Christmas (Weihnachten) in Germany is special and some of the things that make it so, are the customs and traditions surrounding the festival, Advent wreaths, Christmas trees, Stollen (a kind of Christmas cake) and the lovely Christmas markets with whiffs of Glühwein (mulled wine) and roasted almonds drifting through the fresh and crisp winter air. Other popular festivals include the world famous Oktoberfest (a beer festival) in Munich and Karneval (carnival) or Fasching, known for its vivacious celebrations, lively street parades and colourful costumes.
There are regional differences in German cuisine and the country shares some culinary commonalities with a few of its neighbours like Switzerland and Austria. Sausages of various kinds (Bratwurst, Weisswurst, Currywurst to name a few), a variety of breads and pastries, and Sauerkraut (pickled cabbage) are a few staples in German cuisine among many others. The country being home to diverse ethnic communities, several other international varieties of food are also easily available. German beer purity regulations enjoyed the reputation of being the world’s oldest active food-quality control measure until its repeal some years ago. Despite the growing fondness for wine especially across the country’s wine regions, beer continues to be the most popular alcoholic beverage.
Sport is yet another aspect without which any discussion on German culture would remain incomplete. Football is the unanimous favourite and the German national football team has made the nation proud and played a crucial role in strengthening the country’s love for the sport by winning the world championship four times! Germany also happens to be one of the top motor sports countries in the world. A few other popular sports are boxing, ice hockey, tennis, horse riding, golf and water sports like sailing, rowing and swimming. German athletes have also enjoyed success in the Olympics and other landmark sport events such as the Summer/Winter Games.
Writings on culture almost always invariably fall short owing to the vast, all-encompassing nature of the term ‘culture’. Needless to say, the best way to understand cultural nuances, appreciate cultural differences, learn about and imbibe a culture is to experience it first hand – live in the country, interact with its people, learn the language, explore, discover and learn wonderful, new things everyday!