Donnerstag, 15. November 2012


Hey everyone!


We are six students from the "Hochschule Koblenz“, studying business administration in our first semester. We would like you to get to know Germany a little better, so that you may decide to come and visit us here in Koblenz.
We will give you some brief descriptions of a few interesting cities around Koblenz and Koblenz itself, tell you about the famous Oktoberfest in Munich, which is one of the biggest cultural events in Germany with over 6 million visitors every year, and last we will give you a quick overview of the wine growing area around Koblenz, with their own wine festivals and famous wines.
If you have any questions while reading our blog, feel free to contact us or comment our articles. We hope you enjoy it and maybe we will see each other in Germany some time!

 
Nadine, Eva
Jenny, Pascal, Corinna, Hannah 



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Mittwoch, 14. November 2012

German cities



Get to know some german cities!


 Let´s start with a little introduction of the city where we are studying. Koblenz is the third biggest city in Rheinland–Pfalz (Rhineland-Palatinate), which is one of the 16 Bundesländer Germany is divided in. We have a population of 105.000, more than ten thousand are students from our Fachhochschule and the University Koblenz-Landau. We would like you to get an impression of what you could do here in a few days, so just imagine you would come here to visit our school and we would show you the area.

Koblenz


On your first day we could start by showing you our college in Koblenz, where you can study all kind of studies like architecture, business or medical engineering. 

After lunch in our MENSA, we could go for a quick shopping tour in the city. Koblenz has two large shopping-centers, one called Forum Mittelrhein with over 80 shops just opened last month. 

After that, you would probably like to relax, have a drink or something to eat, which we could do next to the Rhine at the city beach, or if you still have energy left, we could have a walk through the famous historic city of Koblenz and have a coffee in one of the many cafe´s or right in front of the "Deutsches Eck", which is one of the famoust monuments in Germany, located where the Moselle flows into the Rhine. 
As you can see, Koblenz has a lot of beautiful places where you can spend some time drinking coffee or having a beer, especially since the BUGA (federal horticultural show) last year, where they invested a lot of money into urban beautification. 
The next day we could show you some of the cultural places and activities in Koblenz, for example a show in the theatre of Koblenz or a visit at the famous castle Ehrenbreitstein, from where you have a beautiful view over the Deutsches Eck. If you are more for museums, there are over 15 in the city that can be visited almost every day. 
Koblenz is also attractive because of the enormous number of bars, restaurants and discos, which is very good for students, who are most weeks going out on Thursdays, because it´s student night and there are a lot of special offers for students.
We hope we were able to give you an idea of what Koblenz is like, but we would also like to show you some other cities which you can reach fast and easy by train or car from Koblenz.

The next day we could visit an even bigger city, which is only about one and a half hour by train from Koblenz. The city is called Mainz and is the capital city of Rheinland-Pfalz with 200.000 inhabitants, one University, one Fachhochschule and a lot of other schools and education institutes, which is why there are a lot of students in the city.

Mainz

There are a lot of things to do in Mainz, for example shopping in one of the many shops in the pedestrian area or in one of the shopping centers, for example the Römerpassage. After that we could visit a football match of the famous FSV Mainz 05 football team in their big stadium called Coface Arena, which is playing in the german premier league.
If you are not too tired after that, we could party in one of the clubs in Mainz or maybe in Wiesbaden, which is a city with a population of 280.000 right on the other side of the Rhine, reachable in fifteen minutes by train from Mainz.
Tip: If you are here around Christmas time, you should definitely visit the Christmas markets in Mainz or Wiesbaden, which are really big and beautiful.


Frankfurt

On another day we could visit Frankfurt, one of the most important cities (especially because of their financial district) and fifth biggest in Germany, with a population of 690,000.
The easiest and cheapest way to get from Koblenz to Frankfurt is by train within less than two hours.
On our way to the city we could stop at Frankfurt airport, Europe´s second largest airport with more than 50 million passengers each year, from where you can reach almost 300 destinations around the world with more than 110 different airline companies.
Afterwards we could visit the stock exchange, which is the world´s 10th largest, in the central district of Frankfurt. In the afternoon we could go to the famous Frankfurt Zoo with their big variety of very rare and special species. They have over 4500 animals from 560 different species there and it's visited by over 800,000 visitors every year.

At the end of this day we should definetely relax on a river cruise or drink a beer in a café at the riverside of the Main, looking over the amazing Frankfurter Skyline.





Trier


If you still haven´t seen enough of Germany, we would like to show you Trier. It has almost the same population as Koblenz and you can reach it within less than two hours by train.
The best place to begin a small sightseeing tour in Trier is at the Porta Nigra, the roman city gate. 

 We could walk to the Electoral Palace, which is one of the most beautiful rococo palaces in the world and the Amphiteatre, which was built in the 2nd century for cruel games with gladiators’ and animals, with space for over 20,000 people.
If you haven´t seen enough, we could make a short river cruise over the moselle river or go to Trier´s beautiful palace garden to relax and enjoy the atmosphere of this old historical city afterwards.
If you are not too tired for shopping, there are a lot of shops in the pedestrian area and of course a big shopping center located right in the central district of the city.
Trier is also really nice for partying and meeting new people, not at last because of the University and the Fachhochschule in Trier, which makes the city interesting for a lot of young people.
We suggest that we end our trip to Trier with a historical wine cellar tour, tasting the delicious Moselle wine, hearing stories about the wine production in Germany and especially in our area. But as long as you are not here to visit us, you can only read about the wine in Hannah´s and Nadine´s blog entry. Unfortunately you can´t taste it yet ;)
                                                                                                                      Jenny & Eva

Sources:
Picture 1: probity of our school
Picture 2: http://www.immobilien-newsticker.de/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/10082012-forum-mittelrhein-koblenz-shopping-center.jpg
Picture 3: http://umzugshelfer.studenten-vermittlung.com/data/sites/3/fotolia_3785436_xsmainz.jpg
Picture 4: http://www.weihnachtsmarkt-deutschland.de/bilder/weihnachtsmarkt-mainz.jpg
Picture 5: http://images.airliners.de/nachrichten/bilder/fraport_terminalB_79d7308116861814ab92d3490eeb6f52_470_317.jpg
Picture 6: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7f/Skyline_Frankfurt_am_Main.jpg.
Picture 7: http://www.treveris.com/picture/porta_nord_frontal_detail.jpg
Picture 8: http://www.schwarzaufweiss.de/burgenland/images/weinprobe2.jpg
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Wine, Rhine and the Moselle

The reason why we chose this topic is our passion for wine. Most of the people here like to drink wine. Besides, it could be the case that you already drank one of them.
The Rhine is the twelfth longest river in Europe and the Moselle is the biggest tributary of the Rhine. The Moselle flows through France, Luxembourg and Germany. Moreover, it rises next to Col de Bussang (France) and joins the Rhine at Koblenz, which is also it’s end. The point where Rhine and Moselle meet is called “Deutsches Eck”- German corner.

 
It’s a famous place; so people from all over the world come to visit it. Another reason why people love Koblenz is the wine. Wine is connected with the Moselle because next to this famous river is a huge wine-growing area. There are more than hundred places where wine is planted. Therefore we have 4000 wine-growers who run this huge area. The most famous wine is the “Riesling” which is the best kind of white wine all over the world. Other regional specialities are “Weißer Burgunder” and “Blauer Spätburgunder”.


The most important export countries are USA, Netherlands, Norway, Great Britain, Canada, Japan, Belgium, Sweden, Denmark and Finland. About one-third gets sold in these countries.
Another fact which underlines the importance of the Moselle and it’s wine are the wine festivals with their wine princess. Every wine princess represents her area. Such a festival is an interesting and funny experience for tourists and native people. Another great option where you can try all different kinds of wine is a wine-tasting. So if you come to Germany you have to have a wine-tasting session. But you should know that you might be drunk after it; so make sure that you ate enough. Moreover, you should know somebody who drives you home.


If you have the chance to try some famous wine from the Moselle you also have to eat German “Zwiebelkuchen”- onion tart.

Ingredients:

  • For the dough:
  • 25 g fresh yeast
  • 1/4 liter lukewarm milk
  • 375 g flour
  • 60 g butter
  • 1 egg
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon sugar
  • For the topping:
  • 1 kg onion, peeled and cut into rings
  • 150 g raw bacon, diced
  • 500 g creme fraiche
  • 4 eggs
  • 1/8 teaspoon pepper
  • 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

Method:
  1. For the dough: Dissolve the yeast in the lukewarm milk, and add the sugar and a dash of the flour, stir, cover and keep in a warm place for ten minutes.
  2. Add the rest of the dough ingredients in the pastry mixer and blend until you have a ball.Cover and keep in a warm place for twenty minutes until the dough rises.
  3. Preheat the oven to 200°C.
  4. Saute the onion'rings' with the bacon in a large skillet, until the onions are transparent, and soft.
  5. This should take about 10 minutes. In a seperate bowl, mix the eggs, the creme fraiche, the nutmeg, and pepper together with a whisk until well incorporated and smooth.
  6. Roll the dough out into a flat, large roasting pan (you want something with a slight edge to it) and then pour the onion and bacon mixture over the dough and spread it out to cover the dough evenly.
  7. Pour the egg-creme fraich mixture over the top and put it in the oven for 30-40 minutes, or until golden brown on top.

Loreley

The tiny village St. Goar is known for it’s wine but also for the legend of the Loreley. It is said that there was a mermaid called Loreley Everyday she sat on a rock next to the Rhine and brushed her long golden hair while she was singing. Because of her lovely voice thousands people died. The captains fell in love with the beautiful mermaid; so they didn´t have the control of the ship anymore and crashed into the rock.


We hope you didn´t fall asleep while reading ;) Maybe you´re a little bit interested now; so we can have a good discussion. You definitely have to visit us and our tasty wine area.



Hannah & Nadine








Sources:

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Dienstag, 13. November 2012

Oktoberfest



The fabulous Oktoberfest

History of the Oktoberfest
- written by Corinna -

A commoner sergeant who was a member of the Bavarian national guard proposed the idea to celebrate the big wedding of Ludwig of Bavaria and Princess Therese of Sachen-Hildburghausen with a big horse race. Andreas von Dall’Armi, a financier and cavalry major conveyed this suggestion to king Max 1. Joseph of Bavaria. His reaction was excitement.
The wedding of the two passed on October 12th 1810 and the horse race followed 5 days later to honor the royal bridal couple. The race took place on the Theresienwiese, a large lawn in Munich, which was called after the bride Therese and this is also the reason why the Oktoberfest is often just called “Wiesn”.This event inspired everyone so much that one year later the “agricultural association of Bavaria” hosted another horse race and festival. This tradition continued the following years though the Oktoberfest was cancelled in 1813 because of the Napoleonic wars.
After this the Oktoberfest continued as a privately financed event until 1819 when the city Munich decided to convert it into a yearly city festival. The reaction of this declaration was that more and more booths opened which made the Oktoberfest bigger. 1850 the Statue “Bavaria” was dedicated as the guardian of the Oktoberfest. In the renewal years the Oktoberfest was cancelled again because of some wars and cholera. 

1881 the first “Hendlbraterei” (=chicken grill) opened which is meanwhile an important part of the traditional Oktoberfest food. To celebrate the 100th anniversary, the biggest tent “the Bräurosl” with 12.000 seating places served 12.000 hectoliter beer in 1910. The tradition with the horse race was only carried out on the 150th and 200th jubilee. The last jubilee mentioned was in 2010.
The most important fact about the Oktoberfest is that in 1950 Thomas Wimmer (lord mayor of Munich) tapped the first beer barrel in the “Schottenhamel” tent and this tradition of the lord mayor tapping the first beer of the Oktoberfest was continued until now.
Usually he has to do it with the words: “O’zapft is” (Bavarian slang for: it was tapped and meant is the beer barrel).


The “Dirndl” with the pinafore and the leather pants - A long tradition
- written by Corinna -




A dirndl is a very well-known dress from Bavaria and Austria. The definition is a diminishment of the word “Dirn” (=young woman). Formerly a young woman was called like that. Subsequently a Dirn was more of a maidservant or a menial who worked in the agricultural sector. In today’s world everyone is allowed to wear the dirndl and it is worn a lot especially on folk festivals and of course on the Oktoberfest.
The dirndl is a combination of a tight blouse with a very angular décolleté which pushes the breasts up and a long one piece cut dress with a pinafore with a long bow. The hair is usually braided. The secret of the pinafore code is actually a bow code because the spot where the bow is placed tells you if the woman is single or not.

If the bow is tied on the left, you are allowed to flirt with the girl. She is single and eventually searching for a nice man to come around. If it is placed on the right it means that she is already taken. She lives in a stable relationship, is engaged or married. Is the bow tied in the middle up front it implies that the girl is still a virgin. A bow in the middle from the back connotes that the woman is a widow. In regard of the fact that only one variety out of four shows if the woman is available, it is important for men to have a closer look on the bow. Perhaps the idea of the “lothario” came with the dress? Well, anyway, the bow is after the décolleté the most important part of a dirndl.
Males wear leather pants with a checked button-down shirt, knitted socks and a green felt hat with the beard of chamois. This traditional cloth does not have any special meaning like the dirndl.
                             She made her dirndl very glamorous with 
                                               a classy fabric and accessories.
Facts and figures
- written by Pascal -

The Theresienwiese includes 42 hectors thereof are 31 hectors used by the Oktoberfest. 95 gastronomies offer drinks and food. 35 are divided up in 14 big and 21 small tents. The biggest banqueting hall is called “Hofbräuzelt” and has 10,000 seats. It is 82 m long and 62 m wide. It’s the only tent with a standing area. This is very important because you are not allowed to order beer without a reserved table. One table includes 10 people and costs from 250 € up to 600 € and the reservation only lasts for a few hours. The smallest one has 60 seats and is called “Schiebl”. 14,000 employees care about 6 to 7 million visitors who drink 7.5 million “Maß” each year.

Jobs and earnings
- written by Pascal -

As you can imagine there are a lot of different jobs at the Oktoberfest. The most favored ones for women are: “Promilla” walking around with a breathalyzer and testing the alcohol concentration in the breath of the people. As “Flora” you bind flowers and sell them and as “Schatzi” you sell souvenirs. The supreme discipline is the waiter job. You have to work at least 14-16 hours a day. So sleep deprivation will be part of your working period. You have to so serve food and beer. One waiteress is usually responsible for four tables, each with 10 people. A “Maß” weighs 1.2 kg, with beer in it about 2.2 kg. An experienced woman can carry more than ten Maß at one walkabout. It is one of the hardest waiter jobs worldwide but you get 9% commission and 5,000 to 10,000 Euros are possible to earn during these 16 days.




Food and beverages
- written by Pascal -

The typical food for the Oktoberfest is “Weißwurst (veal sausage) & Brezn (pretzel)” and a “Brathendl (roasted chicken)”. In 2011 alone 522,821 Brathendl have been sold.
In each tent only one brand of beer is available. Altogether there are 6 different brands of beer: Paulaner, Spaten-Franziskaner, Löwenbräu, Hacker-Pschorr, Hofbräu und the favorite Augustiner. The “Wiesn” alcohol concentration is with 5.8% to 6.3%  a bit higher than that of ordinary beer so you should be careful not to drink too much. Last year 777 people were brought to hospital with alcohol intoxication.
The beer price has increased by 3.86% last year from 8.70 € - 9.20 € to 9.10 € - 9.50 €. By the way, taking away one of the lovely beer mugs is considered as thievery and will be prosecuted.


 A chinese cooking "Schweins-
haxe" at the Oktoberfest
in Hong Kong
Offshoots in Germany and in foreign countries
- written by Corinna -

According to the example of the Oktoberfest in Munich, folk fests like this aroused in the whole world. The second biggest Oktoberfest in Germany is placed in Hannover with 900.000 guests.
One of the biggest international festivals is the Oktoberfest in Qingdao, China with more than 3 million visitors each year. It is called the “Qindao International Beer Festival” and it serves not only Tsingtao-Beer but they also have a big spectrum of well-known, famous beer brands like Paulaner which even has their own tents placed there. Qindao is not the only city in China with an Oktoberfest, Hong Kong has one as well and a couple of other cities too.
The Oktoberfest in Kitchener, Canada is well visited with 700.000 people yearly and the Oktoberfest in Blumenau, Brasilia gets the third place with 600.000 visitors each year. Bavarian tradition is also administrated in Ohio. The city Cincinnati got over half a million attendees.
Since the last decade the organizers also import waitresses from Germany who can serve a dozen of beer jugs all at the same time and complete Bavarian musician bands.












Sources:
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