnje), S (regionalno), SB (regionalno i lokalno) ili X (lokalno unutar) Berlin), označitelji linija gradskog autobusa mogu sadržavati slova BB ("Bürgerbus", nije integrirano unutar carinskih sindikata), C ili O. Uvijek pažljivo provjerite polazne ploče: ponekad, posebno noću ili u ruralnim područjima, morate naručiti svoj autobus telefonom.

Automobilom

Glavni članak: Vožnja u Njemačkoj
Ova bivša benzinska pumpa (Tankstelle) u Berlinu danas je spomenik.

Njemačka ima svjetski poznatu mrežu izvrsnih cesta i autocesta bez autoceste i cestarina. Iako je javni prijevoz u Njemačkoj izvrstan, onima koji se odluče voziti i cestovna mreža bit će brza i učinkovita. Kao i većina Europe, i Njemačka vozi s desne strane.

Unaprijed provjerite je li vaš ne-njemački vozačka dozvola vrijedi u Njemačkoj. U suprotnom, možete riskirati visoku novčanu kaznu ili zatvor do jedne godine. Za dulji boravak većina stranih dozvola ne vrijedi bez obzira na status boravka. Ako planirate voziti na dulji boravak (nekoliko mjeseci ili godina), pokušajte dobiti europsku vozačku dozvolu koja obično vrijedi u cijeloj Europskoj uniji.

Ploča sa zelenom strelicom označava da je dopušteno skretati udesno nakon što zaustavite i popustite

Poštujte crvene semafore, ali postoji iznimka: možete skrenuti udesno kad je na zeleno svjetlo, pored crvenog svjetla, postavljena mala zelena ploča sa strelicom udesno - i dalje je potrebno strogo zaustaviti se, pogledati i popustiti prije skretanja udesno.

Ograničenja brzine uzimaju se ozbiljno, s velikim brojem brzih kamera. Ograničenja brzine su:

  • Brzina hodanja "Spielstraßen" (označena plavo / bijelim znakom koji prikazuje djecu koja se igraju, pješaci imaju prednost)
  • 30 km / h (19 mph) u većini stambenih područja u gradovima (označeno znakom "30-Zone Wohngebiet", 20-Zone i 10-Zone također postoje, iako su znakovi za 10 zonu samo savjetodavni)
  • 50 km / h (31 mph) unutar gradova (označenih na ulasku žutim znakom imena grada) i uključuju "Kraftfahrstraßen" (označeno znakom koji prikazuje bijeli automobil na plavoj pozadini)
  • 100 km / h (62 mph) izvan gradova
  • Ne postoji konstantno opće ograničenje brzine na "Autobahn" ili na "Kraftfahrstraßen" za automobile i motocikle koji ne vuku prikolicu. Nije posve neograničeno jer postoje dijelovi koji imaju periodična ili trajna ograničenja brzine i preporučeno maksimalna brzina na autocesti je 130 km / h (81 mph), a trebali biste se toga pridržavati ako ste novi u vožnji velike brzine. Međutim, neki "brzi turisti" dolaze u Njemačku samo kako bi unajmili egzotični sportski automobil i uništili mrežu Autobahn koja je treća najveća mreža autocesta na svijetu.

Autobani, posebno oni s jednoznamenkastim brojevima (koji povezuju veće regije na veće udaljenosti) ili oni u ili u blizini urbanih područja (npr. Rhein / Ruhr) dobivaju vrlo gužva počevši od petka popodne ili ljetnih praznika. Popularne prometnice koje vode prema jugu do Italije ili sjeveru do obale Baltika i Sjevernog mora doživljavaju određenu gužvu s početkom školskih praznika svake države. Kada planirate putovanje, tražite početak školskih praznika i pokušajte izbjeći vožnju tog dana ili vikenda nakon njega. Tijekom zimskih praznika (Božić i karneval) na ulicama koje vode do skijališta u Alpama također se može doći do neke gužve, što je pogoršano čak i umjerenim snježnim padalinama - posebno ako je to prvi snijeg u sezoni.

Parkiralište obično je lako pronaći, ali besplatno parkiralište je sve rjeđe i rjeđe. Iako bi se neke susjedne zemlje smijale čak i najvišim cijenama parkiranja u Njemačkoj, ponuda jeftinog parkirališta znatno je niža nego u SAD-u. Jedna vrsta besplatnog parkirališta koja je još uvijek široko dostupna su parkirališta i parkirališta (poznata pod P&R u Njemačkoj) koja su uz javni željeznički prijevoz obično. Neke od tih parcela napune se ujutro i ostanu zauzete do navečer, ali vikendom mogu biti gotovo prazne. Trgovački centri i supermarketi obično imaju besplatno parkiralište za kupce za vrijeme njihovog boravka, ali sve češće provode prekršaje oko parkiranja, poput ne-kupaca koji svoj automobil pohranjuju na svoje zemljište ili automobile ostavljaju satima na parkiralištu.

Dijeljenje vožnje (Carpooling) je popularan u Njemačkoj, a cijena vožnje je često jeftinija od željeznice. Blablačar je popularna web stranica za organiziranje zajedničkih vožnji. Također se putem web stranice mogu organizirati međunarodna putovanja.

Taksiji su skupe i često prihvaćaju samo gotovinu. Uvjeti obično nisu napisani na automobilu, pa pitajte vozača. Stope definiraju lokalne vlasti.

Vozilom za rekreaciju i kamperima

Njemački kampovi (poput većine ostalih u Zapadna Europa) obično nude čitav niz pogodnosti. Uvijek imate svoje priključke za struju, a priključci za vodu i kanalizaciju za svako su uobičajeni. Svaki kamp ima toalete i tuševe, kao i kuhinje, perilice rublja i sušilicu za kosu.

Žute stranice kampiranja, ili, ako želite, njemačke Biblije za kampiranje su ADAC Campingführer, vodič kroz kamp najvećeg njemačkog automobilskog kluba ADAC. Na njemu su navedeni gotovo svi kampovi, zajedno s cijenama, vrstom lokacije, veličinom, radnim vremenom, sadržajima, vašim imenima. Budući da vodič koristi puno simbola koji su objašnjeni na više jezika, prikladan je i za putnike iz inozemstva.

Općenito ograničenje brzine odnosi se na RV-ove i sve što vuče nešto - čak i na dionicama Autobana bez postavljenog ograničenja. Obično se na poleđini nalazi naljepnica ili će to biti napisano u vašim papirima ili ugovoru o najmu.

Električnim vozilom (EV)

Najviše punionica u Njemačkoj navedeno je na web stranicama www.goingelectric.de (mreža EV-vozača) pod točkom '' Stromtankstellen ''. Službena web stranica je ""Ladesäulenkarte'' njemačke vlasti Bundesnetzagentur.

Autostopom

Moguće je stopirati u Njemačkoj i većina Nijemaca govori osnovni engleski, pa će vas razumjeti ako govorite polako. Vozači rijetko očekuju da im date novac za vožnju. Prva slova njemačke registarske pločice (prije crtice) označavaju grad u kojem je automobil registriran. Ako znate kôd odredišta, to će povećati vaše šanse da zaustavite pravo vozilo.

Ilegalno je zaustavljanje na Autocesta, ali stopiranje iz servisnih područja ili benzinskih postaja dobar je način za duge vožnje (100–200 km). Najteži dio je ući na autocestu, pa se isplati spavati u blizini benzinskih postaja ako idete daleko. Na benzinskim crpkama možete dobiti besplatnu knjižicu pod nazivom Tanken i Rasten s mapom autoputa i njegovih benzinskih postaja. Kad se vozite liftom, dogovorite se s vozačem gdje sići i pobrinite se da postoji benzinska pumpa. Pokušajte izbjeći Autohofs.

Također je prilično uobičajeno dogovarati se vožnja privatnim vozilom unaprijed putem offline agencije ili interneta. Izvanmrežne agencije poput Citynetz ili ADM imaju urede u većim gradovima, uglavnom u blizini centra grada ili glavnog željezničkog kolodvora. Ove offline agencije naplaćuju proviziju na cijenu goriva koje trebate platiti za vozača.

Internetske usluge za organiziranje vožnje u privatnim vozilima vrlo su popularne, jer niti jedna strana ne plaća proviziju tradicionalnim agencijama. Trebate doprinositi samo troškovima goriva (primjer: Frankfurt do Berlin 25 €). Vozača možete kontaktirati izravno e-poštom, telefonom ili sms-om. Kako vozači trebaju biti registrirani, to je sigurnije od autostopiranja.

Autostoperi je usporediva usluga, višejezična i besplatna. Blablačar je još jedan poznati igrač s puno vožnji u svojoj bazi podataka.

Biciklom

Vidi također: Biciklizam u Europi
obavezna biciklistička staza
zajednički način za pješake i bicikliste

Njemačka je, općenito, prikladna za bicikle, s mnogim biciklističkim stazama u gradovima. Postoji i značajna mreža dobro potpisanih biciklističkih ruta na velike udaljenosti. The Njemačka biciklistička mreža (Radnetz Deutschland) sastoji se od dvanaest službenih ruta (D1-12). GPX zapise za svaki odjeljak na web stranici možete preuzeti besplatno.

Očekuje se da će to pratiti i biciklisti pravila cesta kao motorna vozila. Iako u teoriji biciklisti podliježu mnogim istim cestovnim pravilima kao i ljudi u automobilima ili na motociklima, provođenje zakona ima tendenciju biti blaže, a primjerice je ograničenje DUI puno veće (na 1,3 promila) od 0,5 promila za vozače. Korištenje mobilnog telefona tijekom vožnje biciklom također je fino, ali ne tako visoko kao kod motoriziranog vozila. Ako je biciklistička staza paralelna cesti postavljenoj bijelo-plavim znakovima "ciklus" (vidi desno), biciklist mora iskoristi. Te su biciklističke staze općenito jedan način, osim ako izričito nije drugačije naznačeno, a možda ćete biti kažnjeni zbog pogrešnog smjera. U nekim su gradovima biciklističke staze označene tamnocrvenim pločnicima za popločavanje u glavnom pješačkom području. Ipak, budite oprezni, jer biciklisti i pješaci prelaze preko ovih granica. Vožnja biciklom po nogostupu nije dopuštena, osim ako nije označena kao biciklistička staza (postoje iznimke za djecu mlađu od 10 godina).

Većina željezničkih stanica, trgovačkih područja, hotela i poslovnih prostora ima stalci za bicikle (neki natkriveni) s mjestom za pričvršćivanje vlastitog lanca za zaključavanje bicikla.

Na regionalnim vlakovi obično postoji jedna kočija koja vam omogućuje dovođenje bicikla na brod. InterCity vlakovi također dopuštaju vožnju biciklom, a ICE međutim ne. Obično donošenje bicikla zahtijeva zasebnu kartu i / ili rezervaciju. Za više detalja vidi Putovanje željeznicom u Njemačkoj # Bicikli.

Ako želite voziti svoj bicikl na a autobus za velike udaljenost morate rezervirati nekoliko dana unaprijed i možda neće uspjeti, jer je spremište za bicikle vrlo ograničeno (samo dva ili tri po autobusu).

Nekoliko njemačkih gradova sada nudi programi za dijeljenje bicikla, većinu vode bilo nextbike ili podružnica Deutsche Bahna nazovite bicikl. Oni su izvrstan način za kratke udaljenostima unutar grada, ali nisu najbolja opcija za duže ture, jer je maksimalno vrijeme najma obično 24 sata. Iznajmljivanje klasičnih bicikala još uvijek postoji u mnogim gradovima, kao i u manjim selima u blizini obale koja vide mnogo turista. Često im je potreban depozit ili osobna iskaznica za najam.

E-skuterom

U nizu većih gradova poput Berlina, Münchena i Kölna; s odgovarajućom učitanom aplikacijom možete pokupiti izuzetan skuter koji je razbacan po ulicama. Vodi ih niz tvrtki, uključujući Krug, Red, Ptica i Vapno. Morate imati više od 14 godina da biste se vozili i pod istim ste propisima kao bicikl; koji se ne može koristiti na kolnicima / šetačima (samo upotreba biciklističkih staza ili cesta) i prekoračenje alkohola utjecati će na status vaše vozačke dozvole. Ograničene su na 20 km / h, ali čak i tako su česti uzrok nesreća od njihovog uvođenja.

Vidjeti

Kulturno-povijesne atrakcije

Rothenburg u Frankonija, srednjovjekovni grad s gotovo potpuno originalnim povijesnim središtem

Kad razmišljamo o Njemačkoj, pivo, lederhosen i alpski šeširi brzo mi padnu na pamet, ali ti se stereotipi uglavnom odnose na njih Bavarski kulturu i ne predstavljaju Njemačku u cjelini. Njemačka je prostrana i raznolika zemlja sa 16 kulturno jedinstvenih država koje političku uniju čine tek od 1871. godine. Čak i unutar država često postoji znatna kulturna raznolikost. Na primjer, vlada Bavarske voli razgovarati o tri "plemena" koja žive u državi; "stari Bavarci", Francuzi i Švabi. Pogotovo bivša dvojica vole biti zbijeni otprilike koliko i Englezi i Škoti.

Ulmer Münster, najviši crkveni toranj na svijetu

Ako još uvijek tražite klišeje, Romantična cesta je poznata slikovita ruta duž romantičnih dvoraca i slikovitih sela. Svojom bajkovitom pojavom, Dvorac Neuschwanstein mogao smatrati najslikovitijim njemačkim dvorcima. Ozidani grad Rothenburg ob der Tauber ima prekrasno srednjovjekovno središte koje se čini netaknuto protokom vremena. Neki slični tipični njemački gradovi mogu se naći negdje drugdje u zemlji, na primjer Augsburg, Bamberg, Celle, Heidelberg, Lübeck, i Quedlinburg. Posjet vašoj slikovnici u Njemačkoj bit će upotpunjen posjetom pivnicama München i zaviriti u Alpe u Garmisch-Partenkirchen. U Ulm možete posjetiti najviši crkveni toranj na svijetu - Ulmer Münster. Također možete otići u ljupki, a rijetko posjećeni srednjovjekovni grad Schwäbisch Hall. Za one koji su ljubitelji Grimmovih bajki, među kojima su i mnoge poznate poput Rapunzela, Rumpelstiltskina, Snjeguljice i Pied Pipera, njemačka turistička zajednica ima preporuku Ruta bajki koji vas vodi na mjesta u kojima su živjela braća Grimm, kao i gradove koji su predstavljeni u Grimmovim bajkama.

Njemačka je moderna industrijska nacija, a Wirtschaftswunder najbolje predstavlja industrijsko naslijeđe Republike Hrvatske Ruhr. Hamburg je još jedna ekonomska snaga s drugom najprometnijom lukom kontinenta. Frankfurt je financijsko središte Njemačke i Europe u cjelini, jer je baza Europske središnje banke. Njegov se obzor približava onima s druge strane Atlantika. Modni grad Düsseldorf, medijska industrija Köln, i automobilske tvrtke u Stuttgart svaki predstavlja cvjetajući sektor njemačkog gospodarskog čuda.

Potpuno drugačije iskustvo može se naći u Berlin, grad koji se vjerojatno neće naći nigdje drugdje na planeti. Iako je arhitektonski neobična neusklađenost steriliziranih stambenih blokova, postmodernističkih staklenih i čeličnih konstrukcija i nekih povijesnih zaostataka, ima opuštenu atmosferu i kulturu internacionalizma. Njegova burna povijest iznjedrila je ogromno bogatstvo povijesnih atrakcija, među kojima su Berlinski zid, Brandenburger Tor, Bundestag, Checkpoint Charlie, Fernsehturm, Memorijal holokausta i Rotes Rathaus. Ali ne propustite kvart Prenzlauer Berg ako se želite osjećati kao pravi Berlinčanin. Ni Kreuzberg (nekad poznat po pankerima, danas većinom gentrificiran) i divno nazvano Wedding nisu daleko zaostali.

Mračna sjećanja na nacističko doba ostavila su tragove i u Njemačkoj; vidjeti Svjetskog rata u Europi i Sjećanje na holokaust. Iako je tema osjetljiva, a "šale" na tu temu loša su ideja ako dobro ne poznajete domaćine, Njemačka se potrudila očuvati spomenike tog doba kao upozorenje i detaljne obrazovne eksponate na mjestima poput nekadašnje koncentracije kampovi, nekadašnja okupljališta nacističke stranke u Nürnberg ili je nekadašnja sjedišta nacističkih ministarstava i ureda u Berlinu vrijedno posjeta, ako je to bilo hladno i depresivno.

Prirodne atrakcije

Sjeverozapad: Wattwanderung (planinarenje blatom) za vrijeme oseke u Sjevernom moru, između Cuxhaven a mali Neuwerk otok

Zbog svoje veličine i položaja u Srednjoj Europi, Njemačka se može pohvaliti velikom raznovrsnošću krajolika. Na sjeveru, Njemačka ima opsežnu obala uz Sjeverno more i Baltičko more na golemom području poznatom kao Sjevernonjemačka nizina. Krajolik je vrlo ravan, a klima je gruba s jakim vjetrovima i blagim, prohladnim temperaturama. Zbog jugoistočnih vjetrova koji pritiskaju vodu u Njemačku uvalu, varijacije plima i oseka izuzetno su velike, što stvara Waddeno more. Ogromna područja morskog dna otkrivaju se dva puta dnevno, što omogućava hodanje s jednog od brojnih otoka na drugi. (To bi trebalo učiniti samo s vodičem.) The Istočnofrizijski otoci tik uz obalu vrlo su slikovite, iako ih uglavnom posjećuju sami Nijemci. Uključuju omiljena odmarališta s bijelim pijeskom uz Baltičko more Rügen i Usedom.

Jug: Meteorološka postaja na Zugspitze vrh, najviša njemačka planina. Nije ga toliko izazovno posjetiti: postoje tri lifta, dva s njemačke i jedan s austrijske, ako ne želite ići pješice.

Središnja polovica Njemačke krpica je Središnja gorja, brdovita ruralna područja gdje se polja i šume miješaju s većim gradovima. Mnogi od ovih brdskih lanaca turistička su odredišta, poput Bavarska šuma, Crna šuma, Harz, Rudne planine, Sjeverni Hessen i Saksonska Švicarska. The Dolina Rajne ima vrlo blagu klimu i plodno tlo, što je čini najvažnijim područjem zemlje za vinogradarstvo i voćarstvo.

Na krajnjem jugu, koji graniči s Austrijom, Njemačka sadrži dio planine Alpe, Najviša nadmorska visina u Srednjoj Europi, uzdižući se do 4.000 m nadmorske visine, a najviši vrh u Njemačkoj je Zugspitze na 2962 m (9717 ft). Iako samo mali dio Alpa leži u Njemačkoj, poznati su po svojoj ljepoti i jedinstvenoj bavarskoj kulturi. Duž jugozapadne granice zemlje sa Švicarskom i Austrijom Bodensko jezero, Najveće slatkovodno jezero u Njemačkoj.

Itinerari

  • Spomen put Bertha Benz - prati prvo svjetsko putovanje na daljinu automobilom
  • Romantična cesta - najpoznatija slikovita ruta u Njemačkoj koja započinje u Würzburgu, a završava u Füssenu
  • Rheinsteig i Rheinburgenweg - Šetajte stazom na visokoj razini kroz neke od najljepših njemačkih krajolika sa spektakularnim pogledom na dvorce iznad rijeke Rajne Wiesbaden i Bonn ili Bingen i Bonn-Mehlem.
  • Elbe Radweg biciklistička ruta duž rijeke Labe koja prolazi pored Dresdena i Magdeburga prije nego što stigne do Hamburga. Zbog blizine rijeke malo je strmih uspona što ovu rutu čini idealnom za bicikliste početnike.

Čini

Königssee ("Kraljevsko jezero") u blizini Berchtesgaden, Bavarska

Njemačka nudi širok spektar aktivnosti kako kulturne tako i sportske prirode. Mnogi su Nijemci članovi sportskog kluba.

Sportski

Njemačka je luda za nogometom (nogomet) i Njemački nogometni savez (DFB) najveća je nogometna asocijacija na svijetu s 6,35 milijuna članova (8% njemačke populacije) u više od 25 000 klubova. Mnogi njemački nogometni klubovi spadaju u najvrjednije nogometne marke u Europi, poput Borussije Dortmund i FC Bayerna iz Münchena. Svako selo ima klub, a igre su često glavni društveni događaj vikendom. Imajte na umu da je zbog prirode (male manjine) nogometnih navijača često pojačana policijska prisutnost tijekom utakmica, a nasilje je rijetko, ali nije nečuveno. Ostali popularni timski sportovi uključuju (olimpijski) rukomet (posebno popularan na sjeveru), hokej na ledu ("Eishockey"), odbojku i košarku. Moto sport je popularna atrakcija posjetitelja, s mnogim poznatim Formula jedan tečajevi poput Hockenheim i Nürburgring ("Zeleni pakao").

Njemačka - posebno Sjever - također je jedna od najboljih zemalja kad je riječ o Rukomet. Timovi poput Flensburga, Kiela i drugih iz tjedna u tjedan privlače mnoštvo publika u svoje dvorane i proizvode neke od najboljih rukometa na svijetu.

Američki nogomet svira se i u Njemačkoj, uživajući u tradiciji koja datira iz 1970-ih. Njemačka reprezentacija osvojila je posljednja dva europska prvenstva (2010. i 2014.). Iako gužva nije ni blizu popularnijih sportova (2000 navijača je mnogo koje ekipe dobivaju samo za važne utakmice), završnica izvlači negdje između 15 000 i 20 000 gledatelja, a atmosfera je opuštena, čak su i navijači gostujuće momčadi dočekali i najgore što vam se može dogoditi ako budete dobrodušni uboji u svom timu ili njegovoj povijesti. U nedjelju Super Bowla postoji gomila događaja "javnog gledanja" (to je stvarni njemački pojam), iako je usred noći i dobra je prilika za susret s drugim nogometnim zaljubljenicima, kao i s lokalnim sjevernoameričkim iseljeničko stanovništvo.

Tijekom zime mnogi odlaze na skijanje u Alpe ili u planinske lance poput Harza, Eifela, Bavarske šume ili Schwarzwalda.

Jedan od popularnijih individualnih sportova je tenis; iako je donekle opao od dana Steffi Graf i Borisa Beckera, na mnogim mjestima još uvijek postoje teniski tereni, a većina ih se može unajmiti po satima.

Gotovo svaki njemački grad srednje veličine ima lječilište (često se naziva Therme) s bazenima, toboganima, vrućim kadama, saunama, parnim kupeljima, sunčanim krovovima itd.

Kulturna događanja

Nekoliko kazališta u većim gradovima igra izvanredne klasične i suvremene predstave. Njemačka se ponosi širokim izborom kulturnih događaja i svaki grad razrađuje kulturnu agendu. Većina kazališta i opernih kuća prima izdašne subvencije kako bi karte bile pristupačne, a jeftino sjedalo može se dobiti na manje od 10 eura u mnogim dvoranama ako ispunjavate uvjete za određene popuste.

Klasična glazba

Vidi također: Europska klasična glazba

Njemačka je poznata po nekoliko opernih kuća svjetske klase (posebno Berlin, Bayreuth, i München) i Berlinska filharmonija jedan je od tri najbolja orkestra na svijetu. Smatra se da Njemačka ima jednu od najjačih tradicija klasične glazbe u Europi, s mnogim poznatim skladateljima kao što su Bach, Handel (tzv. Händel prije nego što se 1712. godine nastanio u Londonu), Beethoven, Schumann, Brahms i Wagner porijeklom iz Njemačke.

Iako Francuska i Italija mogu imati dužu povijest opere, i Njemačka je razvila svoju jedinstvenu opernu tradiciju. Njemački jezik, zajedno s talijanskim i francuskim, smatra se glavnim opernim jezikom, a mnoge poznate opere na njemačkom jeziku skladali su poznati skladatelji poput Mozarta, Beethovena, Wagnera i Straussa.

Njemačka ima više od 130 profesionalnih orkestara - više nego bilo koja druga zemlja na svijetu. To je nasljeđe feudalnih vremena, kada je teritorij zemlje bio usitnjen i svaki od lokalnih vladara zapošljavao je zasebni dvorski orkestar. Danas većinu orkestara vode državne ili lokalne vlasti ili javni servisi. Najveći je Gewandhausorchester u Leipzig sa 185 plaćenih glazbenika (no rijetko sviraju istovremeno, dijelovi orkestra prate operu, balet, zbor dječaka Thomaner i sviraju vlastite simfonijske koncerte).

Mjuzikli

Glazbena kupola u Köln

Mjuzikli su popularni u Njemačkoj. Iako s vremena na vrijeme postoje neke turističke produkcije, većina emisija boravi u određenom gradu nekoliko godina. Glavni 'glazbeni gradovi' su Hamburg, Berlin, Oberhausen, Stuttgart, Bochum i Köln. Njemačke izvedbe uključuju Kralj lavova, Opako, Starlight Express i Rocky.

Kazalište

Općenito je njemačkih kazališta u izobilju i - u usporedbi s većinom drugih zapadnih zemalja - jeftina je zemlja, jer ih vlada smatra "potrebnima" i subvencionira mnoga od njih kako bi posjete učinila pristupačnim svima. Čak su i neka subvencionirana kazališta i dalje prilično povoljna u usporedbi s, primjerice, mjuziklima. Često postoje posebni popusti za studente ili starije ljude. Većina predstava izvodi se na njemačkom jeziku, ali postoje povremena događanja s predstavama i na drugim jezicima. Najpoznatiji autori na njemačkom jeziku svakodnevno se mogu naći u imenima mnogih ulica i u mnogim kazalištima. Goethe, Schiller i Lessing imena su svih domaćinstava, ali i suvremeniji autori poput Brechta često se tumače i igraju. Zaista nema lagane linije između njemačkog kazališta i kazališta na njemačkom jeziku izvan Njemačke, pa se djela austrijskih, švicarskih ili drugih njemačkih pisaca i redatelja često prikazuju na njemačkim pozornicama i obrnuto.

Shakespeare

Globus Neussa (Sjeverna Rajna-Vestfalija), na Shakespeareovom festivalu

Prilično zanimljivo, Williama Shakespearea možda nigdje ne obožavaju kao u Njemačkoj - uključujući i Anglosferu. Na primjer - još uvijek postoji - Deutsche Shakespeare Gesellschaft datira u 1864. godinu i tako prethodi bilo kojem engleskom ili američkom Shakespeareovom društvu. To se velikim dijelom može pripisati Goetheu, koji se zaljubio u Bardova djela. Ako je vaš njemački spreman, gledanje izvedbe može biti vrlo zanimljivo. Prema nekim Nijemcima, Shakespeare zapravo jest poboljšana u prijevodu, jer je jezik koji se koristi vjerojatno nešto suvremeniji. Prosudite sami.

Glazbeni festivali

U Njemačkoj postoje poznati i veliki godišnji festivali poput Wacken Open Air (festival heavy metal glazbe), Wave-Gotik-Treffen (festival za "mračnu" glazbu i umjetnost u Leipzig) i Fusion Festival (festival elektroničke glazbe u Splitu) Mecklenburg Lake District).

Kupiti

Novac

Tečajevi za eure

Od 04. siječnja 2021 .:

  • 1 US $ ≈ 0,816 €
  • UK 1 £ ≈ 1,12 €
  • Australski $ 1 ≈ 0,63 €
  • Kanadski $ 1 ≈ 0,642 €

Tečajne razlike variraju. Trenutne cijene za ove i druge valute dostupne su na XE.com

Njemačka koristi euro, poput nekoliko drugih europskih zemalja. Jedan euro podijeljen je na 100 centi. Službeni simbol eura je €, a ISO kod je EUR. Ne postoji službeni simbol za cent.

Sve novčanice i kovanice ove zajedničke valute zakonsko su sredstvo plaćanja u svim zemljama, osim što se u nekim od njih postupno ukidaju kovanice niskog apoena (jedan i dva centa). Novčanice izgledaju jednako u svim zemljama, dok kovanice imaju standardni zajednički dizajn na naličju, izražavajući vrijednost, i nacionalni dizajn specifičan za svaku zemlju na aversu. Avers se također koristi za različite dizajne prigodnih kovanica. Dizajn aversa ne utječe na upotrebu novčića.

Novčanice veće od 100 eura dok se zakonsko sredstvo plaćanja ne vidi toliko često u optjecaju i bit će odbijene u nekim trgovinama ili za male kupnje. Pripremite se za veće račune koji će se podvrgnuti većem nadzoru u pogledu potencijalnih krivotvorina. Male trgovine, pa čak i nekoliko automatiziranih strojeva za javni prijevoz, ne prihvaćaju novčanice od 50 € ili veće.

Razmjena valute znatno se smanjio od uvođenja eura, iako ga još uvijek možete pronaći na ili u blizini glavnih željezničkih stanica i zračnih luka. Strana valuta - čak i ona iz susjednih zemalja - rijetko će biti prihvaćena i često po prilično lošim tečajevima. Međutim, možda ćete imati sreće sa švicarskim francima u neposrednom pograničnom području, jer je Njemačka prilično popularno odredište za kupovinu švicarskih turista. Slično tome, neki restorani brze hrane, posebno oni u blizini objekata američke vojske, prihvaćaju američke dolare (opet po prilično lošim tečajevima), ali ne računaju na to. Uobičajene banke će naravno nuditi zamjenu valuta, ali ponekad naplaćuju znatne naknade za ne-klijente, a prilikom prelaska s eura na gotovinu može se zatražiti unaprijed najava. Putnički čekovi su sve rjeđi, ali banke ih i dalje razmjenjuju, iako bi vjerojatno bilo manje gnjavaže samo uzeti svoju debitnu ili kreditnu karticu i podići novac s uobičajenih bankomata.

Unovčiti (Bargeld) je najpoželjniji način plaćanja za svakodnevne transakcije. Nezavisni dobavljači, mali kafići i štandovi poput takvih Božićne tržnice uglavnom ne prihvaćaju kreditne kartice, a ponekad postoji i minimalni iznos kupnje. Dok njemački domaće debitne kartice - pozvao EC-karta ili žirocard - (i, u manjoj mjeri, Maestro kartice i VPay temeljene na PIN-u) uživaju gotovo univerzalno prihvaćanje, kreditne kartice (Visa, MasterCard, American Express) ili strane debitne kartice (Visa Debit / Electron, itd.) Nisu toliko široko prihvaćeni kao u drugim europskim zemljama ili zemljama Ujedinjene države. Međutim, bit će prihvaćeni u gotovo svim većim maloprodajnim trgovinama i većini prodajnih mjesta lanaca brze hrane. Veliki trgovci sve više prihvaćaju kreditne kartice (obično samo Visa i MasterCard), a tehnologija Near Field Communication sada je široko dostupna (potražite logo EMVCoContactlessIndicator.svg) iako mnogi ljudi koji rade u maloprodaji možda još nisu upoznati s tehnologijom.

Najviše Bankomati prihvatit će kreditne kartice i ako bankomat naplati naknadu (kojih u Njemačkoj ima mnogo u usporedbi s drugim zemljama EU-a), zakonodavstvo EU-a nalaže stroju da vam kaže naknadu prije povlačenja (bilo putem naljepnice ili obavijesti na zaslon). Međutim, izdavatelj vaše kartice može naplaćivati ​​vlastite troškove bez obzira na prisutnost naknada od operatora bankomata ili uz njih; prije upotrebe provjerite s izdavačem.

Zajedničko s većinom drugih zapadnoeuropskih jezika, značenja točaka i zareza točno su obrnuta engleskom običaju; u njemačkom jeziku zarez se koristi za označavanje decimale. Na primjer, "2,99 €" je dva eura i 99 eurocenata. Simbol "€" ne koristi se uvijek i gotovo se uvijek stavlja nakon cijene, a neki Nijemci oznaku "znak valute prvo" smatraju čudnom. Točka se koristi za "grupiranje" brojeva (jedna točka za tri znamenke), pa bi "1.000.000" bio milijun. Dakle, "123.456.789,01" na njemačkom jeziku jednak je broju kao "123.456.789,01" u zemljama engleskog govornog područja.

Porezi

Sva roba i usluge uključuju PDV (Mehrwertsteuer) od 19%. Zakonom je uvijek uključen u cijenu predmeta (izuzetak je samo za robu koja se komercijalno izvozi, ali tada mogu vrijediti carine). Na gorivo, pjenušavo vino, žestoka pića i duhan podliježu veći porezi. Smanjen je PDV od 7% za hotele (ali ne i za jestive proizvode koji se konzumiraju u njemu), jestive namirnice (određeni predmeti koji se smatraju luksuznom robom, npr. Jastog, izuzeti su od ovog smanjenja), tiskane proizvode, sav javni prijevoz na kratke udaljenosti i vlakove za velike udaljenost , i cijena ulaznice za operu ili kazalište. Precizni detalji o tome dobivaju li robe ili usluge potpunu ili smanjenu stopu PDV-a nevjerojatno su složeni i tajnoviti, ali da navedemo samo jedan primjer, pitanje "jedi ovdje ili ponesi" koje ćete čuti u restoranu brze hrane ima porezne implikacije jer oporeziva 7%.

Napojnice

U Njemačkoj savjeti (Trinkgeld, doslovno "piće (novac)") uobičajeni su u restoranima, barovima (ne u restoranima brze hrane), taksijima i frizerskim salonima. Iako nije obavezno, uvijek se cijeni kao zahvala na izvrsnoj usluzi. Napojnice rijetko prelaze 10% računa (uključujući porez), a napojnice su također prilično česte kad je račun nejednakog iznosa kako bi se izbjeglo rješavanje sitnih promjena (npr. Račun od 13,80 eura obično se zaokružuje na 15 eura) olakšavanje promjene). Poslužitelj to nikada neće predložiti, pa čak i kad se bave jednom od dosadnih cijena x 99,99 eura, marljivo će tražiti bakrene novčiće da bi ih promijenili ako ne kažete drugačije.

Za razliku od nekih drugih zemalja, uslužno osoblje uvijek se plaća po satu, a minimalna plaća od 9,19 eura na sat (od 2019.) odnosi se na uslužno osoblje, kao i na bilo koju drugu profesiju. Međutim, vjerojatnije je da će uslužno osoblje dobiti samo minimalnu plaću ili jedva iznad čak i u ustanovama u kojima drugi poslovi dobivaju veće plaće. Savjet je stoga uglavnom stvar uljudnosti i pokazuje vašu zahvalnost. Ako niste cijenili uslugu (npr. Spora, brza ili ravnodušna usluga), možda uopće nećete dati napojnicu i osoblje će je prihvatiti. Osobito su Amerikanci među uslužnim osobljem poznati po tome što su velikodušni kiperi, bez obzira na uslugu, pa će im ponegdje možda biti manji prioritet u prometnim danima.

Davanje napojnica u Njemačkoj obično se vrši spominjanjem ukupnog iznosa tijekom plaćanja. So if, e.g., a waiter tells you the bill amounts to "€13.50", just state "15" and s/he will include a tip of €1.50. Alternatively, if you wish to ask them to keep the change, you may say "Stimmt so!" ili jednostavno "Danke!".

Tipping in other situations (unless otherwise indicated):

  • Taxi driver: 5–10% (at least €1)
  • Housekeeping: €1–2 per day
  • Carrying luggage: €1 per piece
  • Delivery services: 5–10% (at least €1)

Kupovina

Retail prices - especially for groceries - are much lower than one would expect given the GDP per capita and to some extent even compared to local wage levels. This in no small part due to intense competition on price led by "Discounter" (that's the usual German term for a low price supermarket) since the 1960s in the food sector and in other sectors since at least the 2000s. Germans are said to be very cost-conscious and advertisements tend to put an emphasis on price. That said, there's no upper limit for the price of high quality or high value goods in specialty stores.

Supermarkets

The simplistic presentation of goods in a typical discounter, ALDI

Got a euro?

Virtually all supermarkets that have shopping carts require you to insert a coin into them (usually €1 or €0.50). Most Germans have one or several small plastic chips that work just the same for the shopping carts. If and when you properly return the shopping cart, you will get back whatever you inserted into it. As Germany has been a rather slow adopter of "cashless" transactions, virtually everybody has change at hand when going shopping and if all else fails, there are those plastic chips, which seem to only ever exist as free giveaways for marketing purposes. If you intend to stay in Germany for a longer period of time, those come highly recommended.

Chains like "Aldi", "Lidl", "Penny" and "Netto" are discount supermarkets (Discounter). Their range of products is limited to the necessities of daily life (like vegetables, pasta, milk, eggs, convenience foods, toiletries, etc.), sold in rather simple packaging for tightly calculated prices. While quality is generally surprisingly high, do not expect delicatessen or local specialities when you go to shop there. Don't blame discounter personnel for being somewhat brusque; although they are paid slightly better than usual, they have to cope with a rather grim working atmosphere and a significantly higher workload than colleagues in "standard" supermarkets. Lidl and Aldi have tried to brand themselves as more "upscale" and laying focus on quality since about the mid-2010s but prices have stayed the same while new "gimmicks" such as coffee machines (€1 per drink) or freshly baked (from frozen dough) bread, rolls and other baked goods were introduced as part of that strategy.

In a supermarket of the Edeka group. Edeka traces its roots back to cooperatives of shops selling colonial goods, first established in 1898.

Primjeri standard supermarket chains are Rewe, Edeka, Real, Kaufland, Globus or Famila. Their prices are slightly higher than in discount supermarkets, but they have a much wider range of products (including cheap to high-end quality). Usually there are big sir, meat and fish counters where fresh products are sold by weight. The personnel in these shops is trained to be especially helpful and friendly.

Plenty of chain supermarkets only exist in certain parts of the country or show a clear geographic focus. Norma is only found in the south, Sky only in the north and Netto "with dog" (there are two separate chains both named "Netto", one of them having a dog as their symbol) only in the north and east.

Beside those major chains, Turkish supermarkets (which can be found in virtually all west German cities) can be a worthwhile alternative since they combine the characteristics of discounters (low price levels but limited assortment) with those of "standard" supermarkets ((Turkish) specialities and usually friendly staff). Fruits and vegetables at Turkish supermarkets tend to be particularly good value for money. Other diaspora groups also own some supermarkets, but they tend to be rarer outside big cities. In Berlin you might find an ethnic enclave of many groups, but they can be harder to find even in Munich or Hamburg and non-existent in smaller cities. The East has a surprisingly large Vietnamese diaspora and "Asia Shops" of varying kinds can be found in many parts of the country. Specialised Asian food items tend to be cheaper, of better quality and more readily available here than at Rewe and co. However, the shop might not look like much from the outside and feel rather cramped on the inside.

If you are looking for organic products, your best bet is to visit a "Bioladen" or "Biosupermarkt". (Bio- generally means organic.) There are also many farmers selling their products directly ("Hofladen"), most of them organised in the "Bioland" cooperative. They offer reasonable food at reasonable prices. Fresh produce - both organic and "regular" - can also be bought at roadside stalls or (for seasonal stuff like asparagus or strawberries) at temporary stalls on store parking lots. Buying directly from producers cuts out a lot of middlemen and you'll likely get fresh, high quality goods, but finding them can be a challenge as even internet based solutions (e.g. a website listing all agricultural producers who sell directly to producers or an order online service) tend to be rather local.

Toiletries, makeup, skincare and other amenities are best bought in Drogerie (drugstore) such as dm, Rossmann, and Müller, as the supermarkets do not usually provide the complete lineup. They also sell simple medicines and supplements that do not require a prescription. Common painkillers sold in drugstores elsewhere around the world such as aspirin or ibuprofen however are only sold in pharmacies and require a doctor's prescription.

Be prepared to bag your own groceries and goods as well as provide your own shopping bags for doing so. While most stores provide plastic or paper as well as canvas shopping bags at the checkout, you are charged up to 50 cents per bag for them. Buggies/shopping carts usually have to be unlocked with a euro coin which you get back. At most super markets you can spot a canister with lots of cardboard boxes in it, usually after the cash point. You are allowed to take cardboard boxes from there! It's a service the markets offer and also an easy waste disposal for them. Just tell them you are getting yourself a box when the cashier starts to scan your goods, come back and start packing.

Bottle and container deposits (Pfand)

A typical container of Pfand-bottles with carbonated water

Germany has an elaborate beverage container deposit ("Pfand") system. Reusable bottles, glass and plastic, usually cost between 8 and 25 cents Pfand per bottle depending on size and material - the actual value depends on the material but isn't always spelled out on the bottle (it will be spelled out on the receipt, though). Dodatni Pfand is due for special carrying baskets matching the bottle measures. The Pfand can be cashed in at any store which sells bottles, often by means of a high-tech bottle reader than spins the bottle, reads the Pfand, and issues a ticket redeemable with the cashier. Plastic bottles and cans usually cost 25 cents Pfand, if not they are marked as pfandfrei. Exempt from Pfand are liquors and plastic boxes usually containing juice or milk. There are also a few other instances where Pfand is due, for example for standardised gas containers or some yogurt glasses. Pfand on glasses, bottles and dishware is also common at discotheques, self-service bars or public events, but usually not at a students' cafeteria.

Factory outlets

Outlet centres as such are a rather new phenomenon, but the similar concept of "Fabrikverkauf" (literally factory sale) where products (including slightly damaged or mislabeled ones) are sold directly at the factory that makes them, often at greatly reduced prices. American style outlets not associated with a factory have become more common and Herzogenaurach for instance has outlets of Adidas and Puma (whose headquarters - but no production - are there) and of other clothing and sports companies.

Local products

You can find local food products (not necessarily organic) in most places at the farmer's market ("Wochenmarkt" or simply "Markt"), usually once or twice a week. While your chances on finding English-speaking sellers there may be somewhat reduced, it's nevertheless quite fun to shop there and mostly you will get fresh and good quality food for reasonable prices. Most winemakers sell their products either directly or in "Winzergenossenschaften" (winemaker cooperatives). These wines are almost always superior to the ones produced by German wine brands. Quality signs are "VdP" ("Verband deutscher Prädikatsweingüter", symbolised by an eagle) and "Ecovin" (German organic winemaker cooperative). Wines made of the most typical German wine varieties are usually marked with "Classic".

Some agricultural producers have also started to sell their produce directly to consumers, either via a small stand at the roadside (often along rural Bundesstraßen but sometimes also inside urban areas) or directly from their farm. Dairy farmers sometimes run "Milchtankstellen" (a compound noun from the German word for milk and gas station) where you can get milk from a vending machine similar to a soda fountain. All of those tend to be cash only but prices and value for money tend to be rather good.

Suveniri

njemački med is a good souvenir, but only "Echter Deutscher Honig" is a guarantee for reasonable quality. Along the German coasts, smoked eel is quite a common delicacy and a typical souvenir. You can discover an astonishing German sir variety in cheese stores or in Bioläden.

Some of those products may not be taken into all countries due to agricultural contamination concerns.

Drugi proizvodi

Some German brands of high-end goods such as kitchen utensils, stationery, and hiking gear are considerably cheaper than abroad.

Cheap odjeća of sufficient quality might be bought at C&A, but don't expect designer clothes. During the end-of-season sales you should also compare prices of conventional stores since they may be even cheaper than the discounters. H&M sells cheap, stylish clothing, but with notoriously awful quality.

Germany is also a good place to shop for consumer electronics such as mobile phones, tablets and digital cameras. Every larger city has at least one "Saturn" or "MediaMarkt" store with a wide selection of these devices, as well as music, movies and video games on CD/DVD. MediaMarkt and Saturn belong to the same company, but there are also independent stores and the Expert/TeVi chain. Prices are generally lower than elsewhere in Europe. English-language movies and TV shows are universally dubbed into German, and computer software and keyboards are often German-only.

Germany is justifiedly famous for world-class board games. Board games are taken very seriously as a field even of academic study: Germany boasts "board game archives", several scientific publications on the phenomenon, and the prestigious "Spiel des Jahres" ("[board] game of the year") award first awarded in 1979. Many book stores, several Drogeriemärkte od Müller chain, and some general purpose stores will boast a board game section. In most bigger towns, there will be one or several dedicated board game stores. While games in languages other than German are hard to get, dedicated board game stores will often also have the raw materials for tinkerers to build their own board games. There are often conventions of board game enthusiasts to buy, play or exchange games.

Radno vrijeme

Opening hours vary from state to state. Some states like Berlin, Hamburg i Schleswig-Holstein have no more strict opening hours from Monday to Saturday (however, you will rarely find 24 hour shops other than at petrol stations), while most stores in Bavaria and Saarland are by law required to close between 20:00 and 06:00. With some exceptions, shops are closed nationwide on Sundays and national holidays (including some obscure ones), including pharmacies; single pharmacies remain open for emergencies (every pharmacy will have a sign telling you which pharmacy is open for emergencies or the list can be found ovdje). An exception would be on special occasions called Verkaufsoffener Sonntag, in which shops at selected communes are open from 13:00 do 18:00 on selected Sundays, usually coinciding with public holidays or local events. Train stations however are allowed to and frequently have their stores open on Sundays, though usually for limited hours. In some larger cities such as Leipzig i Frankfurt, this can include an entire shopping mall that happens to be attached to the train station. Some shops in touristic areas and towns designated as a Kurort (health resort) are also allowed to have their stores open all week during tourist season.

As a rule of thumb:

  • Smaller supermarkets: 08:00-20:00 give or take an hour
  • Big supermarkets 07:00-22:00 or midnight
  • Shopping centres and large department stores: 10:00-20:00
  • Department stores in small cities: 10:00-19:00
  • Small and medium shops: 09:00 ili 10:00-18:30 (in big cities sometimes to 20:00). Small shops are often closed 13:00–15:00.
  • Spätis (late night shops): 20:00-23:59 or even longer, some open 24 hours, especially in big cities
  • Petrol stations & their attached minimart: in cities and along the "Autobahn" usually 24 hours daily - however during night hours you might have to pay and order through a small window and night cashiers might not always speak English well
  • Restaurants: 11:30–23:00 or midnight, sometimes longer, many closed during the afternoon

If necessary, in many big cities you will find a few (sometimes more expensive) supermarkets with longer opening hours (often near the main station). Bakeries usually offer service on Sunday mornings (business hours vary) as well. Also, most petrol stations have a small shopping area.

In some parts of Germany (like Berlin, Köln, Düsseldorf i Ruhr area) there are cornershops called "Späti" oder "Spätkauf" ("latey"), "Kiosk", "Trinkhalle" (drinking hall) or "Büdchen" (little hut) that offer newspapers, drinks and at least basic food supplies. These shops are, depending on the area, open till late night or even 24/7.

Jesti

Vidi također: German cuisine

How to get service

In Germany, at sit-down establishments, you usually look for a table that pleases you by yourself. In more expensive restaurants, it is more likely that a waiter attends you at the entrance who will lead you to a table.

When you get a table, it's yours until you leave. There is no need to hurry. That said, if you see that the restaurant is getting really crowded and people find it difficult to get a place, it is polite to leave and continue your after meal chat with your friends elsewhere.

It is also not absolutely unheard of in restaurants in the countryside, and in cities like Munich, to take a seat at a table where other people are already seated, especially if there are no other seats available. While it is uncommon to make conversation, in this case saying a brief hello goes a long way.

In Germany, the waiter or waitress is contacted by eye contact and a nod. He or she will come to your table immediately to serve you. Many service staff are university students who do it as a side gig, so the service might not always be as prompt and flawless as you could expect of trained staff. Have a bit of patience. Also keep in mind that waiters in Germany are expected to be as professional and unintrusive as possible, so be sure to ask if you need anything; checking on customers periodically like what waiters in the United States is considered unprofessional.

You will usually pay your bill directly to your waiter/waitress. Splitting the bill between individuals at the table is common. For tipping practices, see "Tipping" in the "Buy" section.

German food

German food usually sticks to its roots and a typical dish will consist of meat with some form of potatoes and gravy, accompanied by vegetables or salad. Modern German cuisine has been influenced by other European countries such as Italija i Francuska to become lighter. Dishes show a great local diversity which is interesting to discover. Most German Gaststätte and restaurants tend to be children and dog friendly, although both are expected to behave and not be too boisterous.

Putting places to eat into 7 categories gives you a hint about the budget and taste. Starting from the lower end, these are:

Imbiss

An Imbiss-Stand ili Imbiss in short, in the town of Essen
Currywurst

Schnellimbiss means 'quick snack', and is what you will see on the sign of German stalls and small shops that sell primarily sausage (Wurst) and fries (Pommes Frites). Sausages will include Bratwurst, which is fried and usually a boiled pork sausage. A very German variant is Currywurst: sausage chopped up and covered in spiced ketchup, dusted with curry powder. Beer and often even spirits are available in most Schnellimbisse.

Döner Kebab is a Turkish dish of veal, chicken or sometimes lamb stuffed into bread, similar to Greek Gyros and Arab Schawarma. Despite being considered Turkish, it's actually a specialty that originated in Germany. According to legend, it was invented by Turkish immigrants in West Berlin during the 1970s. In fact, the Döner is Germany's most loved fast food. The sales numbers of Döner shops exceed those of McDonald's and Burger King products by far.

Nevertheless, fast food giants like McDonald's, Burger King and Pizza Hut can be found in most cities. Nordsee is a German seafood chain, which offers 'Rollmops' (pickled herrings) and many other fish and seafood snacks. However, many independent seafood snack-bars (most common along the German coasts) offer slightly better and slightly cheaper seafood. You can also find independent shops selling pizza by the slice.

In addition to being able to grab a sweet snack at a bakery, during the summer, it seems like ice cream shops are on every block. Probati Spaghettieis for a popular sundae that is hard to find elsewhere. They press vanilla ice cream through a potato ricer to form the "noodles". This is topped with strawberry sauce to mimic the "spaghetti sauce" and usually either white chocolate shavings or ground almond nuts for "Parmesan cheese".

Bakeries and butchers

A typical German bakery, or Bäckerei, in Bielefeld (Westphalia)

Germans do not have a tradition of sandwich shops, but you will find that bakeries and butchers sell quite good take-away food and are serious competition for the fast food chains. Even the smallest bakeries will sell many sorts of bread or rolls, most of them darker (for example, using wholemeal or rye flour) than the white bread popular around the world and definitely worth a try. Even if they don't already have it prepared, almost all butchers will prepare a sandwich for you if you ask. Some butchers even prepare meals for you.

This butcher 'imbiss' is mainly popular in southern Germany, and the quality and freshness of food is usually high. Butcher shops that sell a lot of meals will often have a narrow, stand-up counter along one edge, so that you have a place to put your food while you stand up and eat it. Other bakeries and butcher shops even have tables and chairs and serve you more or less like a Kafić, as they also sell coffee and other hot beverages.

Canteens and cafeterias

Although rarely a tourist attraction in themselves, if you are wanting to sit down to eat but have little time or a limited budget, canteens and cafeterias are a good alternative to fast food restaurants. Many companies allow non-employees to eat at their canteens although most of these require some local knowledge about location and access, as do the university and college cafeterias. Food at college cafeterias is usually subsidised by the university and you'll have to pay a higher rate as a non-student but even then rates are usually affordable. Whether students can invite guests to dine at the student rate varies from university to university, but it is usually accepted when they swipe the meal with their own payment card which is usually their student ID or linked to it. Another option popular with pensioners and office workers are self-service restaurants in the larger furniture stores such as XXXL or IKEA.

Biergarten

In a beer garden, you can get the obvious drink. In traditional beer gardens in Bavarska, it is possible to bring your own food if you buy their drinks. Most places will offer simple meals. Neki Biergärten su također poznati kao Bierkeller (literally beer cellar), especially in Frankonija. Povijesno gledano, Bierkeller originate from the need to store beer in a cool place prior to artificial refrigeration. Thus underground structures were dug and soon beer would be sold directly out of storage in the summer months, giving rise to the Bierkeller tradition as we know it today. Many are set in quite beautiful natural surroundings, but probably the best known ensemble of Bierkeller can be found in Erlangen where they gave rise to the Bergkirchweih, one of the biggest beer festivals in the area. They were dug through a mountain just out of town and gave the city an edge in beer storage and consequently higher production capabilities, which led to beer from Erlangen becoming a household name once the railway connection enabled export. The invention of artificial cooling ended that advantage, however. The cellars still exist and besides their role in Bergkirchweih one of them operates as a normal Keller (as it is often shortened to) year round.

As the name implies, a beer garden is in a garden. It may be entirely outdoors, or you may be able to choose between an indoor (almost always non-smoking) area and an outdoor area. They range in size from small, cozy corners to some of the largest eating establishments in the world, capable of seating thousands. Munich's Oktoberfest, which happens at the end of September each year, creates some of the most famous temporary beer gardens in the world.

Brauhaus

Brauhaus u Köthen (Saxony-Anhalt)

Smaller breweries sell their products straight to the customer and sometimes you will find food there as well. Haxe ili Schweinshaxe (the ham hock, or the lower part of the pig's leg) will usually be among the offerings. It is a distinctively German specialty and probably the best dish in almost every establishment of that sort.

Gasthof/Gasthaus

Probably 50% of all eating places fall into this group. They are mainly family-run businesses that have been owned for generations, comparable to pubs in the UK. You can go there simply for a drink, or to try German food (often with a local flavour). Food quality differs significantly from place to place but the staff will usually give you an indication of the standard; regulations require restaurant owners to indicate certain possibly harmful ingredients (e.g. glutamates/MSG) in footnotes – a menu containing lots of such footnotes usually indicates low quality; if a cheap "Gasthaus"/restaurant is overcrowded with Germans or Asians, this indicates at least sufficient quality (unless the crowd is thanks to an organised coach excursion).

Restorani

In a restaurant in Leipzig

Germany has a wide range of flavours (e.g. German, Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Polish, Indian, Italian, French, Spanish, Greek, Turkish, Vietnamese) and almost all styles of the world are represented.

Turkish cuisine in Germany ranges from simple "Döner" shops to mostly family-run restaurants offering a wide variation of usually very cheap (in relation to German price levels) Turkish home cooking.

You will rarely find restaurants catering for special needs within Germany (e.g. kosher restaurants are common only in cities with a notable Jewish population like Berlin), although most restaurants will prepare special meals or variants for you if they are neither relying on convenience foods only nor too fancy. Most restaurants have at least some vegetarian meals. Muslims may want to stick to Turkish or Arabic restaurants. At some Turkish or Arab food stalls vegetarians might find falafel and baba ganoush to suit their tastes. For not-so-strict Jews the halal (sometimes spelled helal for the Turkish word for it) Turkish food stalls are also the best option for meat dishes.

In most restaurants in Germany you can choose your own table. You can make reservations (recommended for larger groups and haute cuisine on Saturday nights) and these are marked by reservation cards ("Reserviert"). In expensive restaurants in larger cities you will be expected to make reservations and will be seated by the staff (who will not allow you to choose your table).

Restaurants in commercial areas often offer weekday lunch specials. These are cheap (starting at €5, sometimes including a beverage) options and a good way to sample local food. Specials tend to rotate on a daily or weekly basis, especially when fresh ingredients like fish are involved.

Some restaurants offer all-you-can-eat-buffets where you pay around €10 and can eat as much as you want. Drinks are not included in this price.

"XXL-Restaurants" are rising in popularity. These offer mostly standard meat dishes like Schnitzel or Bratwurst in big to inhumane sizes. There is often a dish that is virtually impossible to eat alone (usually bordering 2 kg!) but if you manage to eat everything (and keep it inside), the meal will be free and you'll get a reward. Unlike in other restaurants it is common and encouraged to take leftover food home.

Table manners

Na vrlo formal events and in high-end restaurants, a few German customs may differ from what some visitors may be used to:

  • It's considered bad manners to eat with your elbows resting on the table. Keep only your wrists on the table. Most Germans will keep up these manners in everyday life since this is one of the most basic rules parents will teach their children. If you go to a restaurant with your German friends, you may want to pay attention too.
  • When moving the fork to your mouth, the tines should point upwards (not downwards as in Britain)
  • When eating soup or other food from your spoon, hold it with the tip towards your mouth (not parallel to your lips as in, again, Britain). Spoons used to stir beverages, e.g. coffee, should not be put in the mouth at all.
  • If you have to temporarily leave the table, it's fine to put your napkin (which should have rested, folded once along the centre, on your lap until then) on the table, to the left of your plate, in an elegant little pile—unless it looks really dirty, in which case you might want to leave it on your chair.
  • If you want the dishes to be cleared away put your knife and fork parallel to each other with the tips at roughly the half past eleven mark of your plate. Otherwise the waitstaff will assume you are still eating.

Typical dishes

Hearty Bavarski food on a fancy plate. S lijeva nadesno: Schnitzel, pork belly (Schweinebauch) with red cabbage (Rotkohl), Weißwurst with mashed potatoes (Kartoffelpüree), Bratwurst on sauerkraut

Rinderroulade mit Rotkraut und Knödeln: this dish is quite unique to Germany. Very thin sliced beef rolled around a piece of bacon and pickled cucumber until it looks like a mini barrel (5 cm 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.

Pfefferrahm, Jäger, and Zigeuner Schnitzel with Pommes

Schnitzel mit Pommes Frites: there are probably as many different variations of Schnitzel as there are restaurants in Germany, most of them have in common a thin slice of pork that is usually breaded, and fried for a short period of time and it is often served with fries (usually called Pommes Frites or often just Pommes). 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, ili 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. Due to the ease of its preparation ordering it might be perceived as an insult to any business with a decent reputation (with the exception of Wiener Schnitzel perhaps), admittedly it is almost unavoidable to spot it on the menu of any sleazy German drinking hole (and there are many...), if nothing else therefore it might even be the most common dish in German restaurants (yes, at least German government officials čini call their taverns as well as the common fast food stalls 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.

Bratwurst and Sauerkraut from the 500 year old fast-food stand in Regensburg

Wurst "sausage": there is hardly a 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, "grobe 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. The most popular type of sausage probably is the Currywurst (Bratwurst cut into slices and served with ketchup and curry powder) and can be bought almost everywhere.

Königsberger Klopse: Literally "meatballs from Königsberg", this is a typical dish in and around Berlin. The meatballs are made out of minced pork and anchovies and are cooked and served in a white sauce with capers and rice or potatoes.

Matjesbrötchen: Soussed herring or "roll mops" in a bread roll, typical street snack.

Local specialties

Pfälzer Saumagen s Kiseli kupus, allegedly the favourite dish of former Chancellor Helmut Kohl
Maultaschen from Baden

Starting from the north of Germany going south you will find a tremendous variety of food and each region sticks to its origins.The coastal regions are fond of seafood and famous dishes include "Finkenwerder Scholle".

In the region of Cologne you will find Sauerbraten, which is a roast marinated in vinegar. Traditionally made from the tough meat of the horses who worked their lives pulling river barges up the Rhine, these days the dish is usually made from beef.

Labskaus (although strictly speaking not a German invention) is a dish from the north and the opinions about this dish are divided, some love it, others hate it. It is a mash of potato, beetroot juice and cured meat decorated with rollmops and/or young herring and/or a fried egg and/or sour cucumber and/or beetroot slices on top. The north is also famous for its lamb dishes, the best type of lamb probably being "Rudenlamm" (lamb from Ruden, a small island in the Baltic Sea; only a few restaurants in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania serve this), the second best type being "Salzwiesenlamm" (salt meadow lamb). The Lüneburger Heide (Lueneburg Heath) is famous not only for its heath but also for its Heidschnucken, a special breed of sheep. Be aware that a lot of restaurants import their lamb from New Zealand though because it is cheaper. Crabs and mussels are also quite common along the German coasts, especially in North Frisia.

A specialty of Hamburg is "Aalsuppe" which – despite the name (in this case "Aal" means "everything", not "eel") – originally contained almost everything – except eel (today many restaurants include eel within this soup, because the name confused tourists). At the coast there's a variety of fish dishes. Beware: if a restaurant offers "Edelfischplatte" or any dish of similar name, the fish may not be fresh and even (this is quite ironic) of poor quality. Therefore, it is strongly recommended that, for eating fish, you visit specialised (or quality) restaurants only. A fast-food style restaurant chain serving standardised quality fish and other seafood at low prices all over Germany is "Nordsee", though you will rarely find authentic specialties there.

Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte, cherry cake from the Crna šuma regija

Pfälzer Saumagen: Long a well-known dish in Palatinate, but difficult to find outside of this area. Literally this is pig stomach filled with a mash of potato and meat, cooked for 2–3 hours and then cut into thick slices. It is often served with sauerkraut. It gained some notoriety as Helmut Kohl was fond of serving it to official state guests such as Gorbachev and Reagan when he was Chancellor.

Swabia is famous for Spätzle (a kind of noodle, often served with cheese as Kässpätzle) and "Maultaschen" (noodles stuffed with spinach and mince meat, but lots of variations, even veggie ones, exist).

In Bavaria this may be Schweinshaxe mit Knödeln (pork's leg with knödel, a form of potato dumplings), "Leberkäs/Fleischkäse mit Kartoffelsalat" (a type of meat pie and potato salad), "Nürnberger Bratwurst" (probably the smallest sausage in Germany), Weißwurst (white sausages) and "Obatzda" (a spicy mix of several milk products).

The south is also famous for its nice tarts such as the "Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte" (tart with lots of cream and spirits made from cherries).

A delicacy in Saxony is Eierschecke, a cake made of eggs and cream similar to cheese cake.

A specialty of the East is "Soljanka" (originally from Ukraine, but probably the most common dish in the GDR), a sour soup containing vegetables and usually some kind of meat or sausages.

Seasonal specialties

Asparagus with hollandaise sauce and potatoes

White asparagus (Spargel) floods the restaurants from April to June all over Germany, especially in and around Baden-Baden and the small town of Schwetzingen ("The Asparagus Capital"), near Heidelberg, in an area north and north-east of Hannover ("Lower Saxony's Asparagus Route"), as well as in the area southwest of Berlin, especially in the town of Beelitz and along the Lower Rhine ("Walbecker Spargel"). Frankonija, particularly the Knoblauchsland around Nuremberg also produces quite good asparagus. Many vegetables can be found all year round and are often imported from far away, whereas asparagus can be found for only 2 months and is best enjoyed fresh after harvest, it stays nice for a couple of hours or until the next day. The asparagus is treated very carefully and it is harvested before it is ever exposed to daylight, so that it remains white. When exposed to daylight it changes its colour to green and might taste bitter. Therefore, white asparagus is considered to be better by most Germans. Especially in areas with a Spargel growing tradition the devotion to this white vegetable can seem near-religious and even rural mom and pop restaurants will have a page or more of Spargel recipes in addition to their normal menu.

The standard asparagus meal is the asparagus stalks, hollandaise sauce, boiled potatoes, and some form of meat. The most common meat is ham, preferably smoked; however, you will also find it teamed with schnitzel (fried breaded pork), turkey, beef, or whatever is available in the kitchen.

White asparagus soup is one of the hundreds of different recipes that can be found with white asparagus. Often it is made with cream and contains some of the thinner asparagus pieces.

Dresdner Christstollen

Another example of a seasonal specialty is kale (Grünkohl). You can find that mainly in Lower Saxony, particularly the southern and south-western parts such as the "Emsland" or around the "Wiehengebirge" and the "Teutoburger Wald", but also everywhere else there and in the eastern parts of North-Rhine-Westphalia. It is usually served with a boiled rough sort of sausage (called "Pinkel") and roasted potatoes. If you are travelling in Lower-Saxony in fall, you should get it in every "Gasthaus".

Lebkuchen are some of Germany's many nice Christmas biscuits and gingerbread. The best known are produced in and around Nürnberg.

Stollen is a kind of cake eaten during the Advent season and yuletide. Although native to Dresden, Saska; it can be found everywhere in Germany.

Around St. Martin's day and Christmas, roasted geese ("Martinsgans" / "Weihnachtsgans") are quite common in German restaurants, accompanied by "Rotkraut" (red cabbage, in southern Germany it is often called Blaukraut) and "Knödeln" (potato dumplings), preferably served as set menu, with the liver, accompanied by some kind of salad, as starter, goose soup, and a dessert.

Kruh

Selection of bread in a German bakery

Germans are very fond of their kruh (Brot), which they make in many variations. This is the food that Germans tend to miss most when away from home. Most people like their bread relatively dark and dense and scorn the soft loaves sold in other countries. Bakeries will rarely provide less than twenty different sorts of bread and it's worth trying a few of them. In fact, many Germans buy their lunch or small snacks in bakeries instead of takeaways or the like. Prices for a loaf of bread will range from €0.50 do €4, depending on the size (real specialties might cost more).

Because German bread tends to be excellent, sandwiches (belegtes Brot) are also usually to a high standard, including in train stations and airports. However, if you want to save money do as most locals and make the sandwich yourself as belegtes Brot can be quite expensive when bought ready made.

Vegetarijanac

Outside of big cities like Berlin, there aren't many places which are particularly aimed at vegetarian or vegan customers. Most restaurants have one or two vegetarian dishes. If the menu doesn't contain vegetarian dishes, don't hesitate to ask.

Be careful when ordering to ask whether the dish is suitable for vegetarians, as chicken stock and bacon cubes are a commonly "undeclared" ingredient on German menus.

However, there are usually organic food shops ("Bioladen", "Naturkostladen" or "Reformhaus") in every city, providing veg(etari)an bread, spreads, cheese, ice cream, vegan milk substitutes, tofu and seitan. The diversity and quality of the products is great and you will find shop assistants that can answer special nutritional questions in great depth.

Veganism and vegetarianism is on the rise in Germany so that many supermarkets (such as Edeka and Rewe) have a small selection of vegan products as well in their "Feinkost"-section such as seitan-sausages, tofu or soy milk at a reasonable price.

Allergy & Coeliac sufferers

When shopping for foods, the package labelling in Germany is generally reliable. All food products must be properly labelled including additives and preservatives. Be on the look out for Weizen (wheat), Mehl (flour) or Malz (malt) and Stärke (starch). Budite posebno oprezni prema hrani s Geschmacksverstärker (pojačivači okusa) koji možda imaju gluten kao sastojak.

  • Reformhaus. 3000 jakih mreža prodavaonica zdrave hrane u Njemačkoj i Austriji, koje su izdvojile dijelove bez glutena, opskrbljene tjesteninom, kruhom i poslasticama. Trgovine Reformhaus obično se nalaze u nižoj razini trgovačkih centara (npr. PotsdamerArkaden, itd.) 
  • DM prodavaonice. CWS / Shopper's Drug Mart u Njemačkoj ima namjenske dijelove bez pšenice i glutena 
  • Alnatura. - trgovina prirodnom hranom s velikim namjenskim dijelom bez glutena 

Piće

Zakonske dobi za piće su:

  • 14. - Maloljetnicima je dozvoljeno da u restoranu kupuju destilirana (fermentirana) alkoholna pića, kao što su pivo i vino, sve dok su u društvu roditelja ili zakonskog skrbnika.
  • 16 - Maloljetnici smiju kupovati destilirana (fermentirana) alkoholna pića, poput piva i vina bez njihovih roditelja ili zakonskog skrbnika. Bilo koje piće koje sadrži destilirani alkohol (čak i ako je ukupni sadržaj alkohola niži nego u tipičnom pivu) nije dopušteno
  • 18 - kad postanu odrasli, ljudima je omogućen neograničen pristup alkoholu.

Pivo

Pivo

Nijemci su svjetski poznati po svom pivu, a njegovu proizvodnju i potrošnju izvoze širom svijeta.

Stoljećima je proizvodnjom piva u Bavarskoj upravljalo Reinheitsgebot (zakon o čistoći) koji je napravljen nacionalnom politikom ujedinjenjem Njemačke 1871. godine, koji kaže da se njemačko pivo može raditi samo od hmelja, slada i vode (kvasac još tada nije bio poznat). The Reinheitsgebot je zaliven uvozom zbog europskih integracija, ali njemačke se pivovare još uvijek moraju toga pridržavati jer za njih vrijedi nacionalni zakon. Međutim, nacionalni zakon također je razvodnjen i sada kaže da se tijekom postupka proizvodnje mogu koristiti razni dodaci i pomoćne tvari, sve dok se ne nalaze u krajnjem proizvodu.

Domaćim tržištem piva ne dominira jedna ili samo nekoliko velikih pivovara. Iako postoje neki veliki igrači, regionalna raznolikost je ogromna, a postoji preko 1.200 pivovara, od kojih većina poslužuje samo lokalna tržišta. Obično barovi i restorani poslužuju lokalne sorte koje se razlikuju od grada do grada. Međutim, sjever ima manje raznolikosti od juga, a posebno na mjestima koja nisu specijalizirana za pivo, veća je vjerojatnost da ćete iz velikih pivovara masovno zalijevati Pils. Ako uistinu želite iskusiti njemačko pivo, pokušajte se pridržavati manjih marki, jer se one ne moraju privlačiti masovnom tržištu i tako su više "individualnog" okusa. Kad sjedi na njemačkom Kneipe, lokalno pivo je uvijek opcija, a često i jedina opcija.

Specijaliteti uključuju Weizenbier (ili Weißbier u Bavarskoj), osvježavajuće pivo vrhunskog vrenja koje je popularno na jugu, Alt, vrsta tamnog aleva koja je posebno popularna ui oko nje Düsseldorf, i Kölsch, posebno pivo koje se kuhalo Köln. "Pils", njemački naziv za pilsner, svijetlo je zlatno pivo koje je izuzetno popularno u Njemačkoj. Postoje i sezonska piva koja se proizvode samo u određeno doba godine (poput Bockbiera zimi i Maibocka u svibnju, koji sadrže veću količinu alkohola, ponekad dvostruku od one koja je uobičajena za Vollbier).

Pivo se obično poslužuje u čašama od 200 ili 300 ml (u sjevernom dijelu) ili u 500 ml u južnom. U Biergartensu u Bavarskoj 500 ml je malo piva ("Halbe"), a litra je normalno ("Maß" izgovara "Mahss"). Osim u "irskim pubovima", pinte ili vrčevi su rijetki.

Za Nijemce je puno pjene i znak svježine i kvalitete; tako se pivo uvijek poslužuje s puno glave. (Sve naočale imaju oznake glasnoće za kritične duše.)

Uz to, Nijemci se ne boje miješati pivo s drugim pićima (iako se starija generacija možda neće složiti). Pivo se obično miješa s gaziranom limunadom (obično u omjeru 1: 1) i naziva se "Radler" (ili biciklist tako nazvan jer je obično povezan s osvježavajućim pićem koje bi biciklist mogao uživati ​​u proljeće ili ljeto tijekom biciklističkog izleta) (ili "Alsterwasser" / "Alster" (nakon rijeke u Hamburg) na sjeveru); "Kokteli" od Pilsener / Altbier i bezalkoholna pića poput Fanta, "Krefelder" / "Colaweizen" cole i tamnog pšeničnog piva još su jedna kombinacija koju možete pronaći. Pils pomiješan s kolom vrlo je popularan, posebno među mlađim Nijemcima, a nosi različita imena - ovisno o vašem području - poput "Diesel", "Schmutziges" (prljav) ili "Schweinebier" (svinjsko pivo). Još jedna poznata lokalna delicija je "Berliner Weiße", mutno, kiselo pšenično pivo od oko 3% abv. koji je pomiješan sa sirupima (tradicionalno malina) i ljeti je vrlo osvježavajuć. Ova miješana pića na bazi piva široko su raširena i popularna i mogu se kupiti kao prethodno pomiješane boce (obično u šest pakiranja) gdje god se prodaje redovno pivo.

Pubovi su otvoreni u Njemačkoj do 02:00 ili kasnije. Hrana je uglavnom dostupna do ponoći. Nijemci obično izlaze nakon 20:00 (popularna mjesta već su puna do 18:00).

Jabukovača

Jabukovača à la Frankfurt - Vrč i čaša s rombom

Nesporni glavni grad jabukovače "Apfelwein" (ili Äbblwoi, kako se lokalno naziva) jabukovača je Frankfurt. Frankfurteri vole svoj jabukovaču. Postoje čak i posebni barovi ("Apfelweinkneipe") koji će poslužiti samo Apfelwein i neke gastronomske specijalitete. Jabukovača se često poslužuje u posebnom vrču nazvanom "Bembel". Okus se malo razlikuje od jabukovače u drugim zemljama i obično je prilično osvježavajuć. U jesen, kada se jabuke pretvore u jabukovaču, na nekim ćete mjestima naći natpise "Frischer Most" ili "Süßer". To je prvi proizvod u lancu proizvodnje "Apfelwein"; jedna čaša je lijepa, ali nakon dvije ili tri čaše imat ćete problem osim ako ne uživate provoditi puno vremena na WC-u. U Saarland i okolnih regija "Apfelwein" naziva se "Viez". Ovdje varira od "Suesser Viez" (slatko), do "Viez Fein-Herb" (srednje slatko) do "Alter Saerkower" (kiselo). Glavni grad Vieza te regije je Merzig. Zimi je također uobičajeno piti vrući jabukovaču (zajedno s malo klinčića i šećera). Smatra se učinkovitom mjerom protiv nadolazeće prehlade.

Kava

Nijemci piju puno kava. Luka Hamburg je najprometnije mjesto za trgovinu kavom na svijetu. Kava je uvijek svježe pripremljena od mljevene kave ili zrna - bez instant. Međutim, osobe koje dolaze iz zemalja s velikom tradicijom kave (poput Italija, Portugal, purica, Grčka ili Austrija) možda će vam kava koja se poslužuje u uobičajenim restoranima biti pomalo dosadna. Njemački specijalitet porijeklom iz Sjeverne Frizije, ali danas uobičajen i u Istočnoj Friziji, jest "Pharisäer", mješavina kave i alkoholnog pića, obično ruma, s gustim vrhnjem. Varijacija ovoga je "Tote Tante" (mrtva tetka, s kavom zamijenjenom vrućom čokoladom).

Tijekom posljednjih nekoliko godina, američki lanac kafića Starbucks ili klonovi proširili su se u Njemačku, ali uglavnom ćete susresti "Kafiće" koji obično nude veliki izbor kolača uz kavu.

Glühwein

Posjeta Njemačkoj u prosincu? Zatim idite i pogledajte jednog od poznatih Božićne tržnice (najpoznatiji koji se odvija u Nürnberg, Dresden, Leipzig, Münster, Bremen, Augsburg i Aachen) i ovo je mjesto gdje ćete pronaći Glühweina (kuhano vino), začinjeno vino posluženo vrlo vruće da vas utješi u zimskoj hladnoći.

Duhovi

Generička riječ za žestoka pića od voća je Obstler, a svako područje ima svoje specijalitete.

Bavarci vole svoje pivo kao i svoje Enzian, alkohol s puno alkohola koji je najbolji kao probavni sastojak nakon obilnog obroka.

Kirschwasser doslovno znači voda od višnje; zasigurno ima okus trešnje, ali s druge strane to nije uobičajena voda za piće. U Badenu postoji dugotrajna tradicija spravljanja žestokih pića, a "Kirschwasser" je vjerojatno vodeći proizvod i možda će vas potaknuti da kušate druge specijalitete poput Himbeergeista (od maline), Schlehenfeuera (aromatizirano bobičastim plodovima), Williamchrista (kruška) i Apfelkorn (sok od jabuke i korn).

Korn, napravljen od žita, vjerojatno je najčešći duh u Njemačkoj. Korn je popularniji na sjeveru, gdje popularnošću premašuje pivo. Na Jugu je situacija obrnuta. Njegov glavni proizvodni centar (Berentzen) leži u Haselünneu, gdje se mogu organizirati izleti i degustacije u destilerijama. Grad je u blizini rijeke Ems na sjeverozapadu Njemačke; o željezničkom prijevozu do Haselünnea (vrlo rijetko) vidi Eisenbahnfreunde Hasetal[mrtva veza]. Uobičajena smjesa je Korn sa sokom od jabuke ("Apfelkorn") koji obično djeluje na oko 20% abv. a obično je konzumiraju mlađi ljudi. Još jedan grad poznat po svom Doppelkorn (s preko petsto godina tradicije pokretanja) je Nordhausen u Tiringiji, gdje se ture i degustacije također lako dogovaraju.

U Donjoj Saskoj, posebno u područjima koja okružuju Lüneburg Heath, ističu se različiti specijalizirani likeri i rakija. Ratzeputz sadrži 58% alkohola i sadrži ekstrakte i destilate korijena đumbira. Heidegeist je biljni liker koji sadrži 31 sastojak vrijeska s udjelom alkohola od 50%. Prozirne je boje i snažnog, mentastog okusa.

U Sjevernoj Friziji, Köm (alkohol od kima), bilo čisti ili pomiješani s čajem ("Teepunsch", čajni punč), vrlo je popularan.

Eiergrog je vruća smjesa likera od jaja i ruma.

Čaj

Čaj, Tee, također je vrlo popularan, a dostupan je i velik izbor. Regija Istočna Frizija posebno ima dugu čajnu tradiciju i vjerojatno je jedino mjesto u Njemačkoj gdje je čaj popularniji od kave. Istočnofrizijska čajna ceremonija sastoji se od crnog čaja koji se poslužuje u ravnoj porculanskoj šalici s posebnim kamenim šećerom (Kluntje) koja se stavi u šalicu prije pretakanja čaja. Krema se dodaje nakon toga, ali se ne miješa u čaj. Istočno-frizijska naklonost prema čaju ismijavana je u prilično zloglasnoj reklami za određeni slatkiš koji se navodno dobro slaže s kavom, samo da bi tvrdnju prekinuo bučni istočno-frižanac koji bi rekao "Und was ist mit Tee? " (A što je s čajem?) U stereotipnom sjevernonjemačkom naglasku. Većina Nijemaca još uvijek zna ovu rečenicu, ako ne i nužno njezino podrijetlo.

Vruća čokolada

Posebno zimi, Nijemci vole svoju vruću čokoladu (heiße Schokolade), koji je široko dostupan. Vruća čokolada u Njemačkoj uglavnom je manje-više Zartbitter - to jest, gorko-slatko - a u gurmanskim objektima može biti prilično mračno i gorko i samo malo slatko. Obično se poslužuje Schlag (svježi šlag, također nazvan Schlagsahne). Iako se obično poslužuje unaprijed pripremljeno, u nekim će se kafićima poslužiti blok čokolade koji sami umiješate i otopite u vrućem mlijeku. Mliječna čokolada se zove Kinderschokolade ("dječja čokolada") u Njemačkoj i uopće se ne shvaća ozbiljno, stoga nemojte očekivati ​​da ćete moći naručiti vruću mliječnu čokoladu ako ste odrasla osoba.

Vino

Pogled iz zraka na vinograde u Markgräflerlandu

Neki Nijemci jednako su strastveni prema svojim vina (Wein) kao i drugi o svom pivu. Ovdje sličnosti ne prestaju; oba proizvoda često proizvode male tvrtke, a najbolja vina konzumiraju se lokalno. Proizvodnja vina ima 2000 godina staru povijest u Njemačkoj, kako se može naučiti iz Rheinisches Landesmuseum u Trier ali, naravno, ovo je u to vrijeme bilo rimsko naselje. Sunce je ograničavajući faktor za proizvodnju vina u Njemačkoj, pa je proizvodnja vina ograničena na jug. Bijelo vino igra glavnu ulogu u proizvodnji vina, ali neka područja proizvode crvena vina (Ahr, Baden Württemberg). Bijela vina proizvode se od grožđa rizling, kerner i Müller-Thurgau (ima ih puno više), a proizvode uglavnom svježa i voćna vina. Njemačka vina mogu biti bogata kiselinom i prilično su osvježavajuća. Općenito je prihvaćeno da grožđe od rizlinga proizvodi najbolja njemačka vina, ali zahtijeva puno sunca i najbolje uspijeva na vrlo izloženim područjima kao što su Mosel, Rheingau, Bergstraße, Kaiserstuhl i Pfalz.

Njemačka je poznata po ledenom vinu (Eiswein), u kojem se grožđe ostavlja da se smrzne na lozi prije berbe. Njemačke sorte ledenog vina uglavnom su manje slatke od njihovih kanadski kolege.

Najbolji način za učenje o vinima je otići do mjesta gdje se uzgajaju i kušati ih na licu mjesta. Ovo se zove "Weinprobe"i obično je besplatan - iako u turističkim područjima morate platiti malu naknadu.

Dobra vina obično idu uz dobru hranu, pa biste ih možda voljeli posjetiti i kad ste gladni i žedni. Takozvani Straußenwirtschaft, Besenwirtschaft ili Heckenwirtschaft su mali "pubovi" ili vrtovi u kojima proizvođač vina prodaje vlastito vino, obično s malo obroka poput sendviča ili sira i šunke. Obično su otvoreni samo ljeti i u jesen, a ne duže od 4 mjeseca godišnje (zbog zakonskih propisa). Kako su negdje u vinogradima ili na nekim stražnjim ulicama, nije ih uvijek lako pronaći, pa je najbolje da sljedećeg (ili najboljeg) zatražite od lokalnog stanovništva Straußenwirtschaft zna.

Tijekom jeseni možete kupiti "Federweisser" u jugozapadnoj Njemačkoj. Ovo je djelomično fermentirano bijelo vino i sadrži malo alkohola (ovisno o dobi), ali je vrlo slatkog okusa. Dostupan je i od crnog grožđa, naziva se "Roter Sauser" ili "Roter Rauscher".

Bocksbeutels iz Frankena, jedan moderan, drugi krajem 19. stoljeća.

Vinogradarska područja su:

  • Ahr je raj njemačkih crnih vina. Polovica proizvodnje posvećena je crnim vinima i gusto je naseljena "Gaststätten" i "Strausswirten". Izreka kaže: Tko god je posjetio Ahr i sjeća se da je bio tamo, zapravo nije bio tamo.
  • Baden sa c. 15.500 hektara vinskih dvorišta i proizvodnju od milijun hektolitara, Baden je treće po veličini vinorodno područje u Njemačkoj. To je najjužnije njemačko vinorodno područje i jedini je Njemački član Europske kategorije vina B zajedno sa poznatim francuskim područjima Elzasom, Šampanjcem i Loireom. Baden je dug više od 400 km i podijeljen je u devet regionalnih skupina: Tauberfranken, Badische Bergstraße, Kraichgau, Ortenau, Breisgau, Kaiserstuhl, Tuniberg, Markgräflerland i Bodensee. Kaiserstuhl i Markgräflerland najpoznatija su područja iz vina iz Badena. Jedna od najvećih vinskih zadruga je Badischer Winzerkeller u Breisach.
  • Franken: Franconia je u sjevernom dijelu Bavarska i tamo možete pronaći vrlo lijepa vina, najčešće suho bijelo vino. Neka vina proizvedena u Franconiji prodaju se u posebnoj boci nazvanoj "Bocksbeutel".
  • Hessische Bergstraße: na obroncima doline Rajne to je tiho malo vinogradarsko područje i vina se obično konzumiraju unutar područja ui oko Heppenheim.
  • Mosel-Saar-Ruwer: najstrmiji vinogradi u Njemačkoj mogu se vidjeti tijekom vožnje dolinom Mosel od Koblenz do Trier.
  • Pfalz: najveće vinogradarsko područje u Njemačkoj. Ima izvrsna vina za kušanje i puno lijepih sela ugrađenih u vinograde. Kušanje vina u Deidesheim dobra je ideja i nekoliko glavnih proizvođača njemačkog vina je na glavnoj cesti. Želite vidjeti najveću vinsku bačvu na svijetu? Onda idite na Bad Dürkheim.
  • Rheingau: najmanje je područje za proizvodnju vina, ali u njemu se proizvode najcjenjenija rizling vina u Njemačkoj. Posjetiti Wiesbaden i putovati Rajnom do Eltville i Rüdesheim.
  • Rheinhessen previše je posebno poznat po svom rizlingu. Posjetiti Mainz i putovati Rajnom do Crvi, Oppenheim, Ingelheim ili Bingen.
  • Saale-Unstrut: u državi Saxonia-Anhalt na obalama rijeka Saale i Unstrut najsjevernije je područje za proizvodnju vina u Europi.
  • Sachsen: Jedna od najmanjih vinskih regija u Njemačkoj, smještena uz rijeku Elbu u blizini Dresden i Meissen.
  • Württemberg: Kao što je već spomenuto, ovdje se strogo primjenjuje pravilo da lokalno stanovništvo konzumira najbolje vino; potrošnja vina po grlu dvostruko je veća nego u ostatku Njemačke, bez obzira radi li se o crnom ili bijelom vinu. Posebnost regije je crno vino zvano Trollinger koje po njemačkim standardima može biti prilično lijepo.

Spavati

Njemačka nudi gotovo sve mogućnosti smještaja, uključujući hotele, noćenja s doručkom, hostele i kampiranje. Također biste mogli razmisliti o boravku s članovima a razmjena ugostiteljstva mreža.

Njemački madraci imaju tendenciju da zauzmu sredinu za čvrstoću, u usporedbi s plišanim američkim i tvrdim japanskim madracima. Posteljina je obično jednostavna: pokrivač za pokrivanje madraca, jedna poplun po osobi (Decke, vrlo je lijepo ako spavate s nekim tko ima tendenciju da prikriva deke, ali ponekad i malo vjetrovito oko nožnih prstiju za visoke ljude) i ogromnim jastukom od četvrtastog pera, koji možete oblikovati u bilo koji oblik koji vam se sviđa. Uređivanje kreveta ujutro traje samo nekoliko sekundi: preklopite Decke u trećinama brzim zamahom zglobova, kao da će spavati na vašem mjestu dok ste vani, i bacite jastuk na vrh kreveta.

Hoteli

Adlon, poznati luksuzni hotel u Berlinu

Većina međunarodnih hotelskih lanaca ima franšize u većim njemačkim gradovima, a postoji i mnoštvo lokalnih hotela. Svi hoteli u Njemačkoj rangirani su prema zvjezdicama (1 do 5 zvjezdica). Poredak se vrši neovisno i stoga je općenito pouzdan, ali u nekim se slučajevima može temeljiti na prilično zastarjelim inspekcijama. U cijenu je uvijek uključen PDV i obično je po sobi. Cijene se značajno razlikuju po gradovima (München i Frankfurt su najskuplje). Možete pronaći mnoge poput lanca "orijentiranih na vrijednost" Motel Jedan ili Ibis, kako u predgrađima tako i u gradskim središtima većine gradova, koji su često prilično novi ili obnovljeni i iznenađujuće lijepi po cijeni. Za ljude koji putuju automobilom, poput Francuske, Njemačka ima gustu mrežu Ibis proračunskih hotela na periferiji gradova u blizini Autobahnsa, nudeći uistinu gole kosti hotelsko iskustvo po cijenama koje se mogu nadmetati s hostelima.

S druge strane ljestvice, Njemačka ima mnogo luksuznih hotela. Prodor na tržište hotelskih lanaca je velik. Lokalni brendovi uključuju ultraluksuzni Kempinski (koji je do sada prilično globalna marka), dok Dorint i Lindner vode luksuzne poslovne hotele. Većina globalnih hotelskih lanaca solidno je prisutna, a prednjače Accor (Sofitel, Pullman, Novotel, Mercure).

Nije kliše u koji možete računati da će njemački hoteli pružiti kvalitetu i predvidljivo iskustvo. Možda se nećete razmaziti ako brošura ne kaže tako, ali vrlo je rijetko da će vaše iskustvo zaista biti loše. Štoviše, njemački domaći turizam prilično je obiteljski orijentiran, pa ne biste trebali imati problema s pronalaženjem obiteljskih hotela s dodatnim krevetima u sobama, često u obliku kreveta na kat, i sadržajima za svoje mlađe.

Kada naziv hotela sadrži izraz "Garni", to znači da je doručak uključen. Dakle, može postojati dobar broj hotela čije ime sadrži "Hotel Garni"u gradu; kad tražite upute, navedite puni naziv hotela i ne samo"Hotel Garni".

krevet i doručak

Noćenja s doručkom ("Pensionen" ili "Fremdenzimmer") (obično) pružaju manje udobnosti od hotela po nižim cijenama. Prednost je što ćete vjerojatno upoznati Nijemce i osjetiti njemački način života. Znak s natpisom "Zimmer frei" označava B & B s dostupnom sobom.

Hosteli

Prenoćište za mlade Schloss Ortenburg (Baden-Württemberg)

Hosteli osigurati jednostavan, povoljan smještaj, prvenstveno u zajedničkim sobama. Dobra su mjesta za upoznavanje drugih putnika. U Njemačkoj, kao i u mnogim zemljama, postoje dvije vrste: međunarodni hosteli za mlade i neovisni hosteli.

Međunarodni hosteli za mlade ("Jugendherbergen") u vlasništvu su i vode ih udruga "Deutsches Jugendherbergswerk" (DJH), koji je dio mreže Hostelling International (HI). Postoji više od 600 hostela raspoređenih po cijeloj Njemačkoj u velikim i malim gradovima, kao i na selu. Gosti nisu samo individualni putnici, već i školski razredi i druge skupine mladih. Da biste tamo spavali, morate biti ili postati članom omladinske organizacije hostela koja pripada HI mreža. Detaljne informacije o ovom i svakom njihovom hostelu mogu se pronaći na DJH-ima. Općenito, to podrazumijeva jednostavno popunjavanje kartice i plaćanje nekoliko dodatnih eura po noćenju. Općenito, prednost je ovih mjesta što obično poslužuju doručak na bazi švedskog stola bez dodatne naplate, iako to nije apsolutno pravilo. Međutim, kvaliteta je često ispod kvalitete privatnih hostela, a mnogi ne pružaju dobru priliku za druženje.

Privatni neovisni hosteli počinju biti atraktivna alternativa za sličnu cijenu. U Njemačkoj već postoji više od 60, a svake je godine sve više i više otvoreno. Ima ih u većim gradovima, posebno u Berlin, München, Dresden, i Hamburg. Samo je nekoliko na selu. Ponekad ih vode bivši putnici, hosteli se suzdržavaju od strogih pravila. Pogotovo su mala mjesta na kojima se možete osjećati kao kod kuće. Mnogi su poznati po svojoj živahnoj atmosferi za zabave i mogu biti izvrstan način za upoznavanje drugih putnika. Nije potrebno biti član neke organizacije da bi tamo spavao. Otprilike polovica hostela organizirala se u a "Backpacker mreža Njemačka", koji sadrži popis hostela njihovih članova. Web stranica koja sadrži popis gotovo svih neovisnih hostela u Njemačkoj Gomio. Naravno, međunarodne agencije za rezervaciju soba poput Hostelsclub, Hostelworld & Hostelbookers također su dobri izvori i pružaju putnicima mogućnost ostavljanja recenzija. A & O hosteli / hoteli imaju niz kvalitetnih centralnih gradskih lokacija u Njemačkoj koje pružaju zanimljiv spoj hostelskog i hotelskog stila smještaja koji je obično namijenjen mladim odraslima i obiteljima.

Kampiranje

Kamp u Hattingen (Sjeverna Rajna-Vestfalija

U Njemačkoj postoji bezbroj kampova. Značajno se razlikuju po infrastrukturi i standardu. Njemački automobilski klub ADAC nudi izvrstan vodič za većinu njemačkih kamping grupa. Ako ste član vašeg nacionalnog autokluba, pomoć i vodiči su besplatni ili po znatno nižim cijenama.

Neki putnici samo postave svoje šatore negdje na selu. U Njemačkoj je to protuzakonito (osim u Mecklenburg-Vorpommernu), osim ako nemate dozvolu vlasnika zemljišta. Praktično, međutim, nikoga nije briga sve dok ste diskretni, ostanite samo jednu noć i ponesite smeće sa sobom. Budite svjesni lovišta i vojnih poligona ili biste mogli biti u značajnoj opasnosti od pucnjave.

Naučiti

Barokna palača u Münster (sada koristi Sveučilište)

Njemačka sveučilišta konkurentna su najboljima na svijetu. Općenito, Nijemci ne razmišljaju puno o relativnoj kvaliteti jednog njemačkog sveučilišta u usporedbi s drugim, ali državna se obično smatraju prestižnijima od privatnih, a starija više od mlađih. Savezna vlada pokrenula je "inicijativu za izvrsnost" kako bi odala počast najprestižnijim sveučilištima i dala im dodatna sredstva, no financiranje je strogo dodijeljeno na temelju njihovih istraživanje nije njihov nastava a često je ograničen na nekoliko odabranih odjela. Jedno od najpoznatijih sveučilišta u Njemačkoj među govornicima engleskog jezika Sveučilište Heidelberg (Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg), koje je ujedno i najstarije njemačko sveučilište.

Budući da je velika većina sveučilišta u državnom vlasništvu, studiranje u Njemačkoj obično je vrlo jeftino (50–700 EUR / semestar), ali imajte na umu da su životni troškovi u većini Njemačke prilično visoki (na primjer Tübingen: oko 350-400 € najamnine mjesečno za troškove jednosobnog stana), a najam je glavni čimbenik. Zbog toga većina učenika ili dijeli stan ili žive u studentskom domu. Spavaonice također često uzimaju u obzir financijsku situaciju podnositelja zahtjeva i odlučuju u skladu s tim.

Iako je prijam na njemačka sveučilišta državljanima EU jednostavan, budući studenti iz zemalja koje nisu članice EU mogu se suočiti s birokratskim preprekama poput traženja dokaza da mogu sami pokriti svoje troškove. Zbog potražnje za mladim kvalificiranim radnicima, njemačka vlada potiče strane studente iz zemalja poput SAD-a i Indije, a sve više sveučilišta nudi tečajeve na engleskom jeziku. Rijetko je malo stipendija koje su lako dostupne strancima, "klasični" studentski zajmovi su netipični, a "duale Studiengänge" (koji istovremeno rade i studiraju radi stjecanja stručne i akademske diplome) obično plaćaju manje od usporedivih radnih mjesta, posebno ako se uzme u obzir opterećenje koje je uključeno. Mnoga sveučilišta osnovana su prije stoljeća i odavno su prerasla zgrade koje su za njih prvotno izgrađene, pa je stoga postojanje koherentnog kampusa iznimka, a ne pravilo. Ipak, mnoga sveučilišta pokušavaju barem srodna područja držati blizu jedan drugog, ali ako slučajno proučavate kombinaciju predmeta koji se predaju u različitim dijelovima grada - ili čak u različitim gradovima - morat ćete poprilično učiniti putovanja na posao. Neka sveučilišta također su rezultat spajanja i zato imaju lokacije u različitim gradovima. Uredi za studentske savjete ili sveučilišna uprava mogu imati neobično radno vrijeme ili čak mogu biti potpuno zatvoreni izvan semestra. Također nije nečuveno da će vam prilično grubo reći da biste trebali otići u neki drugi ured - oni znače da vam neće naštetiti, samo su prezaposleni i ne žele se baviti stvarima koje nisu njihov posao.

Iako je njemački sveučilišni sustav nekada imao mnogo jedinstvenih neobičnosti, tijekom "bolonjskog procesa" većina predmeta sada se nudi u cijelom EU sustavu "prvostupnik / magistar" koji je - u usporedbi s ranijim sustavom - prilično sličan školi i pojednostavljeno. Ipak, na njemačkim sveučilištima očekuje se više samoinicijative nego na mnogim drugim mjestima. Pomoć kod problema nije "automatska" i novopridošlice se u početku mogu osjećati pomalo usamljeno. "Fachhochschulen" (koji sebe često nazivaju "Sveučilištima primijenjenih znanosti" na engleskom jeziku) imaju tendenciju usredotočiti se na "praktična" ili "primijenjena" područja i još su sličniji školi. Iako se na "FH" (njemački kratki oblik) nekad gledalo kao na "manju" ocjenu sveučilišta, ta stigma na mnogim poljima blijedi.

Raditi

Službena stopa nezaposlenosti u Njemačkoj iznosi oko 4,8% od listopada 2019. i tamo jesu poslovi za one koji imaju odgovarajuće kvalifikacije ili veze. Stranci izvan EU koji žele raditi u Njemačkoj trebaju osigurati odgovarajuće dozvole. Dobivanje ovih dozvola može značiti dugotrajno bavljenje izrazito njemačkom birokracijom, posebno za građane koji nisu članovi EU, pa možda neće biti praktičan način pomoći vašem putnom budžetu.

Studenti koji nisu iz EU smiju raditi na dozvolama boravka, ali postoji ograničenje od 120 punih (više od četiri sata odrađenih) dana u godini ili 240 pol dana (ispod 4 sata rada) bez posebnog odobrenja. Međutim, za rad na nečijem sveučilištu nije potrebna posebna dozvola.

Građani nekih zemalja koje nisu članice EU (Australije, Kanade, Japana, Izraela, Novog Zelanda, Južne Koreje i SAD-a) mogu se prijaviti za status rezidenta s radnom dozvolom tijekom svog 90-dnevnog boravka u Njemačkoj bez viza; međutim, oni možda neće raditi bez vize / odobrenja. Ostali državljani prije ulaska u zemlju trebaju radnu vizu koju nakon ulaska trebaju razmijeniti u dozvolu boravka. Za više informacija, pogledajte pododjeljak "Uvjeti za ulaz" u odjeljku "Uđi" gore. Nezakoniti rad prilično je čest u njemačkoj ugostiteljskoj i turističkoj industriji (oko 4,1% njemačkog BDP-a) i gotovo jedini način da se izbjegne njemački birokratija. Ako vas uhvate, međutim, može značiti vrijeme u zatvoru, a poslodavcu odgovarate u gotovo istoj mjeri kao da ste radili legalno.

Ako želite ostati u Njemačkoj dulje vrijeme, ali ne govorite njemački, najbolje bi se kladile velike multinacionalne tvrtke u bankarskoj, turističkoj ili visokotehnološkoj industriji. Frankfurt, Stuttgart, München i naravno Hamburg i Berlin su vjerojatno najbolja mjesta za početak pretraživanja. Obično se očekuje dobro znanje njemačkog jezika, ali ne uvijek preduvjet. Govornici engleskog jezika koji su certificirani učitelji u svojoj zemlji možda će moći osigurati rad u američkim ili britanskim međunarodnim školama. Podučavanje engleskog jezika bez ovih kvalifikacija nije unosno u Njemačkoj. Ako tečno govorite druge jezike (po mogućnosti španjolski ili francuski), podučavanje na privatnoj osnovi može biti (dodatni) izvor prihoda.

Tijekom sezone šparoga (od travnja do lipnja) poljoprivrednici obično traže privremene radnike, ali to znači stvarno naporan rad i bijedne plaće. Glavna prednost ovih poslova je što znanje njemačkog nije potrebno.

Ostati siguran

Njemačka je vrlo sigurna zemlja. Stope kriminala su niske, a vladavina zakona strogo se provodi.

Nasilni zločini (ubojstva, pljačke, silovanja, napadi) vrlo su rijetki u usporedbi s većinom zemalja. Primjerice, stopa ubojstava 2010. iznosila je 0,86 slučajeva na 100 000 stanovnika - znatno niža nego u Velikoj Britaniji (1,17), Australiji (1,20), Francuskoj (1,31), Kanadi (1,81) i SAD-u (5,0) - i oni i dalje opadaju. Džeparoši ponekad može biti problem u velikim gradovima ili na događajima s velikim gužvama. Prosjačenje nije rijetkost u nekim većim gradovima, ali ni u većoj mjeri nego u većini drugih većih gradova i rijetko ćete susresti agresivne prosjake.

Ako boravite u određenim dijelovima Berlina ili Hamburga (Schanzenviertel) oko 1. svibnja (Oznaka der Arbeit) očekuju demonstracije koje se često izrode u sukobe između policije i manjine demonstranata.

Poduzmite uobičajene mjere opreza i tijekom boravka u Njemačkoj najvjerojatnije nećete naići na nikakav zločin.

Hitne slučajeve

Nacionalni broj za hitne slučajeve policije, vatrogasnih i spasilačkih službi je 112 (isto kao u svim zemljama EU) ili 110 samo za policiju. Te se brojeve može besplatno nazvati s bilo kojeg telefona, uključujući telefonske govornice i mobilne telefone (potrebna je SIM-kartica). Ako prijavljujete hitan slučaj, primjenjuju se uobičajene smjernice: budite mirni i navedite svoje točno mjesto, vrstu hitne situacije i broj uključenih osoba. Ne prekidajte vezu dok operater ne primi sve potrebne informacije i ne završi poziv.

Postoje narančasti telefoni za nuždu prošarani duž glavnih autocesta. Najbliži SOS-telefon možete pronaći slijedeći strelice na odbojnim stupovima sa strane ceste.

Vozila hitne pomoći (Rettungswagen) mogu se pozvati putem nacionalnog besplatnog broja za hitne slučajeve 112 i pomoći će vam bez obzira na pitanja osiguranja. Sve bolnice (Krankenhäuser), osim najmanjih privatnih, imaju 24-satne hitne službe u stanju se nositi sa svim vrstama medicinskih problema.

Rasizam

Ogromna većina stranih posjetitelja nikada se neće baviti pitanjima otvorene rasne diskriminacije ili rasizma u Njemačkoj. Veliki gradovi u Njemačkoj vrlo su kozmopolitski i multietnički s velikim zajednicama ljudi sa svih kontinenata i religija. Nijemci su također vrlo svjesni i srame se povijesnog tereta nacističkog doba i obično su otvorenog uma i tolerantni u kontaktima sa strancima. Nebijeli posjetitelji mogu povremeno dobiti oprezan pogled, ali ne u većoj mjeri nego u drugim zemljama s pretežno bijelom populacijom.

Ova općenita situacija može biti drugačija u nekim pretežno ruralnim dijelovima Istočne Njemačke (uključujući predgrađe nekih gradova s ​​višom razinom nezaposlenosti i visokim četvrtima, tj. "Plattenbau"). Slučajevi rasističkog ponašanja mogu se dogoditi s nekoliko incidenata nasilja. Većina se toga dogodi noću kada skupine pijanih "neonacista" ili neke migrantske skupine mogu potražiti nevolje (i osamljene žrtve) u centru grada ili u blizini javnog prijevoza. To bi moglo utjecati i na strane posjetitelje, beskućnike, zapadne Nijemce i ljude s alternativnim izgledom poput Punkera, Gota itd.

Javna prikazivanja otvorenog antisemitizma strogo su zabranjena zakonima koji se itekako provode. Hitlerov pozdrav i nacistička svastika (ali ne i vjerske svastike) zabranjeni su, kao i javno negiranje holokausta. Vlasti ne shvaćaju olako kršenje ovih zakona protiv rasizma, čak ni kad se čine u šali. You should also avoid displaying a Swastika even for religious reasons.

Policija

Officer from the Hamburg state police

njemački Policija (German: Polizei) officers are always helpful, professional and trustworthy, but tend to be rather strict in enforcing the law, which means that one should not expect that exceptions are made for tourists. When dealing with police you should remain calm, courteous and avoid getting into confrontations. Most police officers should understand at least basic English or have colleagues who do.

Police uniforms and cars are green or blue. Green used to be the standard, but most states and the federal police have transitioned to blue uniforms and cars to comply with the EU standard.

Police officers are employed by the states except in airports, train stations, border crossings etc. which are controlled by the federal police (Bundespolizei). In mid-sized towns and big cities, local police (called Stadtpolizei, kommunale Polizeibehörde or Ordnungsamt) have some limited law enforcement rights and are in general responsible for traffic issues. States have a pretty big leeway when it comes to police and their tactics and as most police are state police, there is a marked difference between left wing city states like Berlin and conservative Southern states like Bavaria. As a broad generalization, police in the North tend to be more hands-off and tolerant of minor misbehavior while police in the South show more presence and are stricter about the rules, but you may get fined for jaywalking in Berlin just as well. The only major cases of police using violence on citizens (or vice versa) happen during demonstrations and soccer games, but you will notice that by the riot gear and mounted police patrolling in seemingly vastly excessive numbers. It's not advisable to talk to police during political demonstrations or soccer matches as they might construct a case of "Landfriedensbruch" (disturbing the peace) during such events on pretty flimsy grounds, sometimes misrepresenting what you said. Police are armed but will hardly ever use their weapons and never on unarmed people. As firearms are hard to get and a permit to carry one in public is virtually unheard of, police usually do not think anybody is armed unless the suspect brandishes a weapon and are thus unlikely to shoot somebody reaching in their pocket or the likes.

If you get arrested, you have the right to have an attorney. Foreign nationals also have the right to contact their respective embassy for assistance. You are never obliged to make a statement that would incriminate yourself (or someone related to you by blood or marriage) and you have the right to remain silent. Wait until your attorney arrives and talk to your attorney first. If you do not have a lawyer then you can call your embassy or else the local justice official will appoint an attorney for you (if the alleged crime is serious enough).

If you are a victim of a crime (for example robbery, assault or theft in public) and wave an oncoming patrol car or officer, it is not uncommon that the officers will (sometimes very harshly: "Einsteigen") command you to enter the back seat of the police cruiser. This is an action to start an instant manhunt to identify and arrest the suspect. In this case remember that you are not under arrest but to help the officers to enforce the law and maybe get back your property.

German police do have ranks but are not that keen about them; many Germans won't know the proper terms. Do not try to determine seniority by counting the stars on the officers shoulders in order to choose the officer you will address, since such behaviour can be considered disrespectful. Talk to any officer and they will answer your questions or redirect you to the officer in charge.

Prostitucija

Prostitution is legal and regulated in Germany.

All larger cities have a red light district with licensed bars, go-gos and escort services. Tabloids are full of ads and the internet is the main contact base. Brothels are not necessarily easily spotted from the streets (outside of redlight districts) to avoid legal action by neighbours. Places best known for their redlight activities are Hamburg, Berlin, Frankfurt i Köln.

Recreational vehicles parked by the roadside in forests along Bundesstraßen (German for "federal highway"), with a red light in the front window and perhaps a lightly dressed woman on the passenger's seat, are most likely prostitutes soliciting customers.

Due to Germany's proximity to Eastern Europe, several cases of human trafficking and illegal immigration have taken place. Police regularly raid brothels to keep this business within its legal boundaries, and check the identity documents of workers and patrons alike.

Drugs

Alcohol may be purchased by persons 16 years and older. However, distilled beverages and mixed drinks with those (including the popular 'Alcopops') are available only at 18. It is not technically illegal for younger people to drink, but it is illegal to allow them to drink on premises. Youth 14 years and older are allowed to drink fermented beverages in the presence and with the allowance of their legal guardian. If the police notices underage drinking, they may pick the person up, confiscate the drinks and send the person home in the presence of an officer.

Smoking in public is allowed starting at age 18. Vending machines for cigarettes require a valid "proof of age", which in practice means that you need a German bank card or a (European) driving license to use them.

The situation on marijuana can be confusing. The Constitutional Court ruled that possession for "personal use", though still illegal, should not be prosecuted. Germany is a federal state; therefore the interpretation of this ruling is up to the state authorities. In fact charges are sometimes pressed even for tiny amounts, which will cause you a lot of trouble regardless of the outcome. As a general rule the northern states tend to be more liberal while in the south (especially Bavaria), even negligible amounts are considered illegal. The customs officials are also aware of the fact that you can legally buy marijuana in the Netherlands and therefore set up regular border controls (also inside trains), as importation of marijuana is strictly prohibited.

Even if you get off the charges, the authorities may cause different problems, like revoking your drivers license and if you have more than a few grams, you will be prosecuted in any case. Drugs will be confiscated in all cases.

All other recreational drugs (like ecstasy) are illegal and possession will lead to prosecution and at least a police record.

Crimes with date-rape drugs have been committed, so as anywhere else in the world be careful with open drinks.

Oružje

Some types of knives are illegal in Germany: this concerns mostly some types of spring knives, "butterfly" knives, knuckle knives and the like — possessing such knives is an offense. Knives that are intended as weapons are restricted to persons over 18. Furthermore, nunchakus, even soft-nunchakus, are illegal in Germany.

It is illegal to carry any type of "dangerous knife" on your person in public unless you have a valid reason to do so. For example, if you are out fishing you are still entitled to carry a fishing knife. "Dangerous" knives are generally those with a blade length exceeding 12 cm and locking "one-handed" folding knives.

Carrying any knife beyond a pocket knife (typically Swiss army knives) without any professional reasons (carpenter, etc.) is seen as very rude and unacceptable in Germany. Germans consider any non-professional used knives as signs of aggression and do not accept this behaviour. Flashing a knife (even folded) may cause bystanders to call the police, who will be very serious in handling the upcoming situation.

Firearms are strictly controlled. It is practically impossible to legally carry a gun in public unless you are a law enforcement officer. "Fake" firearms may not be carried in public if they resemble real guns. CO2 and air guns are relatively easy to acquire. If the police find any kind of weapon or firearm on you, you will appear highly suspicious.

Bow and arrow do not legally count as weapons while crossbows do, but you're certain to get stopped by police openly carrying either. Hunting is only legal with firearms or employing birds of prey and requires a license with rather strict requirements for environmental and animal welfare reasons.

Vatromet

Avoid bringing any fireworks into Germany, especially from outside the EU. Even bringing those can be an offence. Fireworks are traditionally used on New Year's Eve. Most "proper" fireworks (marked as "Klasse II") will be available at only the end of the year; they may be used by persons only over 18 on December 31 and January 1. Really small items (marked as "Klasse I") may be used around the year by anyone.

Ribarstvo

Ribarstvo laws differ a lot from state to state. Obtaining a fishing license for Germans and foreigners has become a highly bureaucratic process due to animal protection laws.

Gay and lesbian travellers

Germany is in general very tolerant of homosexuality. Nevertheless, like in every country some individuals still may disapprove and some areas are more accepting than others, so use common sense and be geared to the behaviour of the locals around you. In small towns and in the countryside, open displays of homosexuality should be limited.

The attitude towards gays and lesbians is rather tolerant, with openly gay politicians and celebrities being considered increasingly normal. While some, especially the elderly, Germans inwardly still don't approve of homosexuality or bisexuality, they usually suppress open utterances of homophobia. Therefore, in most cases, display of homosexuality (holding hands or kissing) will at most provoke stares or sometimes comments by children or elderly people.

Ostati zdrav

Sanitary and medical facilities in Germany are excellent. The phone book lists telephone numbers for various medical services, many hotlines and services exist that are open during "off hours". See the section Medical Emergencies above if you are in an emergency

Zdravstvena zaštita

If you have an non-urgent medical problem, you may choose from any local doctor. The German health system allows specialists to run their own surgery so you will usually be able to find every discipline from Dentistry to Neurology on duty within reasonable reach. In remote regions finding a doctor might require a ride to the next town but the German infrastructure allows fast connections. GPs/family doctors will usually describe themselves as "Allgemeinmediziner" – meaning "general medical doctor".

Pharmacy sign in Germany: A for Apotheke

Pharmacies are called "Apotheke" and are marked by a big, red "A" symbol. At least one pharmacy in the area will be open at all times (usually a different one every day), and all pharmacies will post the name and address of the pharmacy-on-duty in the window. Some medication that is sometimes freely available in other countries (e.g. antibiotics) needs a prescription in Germany, so you may want to check before your journey. The staff of an Apotheke is well-trained, and it is mandatory to have at least one person with a university degree in pharmaceutics available in every Apotheke during opening hours. A German pharmacist is able to offer advice on medications. The apotheke is also where you go to get common over-the-counter medications such as aspirin, antacids, and cough syrup. Don't be misled by the appearance of "drug" in the name of a drogeriekonzern, such as the large dm-drogerie markt chain: "drug stores" in Germany sell everything except drugs.

In Germany pharmaceuticals tend to be expensive, so it might be wise to ask the pharmacist for "Generika" (generic drugs): A "Generikum" is virtually the same substance and dose, often even produced by the same pharmaceutical trust, just lacking the well-known brand name and being considerably cheaper. As the brand names for even common substances can vary a lot between countries as well as brands try to know the scientific name of the substance you need as they will be printed on the package and trained pharmaceutical professionals will know them.

Zdravstveno osiguranje

EU citizens that are members of any public health insurance can get a European Health Insurance Card. The card is issued by your insurance provider and lets you use the public health care system in any EU country, including Germany.

If you're from outside the EU, or if you have a private health insurance, check if your insurance is valid in Germany. If not, get a travel health insurance for the trip – German health care is expensive.

Foreign insurance, even if it covers travel abroad, may not be accepted by local hospitals.

In any somewhat urgent case you will be treated first and asked for insurance or presented a bill later.

Drinking water

Standard sign in Germany for Kein Trinkwasser; many Germans know it from rest rooms in trains

Voda iz pipe (Leitungswasser) is of excellent quality, and can be consumed with little concern. Exceptions are labeled ("Kein Trinkwasser", no drinking water) and can for example be found on fountains and in trains. In restaurants and cafes you will often have to specifically request 'Leitungswasser' since it is not generally assumed.

Many Germans tend to avoid drinking tap water and prefer bottled water (still or sparkling), in the erroneous belief that tap water is somehow of inferior quality. Uvjet Leitungswasser actually means 'plumbing water' which also doesn't actually sound too enticing. As a matter of fact, tap water is sometimes of even better quality than bottled water and unlike in e.g. the US there is no chlorine taste to it whatsoever. However, on some areas there is a taste difference for particularly sensitive palate due to the different mineral composition. Be aware however that some regions tap water have nitrate content above WHO levels and should not be drunk by women in early stages of pregnancy for any prolonged period.

Many Germans prefer sparkling (carbonated) water. Sparkling water is sold in any store that sells beverages and prices range from inexpensive 19-cent bottles (1.5 L) of "no-name" brands to several euros for fancy "premium" brands.

Most people buy bottled water in crates of 12 glass bottles or packs of 6 plastic bottles. Both the bottles and crates include a returnable deposit (Pfand). While the deposits for reusable plastic (15 cents) or glass bottles (8 cents) are relatively low, the deposit for disposable plastic bottles (marked by a special symbol on the side of the bottle) is relatively high at 25 cents and may be higher than the price of the water itself. Bottled water is usually sold carbonated (sparkling), although regular water (stilles Wasser) is also widely available and slowly gaining popularity among Germans. Sparkling water is usually sold in supermarkets in two degrees of sparkling: one with more CO2 (usually called spritzig or classic) and one with less CO2 (usually called medium).

Most springs and many public restrooms (e.g. on planes or trains) use non-potable water that has to be clearly marked by the words "kein Trinkwasser" or a symbol showing a glass of water with a diagonal line through it. If there is no such sign and the surroundings don't indicate otherwise it is safe to assume that the water is safe for human consumption.

Plivanje

Many lakes and rivers, as well as both the North Sea and Baltic Sea are generally safe for swimming. Nevertheless, while there may be no life-threatening pollutants in most bodies of water, you would do very well to inform yourself about local regulations. If you intend to swim in a large river, at best do so only on official bathing locations. Keep away from structures (power plants might cause streams you don't see from the surface) in the river or reaching from the shore into the river, also keep out of the path of ships. Both structures and ships, even if they look harmless or far away, may create major sucks underwater. Take particular care of children.

If you intend to swim in the North Sea you should inform yourselves about the tide schedules and weather conditions – getting caught in a tide can be fatal, getting lost in the mist, too. Pješačenje u Wattenmeer without a local guide is extremely dangerous. In the Baltic Sea, on the other hand, there are virtually no tides.

Bolesti

Brauneck mountain, Bavaria: loose dogs and cats will be shot, because of risk of rabies.

You should be aware of rabies (Tollwut) which has been a problem in some areas in the past, even though the authorities take it very seriously. If you go hiking or camping then be careful around wild animals such as foxes and bats.

The biggest risks hikers and campers face are two diseases transmitted by ticks. In some parts of Germany there is a (low) risk of contracting tick-borne encephalitis; vaccination is advised if you plan out-door activities in high-risk areas. The risk of Lyme disease is higher and vaccination is not available. Therefore, you should try to prevent tick-bites by wearing long trousers and appropriate shoes. Chemical repellents can also be effective. You should also check for ticks afterwards since the risk of transmission is lower if the tick is removed early. The safest way to remove a tick is by using a credit card sized device called a "Zeckenkarte" (tick card), which you can get at most pharmacies. Other methods (fingers, using glue, etc.) might lead to the tick injecting even more infectious material into the wound. If in any doubt consult a doctor.

Natural dangers

Wild boar sow foraging with young

Today, wild animals, although they abound, are mostly very shy, so you might not get to see many. When a few wolves in Saxony and Pomerania and a bear in Bavaria have been sighted, their immigration from Eastern Europe caused quite a stir. In the course of events, "Bruno" (the bear) was shot, and while the wolves are under heavy protection, local hunters have been suspected of killing them illegally. The most dangerous animal in Germany's forests is by far the wild boar; in particular, sows leading young are nothing to joke about. Wild boar are used to humans, since they often plunder trash cans in villages and suburbs, and their teeth can rip big wounds. If you see one, slowly walk into the opposite direction while still facing the animal. Also the poisonous crossed viper can pose a threat (in the Alpine region and natural reserves), though they are rare - don't provoke them.

Zahodi

It can be surprisingly hard to locate a public toilet when needed. They are usually indicated by the letters WC, pictograms or the letter "H" (Herren; gentlemen) or "D" (Damen, ladies). Public toilets are rarely free. Sometimes you have to be a customer at the place they're attached to, sometimes there's an attendant and a "tip plate" to guilt trip you into paying money that may or may not be handed on to cleaning personnel. But one of the more common ways they charge you is the Sanifair system whereby you pay an amount of money and get a voucher for a lower amount of money (75 cents pay, 50 cents value) that you are able to cash in for goods at the adjacent (and other) stores, often subject to a bunch of conditions. Thankfully toilets in trains air-planes and buses are still free, but patrons often leave them in a disgusting state and sadly there isn't always someone around who can clean them. Fast food outlets and hotel receptions are usually a good option, fuel stations will usually provide facilities on request of a key. Shopping centres (Globus, Kaufland, Real, MediaMarkt etc) or hardware stores (Bauhaus,, Hagebau, Hela, Hornbach, Obi etc.) also have customer toilets, which can mostly be used free of charge. Aldi, Lidl or Netto mostly have no customer toilets.

Smoking and vaping

Pojedinac Bundesländer started banning smoking in public places and other areas in early 2007, however the laws vary from state to state. Smoking is generally banned in all restaurants and cafes. Some places may provide separate smoking areas but it is best to enquire when booking. Smokers should be prepared to step outside if they want to light up. The only three states with a strict non-smoking law without exceptions are Bavarska, Saarland i Sjeverna Rajna-Vestfalija. Smoking is banned on all forms of public transport including on railway platforms (except in designated smoking areas, which are clearly marked with the word Raucherbereich [smoking area]). The laws are strictly enforced.

In restaurants it is widely accepted for customers to leave their table without paying the bill to go for a smoke and return later. If you are alone, tell the staff that you are going outside to smoke, and if you have a bag or coat, leave it there.

Supermarkets sell cigarettes, but they are usually encased in a special section adjacent to the cashier, where you must ask if you want to get one. Vending machines can also be found near bus stops, but you must insert a German ID card before using it. One pack of 20 cigarettes would usually cost €5-€7,50. Cheaper alternatives are roll-your-own tobacco, yet these cannot be bought in vending machines.

Vaping is also upcoming in Germany, more in the urban areas than the country sides. In nearly every city you can find a Dampfershop [vaping store] where you can get hardware or liquid, with or without Nicotine, €3-6 per 10ml. If you stay longer buy base and aroma separate and mix by yourself, it is much cheaper. Bringing large liquid bottles with Nicotine into Germany, in particular with more than 20 mg/ml and from outside the EU, can be illegal. To be safe carry only your needs for few days. The law say vaping is not smoking and so it is not affected by the non-smoking law, but most people do not know this. So if you like to be kind and safe do it like smoking and accept the common no-smoking rules too. Deutsche Bahn and other state-level public transport companies do not allow vaping on stations (except in the smoking areas), nor on their public transport.

Poštovanje

Kultura

The Germans have earned themselves a reputation for being stiff and strict with rules but also hard working and efficient. If you are caught breaking the rules, this will be readily pointed out to you by someone. The main exception in Germany seems to be speed limits. A quintessentially German action is waiting at a red traffic light at 2 AM with all streets empty.

More importantly, the German sense of "politeness" differs significantly from the Anglo-American concept of courteous remarks, small talk and political correctness. Germans highly value honesty, straight talking, being able to cope with criticism and generally not wasting other people's time. For instance, while the answer to "How is your day?" is a standard pleasantry like "It's going very well." in the Anglosphere, Germans will feel obliged to answer the question honestly when asked. Consequently, business meetings tend to lack the introductory chit-chat.

Titles (such as Dr., Prof. etc.) tend to be more used in the south than in the north. One would not blame you to leave them away. Some colleagues that have worked together for many years still call each by their surname. When a German introduces himself to you, he/she will often simply state their surname, prompting you to call them "Mr/Mrs...". Germans would not expect you to use the German words "Herr" (man) and "Frau" (woman) when speaking in English. The title "Fräulein" for an unmarried woman is considered nowadays to be dated or even sexist, so just stick to "Frau".

Using first names immediately is most likely seen as derogatory, depending on the situation. Of course, there are differences between the young and older people. You should consider the use of the surname and the formal Sie as a sign of friendly respect. If you have a drink together, you may be offered the non-formal Du and to call your colleague by their first name, you can also offer it. However it might be seen as a faux-pas to do so if you are clearly younger or "lower-ranking". Start-up culture usually values informality and will address every employee with Du and there are a few organizations in which members have been addressing each other with Du since the 19th century, including leftist parties like the SPD, railroaders or the Scouting movement. Still, being too formal by using "Sie" is virtually always the "safer" option and saying "Du" to a police officer on duty can even get you fined.

The German word Freund actually means close friend, or "boyfriend". Someone you may have known for a few years may still not refer to you as a Freund but rather Bekannter (an acquaintance).

There is also a strong desire to achieve mutual agreement and compromise. As for the infamous efficiency: Germans are the world's leading recreationists (at an average of 30 days of paid leave per year, not counting public holidays), while maintaining one of the highest productivity rates on earth. A late-running train is considered a sign of the degradation of society.

Despite popular belief, the Germans do have a sense of humour although it is often expressed differently than it is in English-speaking countries. If you are around people, you get to know well that sarcasm and irony are very common kinds of humour. Puns are popular too, just like in anglophone countries. However, humor is not the default approach to the world (unlike in - say - England) and therefore a quip in the wrong situation may draw blank stares or disapproval or simply not be understood as a joke.

Točnost

In official contexts (when conducting business) punctuality is seen not as a courtesy but as a precondition for future relations. As in most countries, you are expected to arrive on time at a business meeting unless you can give a good reason in your defense (i.e. being stuck in unforeseeable heavy traffic). It is seen as a courtesy to call the other participants if you seem to be running late, even if there is still a chance that you will arrive on time. Regular delays are seen as disrespect for the other participants. Međutim, such German punctuality doesn't apply on German railway.

For personal relations, importance attached to punctuality may differ from individual to individual. It is still always safer to be punctual than late, but the subject may be a negotiable matter: if unsure just ask 'is punctuality important to you?'. Punctuality also depends on the milieu, in a collegiate environment, for example, it is taken much less seriously. For private invitations to a home, it may even be considered more polite to be 5–15 minutes late as to not embarrass the host in case not everything has been prepared.

Behaving in public

Germany, especially urban Germany, is rather tolerant and your common sense should be sufficient to keep you out of trouble.

Drinking alcohol in public is not forbidden and is even a common sight in the far west (Cologne and the Rhine-Ruhr Area). In some larger cities (such as Cologne), there are local laws that in theory make drinking alcohol in public a misdemeanour punishable with a fine of tens of euros; these laws are rarely enforced against tourists, except in cases when drinking leads to rowdy behaviour. Such laws have also been successfully challenged in court in several places. Behaving aggressively or disturbing the peace will earn you a conversation with German police officers and possibly a fine or an order to leave, regardless of whether you're drunk or stone-cold sober.

Be particularly careful to behave respectfully in places of worship and places that carry the dignity of the state, such as the numerous war and holocaust memorials, parliaments and other historical sites. Some such sites will post Hausordnung (house rules) that prohibit disrespectful or disruptive behaviors. These rules may range from common-sense prohibitions against taking pictures during religious ceremonies to things that may seem strange to you, like prohibiting men from keeping their hands in their pockets. You should keep an eye out for these signs and obey the posted rules. Another very common sight is a sign that says Eltern haften für ihre Kinder (parents are liable for their children). This is a reminder that German people believe both that children should be children, and also that parents should supervise them, so that no one gets hurt and nothing gets broken. If your child is being rowdy and accidentally spills or breaks something in a store, you can generally expect to pay for it.

Insulting other people is prohibited by German law and, if prosecuted, can result in jail time and a heavy fine. It is unusual that charges are brought, but exercise common sense in all cases. Insulting a police officer will always lead to charges though.

On German beaches, it's generally all right for women to bathe topless. Full nudity is tolerated on most beaches, although not a frequent sight outside of the numerous nudist areas (labeled "FKK" or "Freikörperkultur", literally free body culture). These are especially common at the East German Baltic Sea coastline, due to the high popularity of nudism in the former GDR. It's also possible to spot nudists in Berlin's public parks and in Munich's "English Garden". In most saunas, nudity is compulsory and mixed sessions are common practice. One day of the week is usually only for women.

Being a guest

In general, Germans will only invite you to their home if they expect you to take them up on the offer. The "Yeah let's hang out sometime" that Americans sometimes use as a piece of meaningless conversation fluff will not be understood by Germans. While Germans value hospitality ("Gastfreundschaft", literally "guest friendliness") they themselves see their culture of hospitality as weaker than that of - say - the Arab world. When invited it is certainly courteous to bring a small gift. Consumable gifts are usually prepared as many Germans dislike filling their home with trinkets they don't know what to do with. If the invitation is one where the consumption of alcohol can be expected, bringing a bottle of wine or spirit can be a good gift and if you are invited by younger people for a party you can also bring a crate of beer - though preferably of a smaller independent and more upmarket brand. If you can gift something connected to your place of origin, all the better - a treat from abroad will virtually always arise the curiosity of your hosts. Germans like to keep their home neat and tidy and will likely "apologise for the mess" even if there isn't any. This entails that you usually should leave your shoes at the entrance - when in doubt, just ask. Most hosts will provide you with Hausschuhe (literally "house shoes") to be worn inside. When you are invited to a German's home, you can expect to have some sort of food or drink. Should you have any allergies, religious dietary restriction or be a vegan or vegetarian, you should make that clear ahead of time, to avoid the mutual embarrassment of a menu being cooked for you which you can't or won't eat. "Kaffee und Kuchen" ("coffee and cake") is the quintessential German afternoon food and it is likely that any invitation during the afternoon for an informal gathering will entail that. If you don't drink coffee, it is usually possible to replace the coffee with cacao, though it may be seen as a bit odd if you are an adult.

narod

Owing in part to the long era of numerous German petty states being de jure ili zapravo sovereign, Germany has strong regional identities and local patriotism that may refer to a city, a federal state or a region within a federal state or crossing state lines. While some state boundaries are drawn pretty arbitrarily, states are politically powerful and many have their own unique character. The rule of thumb is that wealth rises towards the south and west: While Baden-Württemberg i Bavarska compete with Switzerland and Austria for quality of life, the economy of the eastern states is still lagging behind. A more liberal atmosphere is dominant as the traveller goes northward: Hamburg i Berlin have had homosexual mayors, bars and clubs are open all night and the density of young artists in Berlin Friedrichshain easily surpasses that of London, Paris or Manhattan. Northern Germany is in the same cultural sphere as the Netherlands and Scandinavia with even the food and architecture more pragmatic, simple and unrefined than in the south, where Catholicism has been predominant. Contrary to the general trend, Hamburg is the richest city in Germany (and one of the ten richest regions in Europe) even outpacing trendy Munich.

The Nazi era

In the late 19th Century, Germany was arguably one of the most enlightened societies in the world. As a mental exercise, try to think of five famous physicists, philosophers, composers or poets without mentioning a German name. This dignity and prestige faced a severe setback during the period of National Socialist rule under Hitler (1933-1945). Since then, the Third Reich has been a permanent scar on the German national identity, and is considered a blot on Germany's national honour and will remain so for a very long time. Every German pupil has to deal with it at about 5 times during his or her schooling, and is very likely to visit a concentration camp at least once (most such sites have been transformed into memorials). Not a single day passes without educational programmes on television and radio dealing with this period of time.

Growing up in Germany, whether in the GDR or West Germany, meant and still means growing up with this bitter heritage, and every German has developed her or his own way of dealing with the public guilt. For the traveller, this can mean confusion. You might come across people (especially young ones) eager to talk to you about Germany's troubled history, feeling the urge to convince you Germany has come a long way since then. Choose adequate places to talk about the issue and be polite about it. If you are visiting friends, you might find it hard to keep them from dragging you into a memorial.

Humour, even made innocently, is absolutely the wrong way of approaching the matter and is insulting. All Nazi-era slogans, symbols, and gestures are forbidden (except for educational purposes, and even these are regulated). Displaying them in public or spreading propaganda material is illegal. Foreigners are not exempt from these laws. Do not even think about jokingly giving a stiff arm Nazi (roman) salute! This is a punishable act according to the German Penal Code, §86a: displaying the symbols of anticonstitutional organisations. Usually you will face 'only' a fine, of like €500. If the authorities suspect you of having propagandistic intentions, they can put you in jail for up to three years! (Religious Swastikas are exempted from this rule, though you are still advised to avoid displaying the symbol so you do not cause any unintentional offence.)

The German national anthem is the third stanza of a traditional song from the 19th century, Lied der Deutschen, written to the melody of Joseph Haydn's Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser by one August Heinrich Hoffmann von Fallersleben na otoku Heligoland while the latter was under English control. The first stanza starts with Deutschland, Deutschland über Alles (Germany, Germany above everything). While this stanza is not forbidden, and even was officially a part of the national anthem during the Weimar Republic, do not quote or sing this stanza. Many people associate it with hyper-nationalism, and it will disgust them the same way as a Nazi slogan. Similarly, symbols of the 1871-1918 Kaiserreich like the Black-White-Red flag are not officially forbidden yet, but are these days virtually only used by the far right and will draw vrlo negative reactions. In 2020 there was a renewed debate about officially outlawing symbols of the Kaiserreich which however has not produced any concrete results as of October 2020.

Probably the best way to deal with the issue is to stay relaxed about it. If the people around you like to talk about German history then use the opportunity for a sincere, maybe even very personal conversation. If you want to steer clear of awkward moments, don't bring up the matter.

German Democratic Republic era

Compared to the Nazi era, Germans have a more open attitude to the postwar division of Germany into East and West. Communist symbols, GDR songs and other East-German related regalia are circulated freely (though uncommon in the western parts) and many are somewhat nostalgic about the country, hence the artistic and commercial movement "Ostalgie" (nostalgia for the East). Be careful when discussing the East German secret police (Stasi) since many people in the East were negatively affected by the control of all aspects of life by this organisation, that maintained an extensive network of informants throughout the country during the communist era. While the division is some time in the past now, there are still cultural remnants often referred to as the "mental wall" (Mauer in den Köpfen) and the last couple of years seem to have reinforced stereotypes between East and West if anything. More and more positive aspects of East German policies are openly discussed these days - be they the more extensive use of rail as a mode of transportation or the comparatively high gender equality of the East, but attitudes vary from person to person and generally follow the political spectrum - right wingers will be less inclined to see anything positive about the GDR.

Regional rivalries

Many Germans are fiercely attached to their region or even town and it is nothing out of the ordinary to hear people making disparaging remarks about a town a few miles over or even a different neighbourhood in large cities like Berlin. While the purported reasons for such rivalries vary, they're almost never as serious as they may appear. Some of those rivalries overlap with sports rivalries (mostly soccer), but even then they only get heated when a game is on or someone is wearing the uniform of a team involved. While saying positive things about the town or region you're in is always appreciated, you should tread more lightly with bashing other places, even if locals seem to be doing it constantly.

Traditionally, regional rivalries also extended to religion, with the north and east being predominantly Lutheran, and the south and west being predominantly Roman Catholic, however cuius regio eius religio and early modern splintering of territories ensured heavily Catholic areas could lie right next to heavily Lutheran or reformed areas. However, this has diminished significantly in modern times as Germany has transformed into a largely secular society, with regular churchgoers now being in the minority. Work migration and the influx of (post-) World War II refugees has also made erstwhile confessionally homogenous villages much more mixed. In general, people from formerly communist East Germany tend to be less religious than people from the West, due to the fact that religion was discouraged by the officially-atheist communist regime.

Spojiti

Telefon

In a public pay phone, there is also sometimes a hotspot.

The international calling code for Germany is 49, and the prefix for international calls is 00; the area code prefix is 0. Some number blocks are reserved for special use: Number starting with 010xx let you choose a different phone provider, 0800 and 00800 are toll-free numbers, 0180 are service numbers (which may or may not be more expensive than a local call). Avoid 0900 prefix numbers. These are for commercial services and usually incredibly expensive.

Landlines

German phone numbers are of the form 49 351 125-3456 where "49" is the country code for Germany, the next digits are the area code and the remaining digits are the "local" part of the subscriber number that can be called from within that particular area code using abbreviated dialing. Since there are no standard lengths for either geographic area codes or subscribers' numbers, the last part may be as short as two digits! The 5000-odd German area codes vary in length from 2 thru 5 digits. You need to dial "0" in front of the geographic area code from outside that particular area code (but when still within Germany).

Since the liberalisation of Germany's phone market, there are a multitude of phone providers on the market. If you're calling from a private landline phone, you can usually choose from the different providers (and thus from different pricing schemes) by using special prefix numbers (starting with 010xx) with prices of €0.01 or €0.02, sometimes below €0.01 even for international calls. There's a calculator on the net gdje možete usporediti cijene za različite destinacije. Hoteli obično imaju ugovore s određenim dobavljačem telefona i ne dopuštaju vam upotrebu drugog. Telefonske tarife koje hoteli naplaćuju mogu biti zapanjujuće, posebno u luksuznim hotelima, gdje petominutni telefonski poziv za rezervaciju restorana može koštati 50 eura. Budite sigurni da ste provjerili tarifnu karticu i prije nego što ste podigli telefon.

Mobilni

Vidi također: Europska unija # Poveži se

Brojevi mobilnih telefona u Njemačkoj moraju se uvijek birati sa svim znamenkama (10-12 znamenki, uključujući prefiks "0" ispred "1nn" u Njemačkoj), bez obzira odakle se pozivaju. The 1nn je mobilni prefiks, a ne "pozivni broj", kao takav te druga i treća znamenka ( br dio) označava izvornu mobilnu mrežu dodijeljenu prije nego što se, na primjer, uzme u obzir prenosivost broja 49 151-123-456.

Mobilni pokrivenost telefonom na tri mreže (Deutsche Telekom, Vodafone i O2) uglavnom je izvrstan u cijeloj zemlji. Dostupni su i UMTS (3G podaci i HSDPA), LTE (4G) i EDGE. LTE je još uvijek donekle ograničen na urbana područja. Svi pružatelji usluga mobilne telefonije koriste GSM tehnologiju na Frekvencijski rasponi od 900 i 1800 MHz. To se razlikuje od GSM 1900 standarda koji se koristi u Sjedinjenim Državama, ali moderne "višepojasne" slušalice obično rade u svim GSM mrežama. Telefoni koji nisu GSM mogu se koristiti u Njemačkoj. Ako imate GSM mobilni telefon iz SAD-a, prije putovanja obavezno nazovite svog davatelja usluga u SAD-u i neka "otključa" vašu telefonsku slušalicu kako biste je mogli koristiti s njemačkom SIM karticom. Cestarinu za telefonski poziv na njemački broj mobitela plaća pozivatelja.

Ako ostanete dulje vrijeme, razmislite o kupnji pretplaćene telefonske kartice od jedne od tvrtki za mobilnu telefoniju; nećete imati problema s pronalaskom Deutsche Telekoma (kupljenog u a Trgovina Telekom), Vodafone ili O2 pohranite u bilo kojem većem trgovačkom području.

Mobilna telefonija je i dalje razmjerno skupo u Njemačkoj. Ovisno o vašem ugovoru, za pozive na njemačke mobilne i fiksne telefone može vam se naplatiti oko 0,10–0,39 EUR po minuti. Pozivi s vašeg njemačkog mobilnog telefona na njemačke telefonske brojeve (uključujući i njemačke mobilne telefone koji su fizički prisutni u Njemačkoj) često koštaju 1 do 2 eura po minuti, ovisno o zemlji u pitanju i vašem planu. Općenito, za mobilne telefone T-Mobile i Vodafone preferirani su odabir za ljude koji žele visokokvalitetnu uslugu, posebno izvan gradova. O2/ E-Plus ima niže cijene. Ako očekujete da će vam trebati korisnička podrška na engleskom, Vodafone je možda jedna od vaših boljih opcija.

U većini lanaca supermarketa (na primjer Aldi, Lidl, Penny, Netto, Tchibo, Rewe, toom) možete kupiti pretplaćene SIM kartice od vlastitih virtualnih davatelja, iako njihovom mrežom još uvijek upravljaju velika 3 njemačka telekom operatora. To je obično prilično jeftino za kupnju (10–20 EUR s 5–15 minuta razgovora) i za nacionalne pozive (0,09–0,19 EUR / minuti), ali skupe za međunarodne pozive (oko 1–2 EUR / min), ali dolazni pozivi su uvijek besplatni, a SMS košta oko 0,09–0,19 €. Iako međunarodni pozivi koji koriste njemačku SIM karticu mogu biti skupi, postoje neke pretplaćene ponude s dobrim cijenama.

Tvrtke poput Lyca Mobile, Lebara i drugih specijalizirale su se za pružanje prilično pristupačnih cijena međunarodnih poziva (ponekad jeftinijih od usluga Voice over IP), uglavnom usmjerenih na dijasporu i imigrantske skupine.

Međutim, nažalost, paranoja zbog mobitela koji se koriste u kriminalu ili terorizmu sve je teže jednostavno kupiti telefon ili SIM karticu s pretplatom i početi zvati. Ovisno o davatelju usluge, možda ćete trebati navesti broj kreditne kartice, identificirajte se putem ID-a pošte ili video ID-a. Čak i kad su to izvedive, nisu uvijek osmišljene tako da strancima bez statusa boravka budu jednostavne, iako u teoriji svatko s valjanom identifikacijom može kupiti ove kartice i da navedena njemačka adresa ne mora biti zapisana u sustavu . Usprkos tome, najbolje je kupiti SIM karticu u trgovini koja nudi usluge registracije SIM kartice i ponijeti sa sobom osobnu iskaznicu. Ako već imate aktivan paket mobilnih telefona od davatelja usluga sa sjedištem u drugoj zemlji EU-a, općenito ćete moći koristiti svoje redovite podatke (podložne mjesečnom ograničenju podataka koje nameće EU), SMS-ove i dopuštenja za domaće pozive dok Njemačka bez potrebe za registracijom ili uz naplatu dodatnih troškova (iako bi pozivanje njemačkog telefonskog broja moglo koštati dodatno: obratite se svom davatelju usluga).

Alternativne metode

Velika većina Nijemaca posjeduje mobilne telefone (na njemačkom se nazivaju "Handys", izgovara se "hendy"); nedostatak je toga što je nekada uobičajena telefonske govornice počeli su nestajati, osim na "strateškim" mjestima kao što su željezničke stanice. Obično se sastoje od srebrnog stupa s ružičastim vrhom i telefona pričvršćenog na prednjoj strani. Ponegdje postoje još starije verzije koje se sastoje od žute kabine s vratima i telefona unutra.

Možete i kupiti pretplaćene telefonske kartice možete koristiti pozivanjem besplatnog broja; ovo je posebno dobra ponuda ako namjeravate upućivati ​​međunarodne pozive. Kvaliteta kartice i cijene se razlikuju, međutim, zato se ne može dati dobra preporuka.

U telefonske trgovine, koje možete pronaći u većim gradovima, možete pozivati ​​međunarodne pozive po povoljnim cijenama. Te prodavaonice uglavnom su u gradskim područjima s puno imigranata i vaša su najbolja opcija za međunarodne pozive. Osim što nude pozive u inozemstvu, oni prodaju međunarodne pozivne kartice za upotrebu s bilo kojeg telefona u Njemačkoj. Obično ove trgovine možete uočiti po brojnim zastavicama koje ukrašavaju njihove prozore.

Internet

Wi-Fi

Pristup Internetu putem Wi-Fi-ja (koji se također često naziva WLAN) je uobičajena u Njemačkoj. Internet kafići počinju biti sve rjeđi zbog široke ponude besplatnog Wi-Fi-ja u trgovinama, restoranima ili kafićima. Ponekad zahtijeva minimalnu potrošnju, ali obično je besplatna u prostorijama. Telefonske trgovine često nude i pristup internetu. Sljedeće trgovine nude besplatan Wi-Fi pristup: Galeria Kaufhof, real (supermarket), REWE, IKEA, H&M, dm-Drogerie, Subway, McDonald’s, Starbucks i Burger King.

Puno hoteli nude pristup internetu za goste, međutim brzine su ograničene i mogu biti nedovoljne za brzi pregled i korištenje stranica / aplikacija bogatih multimedijskim sadržajem. Možda će biti dostupan premium brzi internet - često po visokim cijenama, pa prije korištenja potvrdite pristup i cijene u hotelu. Mali privatni hoteli i hoteli s jeftinijim lancima često će ponuditi Wi-Fi besplatno (npr. Motel One) kada rezervirate kao paket s doručkom, veći lanci obično naplaćuju pretjerane cijene. Preporučuje se članstvo u njihovoj program odanosti, jer će vam to obično omogućiti besplatan pristup internetu.

U nekoliko gradova postoje projekti koji se pružaju besplatna žarišna mjesta "zajednice" za bežično umrežavanje. Na primjer, žarišne točke "Freifunk" besplatne su lokalne zajednice i ne zahtijevaju nikakvu registraciju. freifunk-karte.de pokazati kartu ovih žarišnih točaka.

Saloni za putnike kod nekih zračne luke a središnje željezničke stanice svojim kupcima pružaju i pristup internetu.

Narodne knjižnice često nude pristup Internetu, iako obično nije besplatan. Knjižnice su otvorene za javnost besplatno. Nošenje knjige kući možda će vam trebati da kupite karticu kupca uz nisku naknadu. Ogranci Nacionalne knjižnice u Leipzigu, Frankfurtu na Majni i Berlinu nisu besplatni.

Većina sveučilišta u Njemačkoj sudjeluje u eduroam. Ako ste student ili član osoblja sveučilišta koje sudjeluje, ova vam usluga može omogućiti pristup gostu njihovim bežičnim mrežama. Detalje uoči putovanja potražite na vlastitom sveučilištu.

Na prijevoz, Wi-Fi postoji u malom (ali rastućem) broju lokalnih vlakova (uglavnom zbog ugovora između željeznice i države koja subvencionira uslugu WiFi nije uvijek bio velik prioritet). Međugradski vlakovi nemaju nikakav WiFi, ali gotovo svi ICE vlakovi imaju besplatni WiFi u drugoj i prvoj klasi. Međugradski autobusi obično su opremljeni WiFi-jem, ali propusnost je često ograničena i autobusima može nedostajati WiFi bez prethodne najave. Lokalni autobusi sve su više opremljeni WiFi mrežom. Svima im je zajedničko da će vas spajanjem na WiFi dovesti na odredišnu stranicu na kojoj morate unijeti neke podatke ili adresu e-pošte ili jednostavno potvrditi da prihvaćate uvjete i odredbe. Zbog tih mobilnih žarišnih točaka koje se pružaju putem normalne mobilne internetske mreže, one su obično manje stabilne u ruralnim područjima ili kada ih koristi mnogo ljudi odjednom, a ako imate podatkovni paket koji to dopušta, vaš vlastiti telefon može biti brži od WiFi koji pruža način prijevoza. WiFi u zrakoplovima relativno je neobičan, čak i na domaćim letovima. Flixbus nudi besplatni WiFi (a često i utičnice) na svojim autobusnim uslugama.

Planovi mobilnih podataka

Nekoliko SIM-a s pretplatom omogućuje pristup Internetu uz mjesečnu paušalnu naknadu, na primjer one dostupne u kafićima Tchibo (o2 mreža, 10 eura mjesečno ograničeno na 500 MB, 20 eura mjesečno za 5 GB) ili Aldi (mreža E-Plus) ). Uobičajena O2 SIM kartica koja se može koristiti za pozive i tekstualne poruke iznosi 15 eura, a dodatnih 15 eura kupuje 1 GB podataka koji vrijede 1 mjesec. Vodafone nudi pretplaćenu SIM karticu za 25 eura, što uključuje 22,5 eura kredita, od čega možete dobiti 300 MB podataka za 2 dana za 15 eura, a preostaje vam 7,5 eura kredita.

Problemi s autorskim pravima

Dijeljenje datoteka i streaming sadržaja zaštićenih autorskim pravima u Njemačkoj je ilegalno. Specijalizirane pravne tvrtke kontinuirano prate prekršitelje prema njihovim IP brojevima i naplaćuju pozamašne kazne (do nekoliko tisuća eura), kao i tražeći od prekršitelja da potpiše pravne dokumente zbog kojih će se suzdržati od ponovnog postupanja. Čak i ako ste napustili zemlju, registrirani vlasnik internetske veze koju ste koristili mogao bi imati ozbiljnih problema. To se posebno odnosi na privatne veze (prijatelji, obitelj i tako dalje). U vlastitom interesu i interesu domaćina, budite sigurni da su sve aplikacije za razmjenu datoteka na vašim uređajima neaktivne dok ste u Njemačkoj, kao i da se suzdržavate od strujanja sadržaja s web lokacija koje nedvojbeno nisu legalne ili da koristite VPN uslugu.

Pošta

Postamt na Münsterplatzu u Bonn

Deutsche Post, njemačka djelomično privatizirana poštanska usluga, vodi nekoliko međunarodnih tvrtki, uključujući DHL i drugi. Od kolovoza 2020. standardna razglednica košta 0,60 eura za slanje u Njemačku i 0,95 eura svugdje drugdje. Standardno pismo težine više od 20 grama košta 0,80 eura za slanje u Njemačku i 1,10 eura svugdje drugdje. Pisma teška do 50 grama koštaju 0,95 eura (Njemačka) ili 1,70 eura (međunarodna).

Marke dostupni su u poštanskim uredima, a ponekad i u kioscima ili u trgovinama koje prodaju razglednice, iako ćete možda pronaći trgovine koje će prodavati samo poštanske marke uz prateće razglednice koje ste tamo kupili. Automati s markama mogu se naći na puno mjesta. Marke svih apoena možete kupiti od 0,01 € do 36,75 €, iako u dosadnom objedinjenom dizajnu iz automata za marke. Za razliku od većine ostalih automata, oni primaju svaki novčić od 1 centa do 2 eura, ali promjena se daje samo na markama. Budući da ove "marke s promjenama" mogu prikazivati ​​neobične vrijednosti, radije pripazite da imate dovoljno sitnih kovanica.

Poštanski sandučići u Münnerstadtu. S lijeve strane nalazi se žuta nekadašnje nacionalne poštanske službe; druga je lokalna usluga (još uvijek prilično neobičan prizor u Njemačkoj)

Pisma u Njemačkoj uglavnom se dostavljaju u roku od jednog dana, a malo dulje za Europu. Pošta u Sjevernu Ameriku može potrajati i do tjedan dana.

Usluga je smanjena u procesu privatizacije. Zbog povećanja stope krađe (posebno od strane vanjskih prijevoznika i ugovaratelja), sve međunarodne pošiljke, posebno dolazne, trebaju biti osigurane ako su vrijedne. Iako bi privatni pokloni normalne vrijednosti obično trebali biti u redu, poznato je da njemačka carinska služba dugo zadržava stvari naručene s web stranica koje nisu članice EU-a, posebno iz Kine, ponekad čak i oduzimajući robu zbog sumnje na pirateriju proizvoda.

Zračna pošta (Luftpost) može biti jeftina kao alternativa, Landweg. Ako želite poslati paketi, postoje tri mogućnosti (od najjeftinije do najskuplje): Maxibrief (veliko slovo do 2 kg i D Š V = 900 mm), Päckchen (mali paket do 2 kg, neosiguran za međunarodnu poštu) i DHL Paket. Samo ako knjige se šalju, primjenjuju se snižene cijene (Büchersendung), ali očekujte da se pošta otvori i pogleda, jer su u njima stvarno dopuštene samo knjige. Cijene za Büchersendungen variraju između 1,00 i 1,65 eura, ovisno o veličini i težini. Njemačka poštanska služba omogućuje upućivanje stvari pošti i njihovom vlastitom sustavu Packstationen često se nalaze na parkiralištima prehrambenih trgovina ili benzinskim postajama. Amazon ormarići postaju sve češći, ali su nekompatibilan sustav - isti ormarić za pohranu može biti samo Packstation ili Amazonov ormarić.

Pisma i pakete možete poslati na FedEx i UPS stanice. Očekujte red.

Idi dalje

Njemačka je izvrsno polazište za istraživanje ostatka zapadne Europe, dok Aerodrom u Frankfurtu ima izravne veze s mnogim glavnim zračnim lukama širom svijeta. Također iz Frankfurta, brojne izravne brze željezničke veze dovode vas do glavnih europskih metropola u roku od nekoliko sati.

Ovaj turistički vodič za zemlju Njemačka ima vodič status. Sadrži razne dobre, kvalitetne informacije o zemlji, uključujući veze do mjesta za posjet, atrakcije, informacije o dolasku i odlasku. Molimo vas da doprinesete i pomognete nam da to napravimo zvijezda !