Destination: GERMANY
Things To Know Traveling in Germany The North and the Baltic The Rhine The East The Black Forest and Bavaria Spa Towns Mad King Ludwig	The Black Forest and Bavaria Two states make up southern Germany: Baden-Württemberg in the southwest and Bavaria in the southeast. As the name suggests, Baden-Württemberg is itself made up of two distinct areas: mainly Catholic Baden, where the inhabitants are said to be amiable and easy-going, and traditionally Protestant Württemberg (Swabia), where the work ethic is strongly established and the Swabian dialect is spoken. Lovers of the outdoors flock to the Black Forest (Schwarzwald), a swath of highlands reaching over 3,900 feet and encompassing attractive villages, lush valleys, orchards and meadows as well as woods. Clock-making has been a successful industry here since the 1660s, and cuckoo clocks are on sale at every gift shop. The other notable local product is Black Forest cake - the authentic and superior original is called Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte. East of the Black Forest is a range of limestone cliffs and hills known as the Swabian Jura, where castles peer down at the Danube (Donau) river as it begins its long journey to the sea. Pleasant resorts surround the “Swabian Ocean,” Lake Constance (Bodensee), which straddles the German-Austrian-Swiss border. The Neckar river flows through Swabia's vineyards and past romantic Heidelberg, where students and tourists really do raise huge beer tankards over tavern tables, as they did in Sigmund Romberg's operetta The Student Prince. Clichés also come true in southern Bavaria. Here the people are characterized by their detractors as loud and brash, and by their admirers as humorous, warm and fun-loving. They are often seen in traditional leather trousers (Lederhosen) or embroidered dresses, and are primarily Catholic and conservative: the standard daily greeting here is “Grüss Gott,” or “God's greeting.” Between the Bavarian capital, Munich (München), and the magnificent Alpine peaks lie the wooded hills, pretty villages, lakes and castles that attract so many visitors from all over the world to this part of the country. The spectacular Alpine Road takes in the mountain scenery and passes the theatrical 19th-century castles of Linderhof, Herrenchiemsee and Neuschwanstein - all three are almost always packed to the brim with sightseers. Northern Bavaria has its own character. In fact, not everyone here appreciates being labeled “Bavarian”: this is the region known as Franconia (Franken), and its main city is Nuremberg (Nürnberg). Architecture and art come into their own here. During the late Middle Ages and early Renaissance, artists such as Lucas Cranach and Albrecht Dürer were prominent in Germany, and Nuremberg's wonderful German National Museum displays some of their best work. A more sinister aspect of the city's past is recalled in the giant stadium and Hall of Congress, built for Hitler's mass rallies, and preserved as chilling memorials to that era. The hugely popular Romantic Road, running from ancient Würzburg and the Franconian wine country all the way to the Alps, 217 miles south, links several unspoiled medieval towns. On the way, it passes Rothenburg ob der Tauber, one of the loveliest old towns in Germany - and as a result one of the most crowded. Also on the route are the old walled, half-timbered town of Dinkelsbühl and the splendid Renaissance city of Augsburg.	COUNTRY Introduction Things To Know Survival Guide TimeLine Essential Info REGION CITIES Berlin Cologne Munich MAPS World Europe TRAVEL BOOK