Thousands of pacifists rallied in Germany on Sunday against plans to install a military training ground northwest of Berlin, marking the second day of the country's traditional Easter protest marches.
In the latest dispatch of Portnoy’s Stammtisch, The Local’s column about life in Germany, Portnoy explains why the German-invented Easter bunny is an appropriate symbol in a country where the birth rate is tanking and succesful families with children are scorned.
Despite a chilly drizzle, Cologne’s <i>Karneval</i> parade lived up to its festive reputation on <i>Rosenmontag</i> or Shrove Monday in the heart of the predominantly Roman Catholic Rhineland region of Germany.
Germany’s UFO hotline in Mannheim has been inundated with calls since Christmas Eve, as thousands of people have mistaken a new balloon fad for mankind’s first contact from an alien civilisation.
Despite the freezing weather forecast for New Year's Eve, Berlin is expecting hundreds of thousand people to come to Germany’s biggest <i>Silvester</i> party at the Brandenburg Gate.
New Year’s Eve revellers in Germany should bundle up if they plan to ring in 2009 outside – the German Weather Service (DWD) in Offenbach on Monday warned that an icy wind will cause temperatures plunge on <i>Silvester</i> night.
Germans are likely to go SMS-crazy this New Year's Eve. The mobile phone trade organisation Bitkom said that networks are bracing themselves for an onslaught of New Year's wishes.
<b>In the latest dispatch of Portnoy’s Stammtisch, The Local’s column about life in Germany, Portnoy contemplates the extended frenzy he faces each holiday season.</b>
Santa beware! Activists in Germany are waging an international campaign to do away with old Father Christmas and say they are gaining ground thanks to the global economic meltdown.
<b>Christmas markets are popular to visit, but have you ever thought about starting your own stand? Stuart Anderson looks into the realities of this famous German tradition from the other side of the counter.</b>
The mayor of Wolfratshausen plans to do away with a 400-year-old Alpine Christmas tradition because it is too scary for children, German daily <i>tz</i> reported on Tuesday.
Dozens of not-so-secret Santas squared off against each other Saturday, in a competition for Germany's best Santa Claus that included singing, hauling presents on a sleigh and calming excited children.
<b>In the latest dispatch of Portnoy’s Stammtisch, The Local’s column about life in Germany, Portnoy tackles the touchy subject of the German loo shelf on World Toilet Day.</b>
Will the Grinch steal Christmas this year? According to a survey published by <i>Stern</i> magazine on Wednesday, Germans are planning on spending less on gifts because of the global financial crisis and the fear of recession.
Getting into the Christmas spirit will require Germans to dig a bit deeper into their wallets this year. Both Christmas trees and their candles will be more expensive, consumer magazine <i>Guter Rat</i> reported on Thursday.
<b>In the latest dispatch of Portnoy’s Stammtisch, The Local’s column about life in Germany, Portnoy considers the meaning of the German Unity Day holiday on Friday.</b>
