Kapitel 1-12

Kapitel 1 Fangen Sie bitte an.

General Information on Germany and the German Language
Germany is an important international partner for the United States. You can read what the U.S. State Department says about Germany at their official website by clicking at the address below:
www.state.gov/www/background_notes/germany_0005_bgn.html

The American Association of Teachers of German has compiled a wonderful collection of web links with information on German-speaking cultures and the German language for teachers and students of German. Check out the AATG website below and pick a topic of personal interest to you.
http://grow.aatg.org/vol_2-1/web_resources/index.html

Where German is spoken
You already know that the German language is an important national language in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. However, it is also spoken in many other places as a national as well as a business language. To find out more about where German is spoken, go to the following commercial website below:
http://german.about.com/library/weekly/aa020298.htm?once=true&

Kapitel 2 Familie und Freunde

German immigration to North America
The United States has been enriched by the contributions of prominent German-Americans for the last two hundred years. To find out more about famous German Americans, go to the German Corner website below, scroll down to German-American History and click on it. Then click on Biographies. Under "Listing from A to Z" you will find an extensive list of famous German-Americans who have made major contributions to the U.S.
www.germancorner.com/

Many states, such as California, have a significant German cultural influence. You might be surprised to discover how many German restaurants and newspapers are listed in California at the following website:
www.californiadeutsche.com/

The German city of Weinheim
Weinheim is a small city near Heidelberg where the Günther family lives. You can access the official website for Weinheim below, view some beautiful photos of the town, and obtain more information about life in Weinheim.
http://www.weinheim.de

Kapitel 3 Was gibt es in Heidelberg und Mannheim zu tun?

Mealtimes in German-speaking countries
Most German supermarkets, such as the chain Edeka, have an online address where you can check out products and prices at the click of a button. To see what a typical German family might be interested in buying this week at Edeka, click on the link below and then click on Essen&Wohlfühlen along the top and then on Warenkunde on the left after the page loads.
www.edeka.de

Many individual food items and brand names have their own websites. To find information about one brand of delicious ice cream in Germany, click on the link for Schöller ice cream and enjoy the variety of products shown there:
http://www.schoeller.de/start.php

You can also learn about generic food products, such as beer, bread, and wine by clicking on their individual websites below. To see which beer brands are most popular in Germany, check out the online survey results at:
www.bier.de

Bread plays a much more significant role in the diet of most European countries than in the U.S. To see some really luscious photos of the variety of German bread, click on the website below:
www.brot.de

German wines are known around the world for their taste and consistency. You can learn about the fine art of winemaking and the different types and regions of German wines at the official website for wine listed below:
www.wein.de

Many U.S. products, such as Kellogg's cereals for example, are staples of the German diet. You can see what Germans might be eating for breakfast at the very bottom of the official German website for Kellogg's cereals at the following address:
www.kellogs.de

Heidelberg and Mannheim
Heidelberg, which is home to the oldest university in Germany and survived the Second World War pretty much intact, is a popular destination for tourists from around the world. Mannheim, its sister city to the west, is a major industrial city on the Rhein that was largely destroyed in the Second World War. Both cities offer a wealth of activities and interesting attractions as indicated on the official websites below. See what attractions you can discover at their official websites:
www.heidelberg.de
www.mannheim.de

Despite Anna Adler's claim in Chapter 3 that there is no good modern music in Germany, there is indeed a vibrant music scene there. One of the most popular and creative German pop artists, Xavier Naidoo, lead singer with the group Die Söhne Mannheims, is from Mannheim. You can learn about them at the websites below:
www.soehnemannheims.de
www.3-p.de

German Hip Hop music is especially popular and can be heard at the following website:
www.hiphop.de/

You can also hear what contemporary songs are hot in Germany by clicking on the web address below. You might be surprised to learn what kinds of music Germans are listening to.
www.chartradio.de/top100.php3

Kapitel 4 Unterwegs

Studienmöglichkeiten in Deutschland
Students interested in studying at a German university might be surprised to learn how inexpensive German universities are for students, including international students. To learn more about study opportunities in Germany and funding, go to the DAAD (German Academic Exchange Service) website below:
www.daad.de/index.html

Deutsche Welle, Germany's worldwide radio and TV program, provides information about studying in Germany at its website below:
www.campus-germany.de/

The Goethe-Institut has programs in Germany and around the world for learning the German language and for learning about the German culture. In addition, it provides excellent possibilities to study German at one of their Institutes in Germany. To find out more about what they offer, click on their web address below:
www.goethe.de/

For high school and college-age students who would like to spend a year in Germany on a scholarship, the Congress Bundestag Youth Exchange Program offers an ideal opportunity to do so. Applications are typically due in December of the year prior to departure. To learn about the Congress Bundestag Youth Exchange Program, click on the address below:
www.usagermanyscholarship.org/

Fahrschule und Fahrrad fahren
Bicycling as transportation and as a sport is extremely popular in Germany. To learn about some serious cycling fans in Berlin, click on this web address below:
www.bdr-radsport.de/ber/

Mit der Bahn fahren
Train travel in Germany is probably the most developed in the entire world, and connections to anywhere in Europe are timely, modern and extremely convenient. To obtain train information for travel on the German train system, click on the official website below:
www.bahn.de

Frankfurt am Main
Frankfurt, known as the crossroads of Europe, is one of the most important banking cities in Europe as well. Home to world-famous institutions and personalities, it is a must-see for serious students of German. To learn more about Frankfurt am Main, click on the link below:
www.frankfurt.de

Kapitel 5 Freundschaften

Hansestadt Hamburg
Hamburg is Germany's second largest city and offers all the attractions that go with a large metropolitan area. You can learn more about Hamburg by clicking on the link below:
www.hamburg.de

Because Hamburg is a seaport, it is closely associated with water. You can see beautiful photos of the Alster, the in-land waterway in Hamburg, by clicking on the address below:
www.rrz.uni-hamburg.de/Hamburg/sight/alster.html

Hamburg is said to have weather very similar to that of Seattle. To obtain the weather report for Germany, click on the address below:
www.wetter.de

Hamburg is also home to Hamburg University, which has an informative web page on Hamburg. Click on the address below to learn more about the university in Hamburg as well as the city:
www.rrz.uni-hamburg.de/Hamburg/HH_homepage.html

Kapitel 6 Willkommen in Tübingen

Wo Studenten wohnen
Housing in most German university cities is difficult to find and university housing is an important option for many, but not all students. To see where students in Tübingen live in university housing, click on the web page for the Studentenwerk in Tübingen and then click on Wohnheime.
www.stw-tue-nt.swt.uni-tuebingen.de

Tübingen
Tübingen is a small, charming, more than 800 year-old university city in the heart of Swabia. Largely undamaged in the War, it still retains much of its medieval charm and yet the high proportion of students lend it a cosmopolitan and youthful flair that make it a fascinating place to visit or study. You can see more of Tübingen at the official link below:
www.tuebingen.de

The newspaper in Tübingen, Schwäbisches Tageblatt, is noted for the high level of reporting demanded by the local readership. To read the local newspaper in Tübingen, click on the site below:
http://www.cityinfonetz.de/

Ausländer in Deutschland
Like most major German cities, Bonn has a special board that deals with issues related to foreigners. Go to the website listed below and click on Mitglieder (members) to see pictures of the people elected to the board. Then click on Wir über uns (About Us) and read what social issues the board addresses.
www.bonn.de/auslaenderbeirat/

Kapitel 7 Man kann alles in der Stadt finden

Studentenermäßigungen
Allmax.de is an online shopping source exclusively for students and offers significant discounts on a variety of goods. Check out the savings available at their website below:
www.allmax.de

Einkaufen
A prominent German supermarket chain with an online address is the German grocery store Kaiser's. See what specials they are offering this week by visiting the following web address:
www.kaisers.de/

One of Germany's most prolific department stores is Kaufhof. Under the green Kaufhof logo consumers can find everything from electronics to clothing to food. Check out the official Kaufhof website and see what it has to offer and what the weekly specials are.
www.galeria-kaufhof.de

Stuttgart
Stuttgart is a robust cultural and business city near Tübingen. It is home to two of Germany's most luxurious carmakers—DaimlerChrysler and Porsche. You can learn more about Stuttgart at the official website below:
www.stuttgart.de

You can see some really cool cars and read about employment opportunities at the official German websites for Porsche and DaimlerChrysler below:
www.porsche.com/isapi/german/start/default.asp
www.daimlerchrysler.de/

Der Holocaust
The soon to be opened Holocaust Museum in Berlin has a website under construction at the address below:
www.holocaustmuseum.de

Politische Parteien in Deutschland
The German political party system spans a much broader spectrum than the U.S. party system. From the former central party in East Germany, the PDS, to the Christian Socialist Party (CSU), there are opportunities for citizens of all political leanings to find party representation. Each of these national parties has an official website that highlights the personalities, the philosophy, and the notable achievements of the parties. You can learn about the various German political parties at their websites below.
www.pds-online.de
www.gruene.de
www.spd.de
www.fdp.de
www.cdu.de
www.csu.de

Kapitel 8 An der Uni studieren

Universitätskurse
German university courses are generally conducted at a somewhat higher academic level than most U.S. undergraduate courses. You can read a description of the German course types at the website of the Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität in Bonn below by clicking on Lehre und Studium (Academics), then selecting Studienanfänger und Studierende (For Students), and Hinweise zum Studienbeginn (Information on Beginning Your Studies), and finally Veranstaltungsarten (Types of Courses).
www.uni-bonn.de

Wie Studenten ihr Studium finanzieren
You can access information on BAföG, the federal financial aid program, at the same website for Bonn University. Since German universities are relatively inexpensive to begin with, financial aid does not play the same critical role in Germany as it does at American and Canadian universities. www.studentenwerk.uni-bonn.de/bafoeg.htm

Das deutsche Universitätssystem
German universities provide attractive and inexpensive study opportunities for students from all over the world. If you are interested in studying in Germany, you can find a list of German universities at the address below:
www.mit.edu:8001/people/cdemello/de.html

Some German universities post the daily menu at the university Mensa (cafeteria) online. To see what students in Freiburg are eating in their Mensa, click the address below:
www.studentenwerk.uni-freiburg.de/Speiseplan/

Das deutsche Schulsystem
The German secondary school system is highly regarded around the world for its attention to the academic as well as the professional development of students. You can find information about the German school system at the web address below:
www.tatsachen-ueber-deutschland.de/286.0.html

You can see a comparison of the German and the U.S. school systems in English at the addresses below:
http://library.thinkquest.org/10388/school.htm
http://www.mathematik.uni-wuerzburg.de/History/meg/weidiga1.html
http://uni-schule.san-ev.de/space/ADMIN_WW_Aus_dem_Moo/matdeu.html#sysdeu

Kapitel 9 Arbeiten und Geld verdienen

Freistaat Sachsen: Leipzig und Dresden
Dresden, the capital of Saxony, is quickly emerging as one of Germany's most appealing locations for businesspeople and travelers. Leipzig is widely recognized as the city where Johann Sebastian Bach was active. Auerbachs Keller in Leipzig is where Faust reputedly spent his nights drinking before taking a secret passageway back to the university early in the morning. You can learn all about Leipzig and Dresden and their enduring appeal by clicking on the official links below:
www.leipzig.de

www.dresden.de

Sozialleistungen in Deutschland
The concept of purchasing insurance to ensure stability during difficult times came from Germany in the 19th century. Go to the sites listed below for Krankenversicherung (health insurance), Rentenversicherung (social security), and Kindergeld (government child support) and see if you can determine what service these companies are providing consumers.
www.krankenversicherung.de
www.rentenversicherung.de
www.kindergeld.de

Berufswahl und Berufsausbildung in deutschsprachigen Ländern
The government's Arbeitsamt (Employment Office) provides a website that offers a wealth of information and resources for job seekers. See what you can learn about employment possibilities and job-seeking strategies at their official website below:
www.arbeitsamt.de
At the web address listed below, the Arbeitsamt includes special information for women seeking employment:
http://www.arbeitsamt.de/hst/services/rca/arbeitsmarkt_fuer_frauen_1.html

Kapitel 10 Fest- und Feiertage

Die Brüder Grimm und ihre Kinder- und Hausmärchen
The Brothers Grimm have left a lasting impression on readers from all over the world through their successful efforts to write down oral stories. You can see pictures of the Brothers Grimm and read their fairy tales at the addresses below:
http://www.gutenberg2000.de/grimm/maerchen/0htmldir.htm
www.brueder-grimm.com/

Karneval, Fasching, Fastnacht
Germany is often characterized by its exuberant festivals and festivities. One of the most famous and flamboyant annual celebrations is the Karneval in Köln, celebrated every year prior to the onset of Lent. The official website below provides tantalizing photos and useful information on the annual Karneval.
www.karneval.de/

Die Schweiz
Switzerland is a beautiful Alpine country with some of the most spectacular scenery in the world as well as a world-renowned democratic tradition. If you are interested in traveling there some day you may find the following tourism website particularly helpful for planning your trip. In addition, you can learn important information about contemporary Switzerland.
www.switzerlandtourism.ch/

Fest- und Feiertage
The annual Oktoberfest in München is probably the world's most famous public celebration not associated with Easter. It has been copied throughout the United States and Canada and boasts attendance and consumption levels that are astounding. You can learn for yourself how much beer is drunk and how many chickens are consumed and find out the historical significance for the event at the two dedicated websites below:
www.muenchen.de/Rathaus/referate/raw/fremdverkehr/oktobfest/38869/index.html
In order to be able to "talk the talk," check out the "Wiesn-Lexikon" and see if you can pronounce the Oktoberfest terminology. You find the necessary material at this site:
www.oktoberfest.de/

Kapitel 11 Geschichte und Geographie

Berlin nach dem Zweiten Weltkrieg
Berlin is a fascinating, vibrant city of 3.3 million people and symbolizes the cultural and political highs and lows of German history. Ever changing, it is now home to the German government as well as the annual Love Parade each summer. You can obtain all sorts of historical, cultural and other current information about the city at Berlin's official website below:
www.berlin.de

Deutschland: von der Diktatur zur Demokratie
One of the best online museums available anywhere is the Deutsches Historisches Museum, where you can see photos, read accounts, and hear recordings of historical events in German history. See if you can confirm what you may have learned about some aspect of German history by visiting the Deutsches Historisches Museum at the web address below:
www.dhm.de/

Die Deutsche Demokratische Republik
For forty years after the Second World War, the German Democratic Republic existed next door to West Germany and was a symbol of the Cold War tensions. A piece of history now, it played a critical role in shaping the minds of many Germans alive today. You can learn more about the innovations and shortcomings of the once formidable German Democratic Republic at the address below:
http://ddr-im-www.de/index2.htm

Kapitel 12 Das neue Europa

Die Europäische Union und die Zukunft Europas
For many Europeans the development of the European Union has been a lifelong dream. In the few short years since its inception, the presence of the European Union has affected major national and international political and economic affairs. Go to the official website of the European Union to learn more about the future of Europe.
http://europa.eu.int/index_de.htm

Österreichs Geschichte
Austria's location at the nexus of East and West has enabled it to play a crucial role in European history and cultural development. While still maintaining its old-world charm, Austria today offers travelers and those interested in the country a vibrancy that makes it a fascinating and exciting place to visit. To learn more about traveling in Austria, click on the address below:
http://austria-tourism.at/

Österreichs kulturelles Leben
Perhaps no other city in the world is so closely associated with cultural achievements in the West as Vienna. To discover more about the role Vienna has played in western civilization, go to the website for Austria's capital and check out the variety of museums the city has to offer the traveler and scholar.
www.wien.gv.at

Das Congress-Bundestag-Programm
The German and American governments generously support study opportunities in their own countries through the Congress Bundestag Program. Young professionals can receive full stipends to work and live in Germany through the Congress Bundestag Program for Young Professionals. Complete application information is available at the address below:
www.cdsintl.org
Students who are especially interested in working as an intern at the German Bundestag in Berlin will be interested in the funding and application information available at the web address below:
http://www.bundestag.de/internat/ipp/ipp_02pg2.html

Der Grüne Punkt
Germany has a mandatory recycling program, known as the Duales System (dual system), that is far more developed than what is typically found in the U.S. You can read about consumer recycling tips at the official website of the Duales System AG below:
www.gruener-punkt.de