Tag Archives: German history
Die Kaffeeriecher: The Coffee Sniffers Posted by Constanze on May 19, 2021
Guten Tag! Today’s post is about one of my favourite things – coffee! We’ve talked about coffee (der Kaffee) a few times on the blog, including this post on Germany’s Kaffee und Kuchen Kultur (coffee and cake culture), and this one, which talks about a scam called die Kaffeefahrt. In today’s post, however, we’re going…
The Petersglocke: Germany’s Massive Cathedral Bell Posted by Sten on Apr 19, 2021
The Petersglocke (f, St. Peter’s Bell) is one of the largest swinging bells in the world. It has its home in the Kölner Dom (m, Cologne Cathedral), a breath-taking cathedral with a long history and many records of its own. Known locally also as Dicker Pitter (Big Peter), the Glocke weighs about 24.000 kilograms (53.000 pounds) and measures 3.22 meters (10.5 feet) across…
Why Germany’s Record-Breaking Cathedral Is So Impressive Posted by Sten on Apr 16, 2021
Right next to the Hauptbahnhof (m, central station), the Kölner Dom (Cologne Cathedral) is one of the first things you’ll see when visiting the city in Nordrhein-Westfalen (North-Rhine Westphalia). It’s a cathedral with many world records in its name. What makes it so impressive? It’s been a long time coming The massive Kathedrale (f, cathedral) was only…
International Women’s Day And Germany Posted by Constanze on Mar 3, 2021
Guten Tag! As Monday 8th March is Internationale Frauentag (International Women’s Day) – and March is Monat der Frauengeschichte (Women’s History Month) -, I thought it’d be interesting to look at how International Women’s Day came about in Germany, whilst teaching you some vocabulary related to the subject. What’s pretty cool is that it was…
German Christmas Decor: Der Schwibbogen Posted by Constanze on Dec 23, 2020
Guten Tag and Frohe Weihnachten (Merry Christmas)! Today we’re continuing with our festive theme and some of Germany’s December/Christmas traditions. Today’s post is all about the Schwibbogen. Der Schwibbogen A Schwibbogen is a decorative German candle arch, often seen in the windows of German homes around Christmas time. History & meaning of the Schwibbogen The…
Barbarazweig: A German December Tradition Posted by Constanze on Dec 16, 2020
Guten Tag! Today’s post is about a lesser-known German December tradition known as der Barbarazweig. Have you ever seen a cherry blossom branch in a vase in a German home in December? If so, this post will tell you what that’s all about! Der Barbarazweig This word literally means ‘the Barbara branch’. We will come…
German History: The White Rose Movement Posted by Constanze on Oct 28, 2020
Guten Tag! It’s been a while since I’ve done a travel/history post, so that’s what today’s post will be about! Today we’re going to München, Germany to learn about Sophie Scholl and Weiße Rose (White Rose), a political movement from 1942. Weiße Rose was started by a group of students at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (Ludwig Maximilian University…