The
Venue
The
city of Karlsruhe, embedded in the Rhine river valley, is
a lovely place to visit. Besides the attractive inner city
and its surrounding suburbs - some of them placed at the
foothills of the Black Forest, the world famous old city
of Heidelberg is just 30 mins away, and so are the Black
Forest and the Alsace. Home to over 800 hectares of public
parks and green spots in Karlsruhe, you can experience a
diversity of green islands to relax and linger that is pretty
much unique in Germany. A wonderful experience awaits you
at the Centre for Art and Media: Visit a world-renown interactive
museum! After indulging in arts and culture, culinary enjoyments
shouldn’t be neglected. Welcome to Karlsruhe in 2008.
Click below for more information on:
Black Forest
Alsace
Black Forest
http://www.blackforest-tourism.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Forest
A map of Germany, showing the Black Forest in green.
The Black Forest (German Schwarzwald) is a wooded mountain range in Baden-Württemberg,
southwestern Germany. It is bordered by the Rhine valley to the west and south. The highest peak is
the Feldberg with an elevation of 1,493 meters (4,898 feet). The region is almost rectangular with a
length of 200 km (120 mi) and breadth of 60 km (37 mi). Hence it has an area of approximately
12,000 km² (4,600 sq mi).
Ecology and Economy
The forest mostly consists of pines and firs, some of which are grown in commercial monoculture.
The Black Forest, like other forested regions, has had areas damaged by mass logging. Due to
logging and land use changes the forest proper is only a fraction of the size it used to be. The storm
Lothar knocked down trees over hundreds of acres of mountaintops in 1999. This left some of the
high peaks and scenic hills bare, with only primary growth shrubs and young fir trees.
The main industry is tourism. In addition to the towns and monuments noted below, the Black Forest
is crossed by numerous long distance footpaths, including some of the first to be established. The
European long-distance path E1 crosses the Black Forest following the routes of some of the local
long-distance paths. In addition there are numerous shorter paths suitable for day walks, as well as
mountain biking and cross-country skiing trails. The total network of tracks amounts to around
23,000 kilometres (14,000 mi), and is maintained and overseen by a voluntary body, the
Schwarzwaldverein (Black Forest Society).
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Points of interest
The cities of Freiburg and Baden-Baden are popular tourist destinations on the western edge of the
Black Forest; towns in the forest include Bad Herrenalb, Baiersbronn, Freudenstadt, Gengenbach,
Schramberg, Staufen, Titisee-Neustadt, Hausach and Wolfach. Other popular destinations include
such mountains as the Feldberg, the Belchen, the Kandel, and the Schauinsland; the Titisee and
Schluchsee lakes; the All Saints Waterfalls; the Triberg Waterfalls, not the highest but the most
famous waterfalls in Germany; and the gorge of the River Wutach.
The Vogtsbauernhöfe is an open-air museum that shows the life of 16th or 17th century farmers the
region, featuring a number of reconstructed Black Forest farms. The German Clock Museum in
Furtwangen shows the history of the clock industry and of watchmakers.
Culinary
Black Forest ham originated from this region, and so, by name and reputation at least, did the Black
Forest gateau (Black Forest Cake). The Black Forest variety of Flammkuchen is a Badisch specialty
made with ham, cheese, and cream. Pfannkuchen, a crêpe or crêpe-like (Eierkuchen or
Palatschinken) pastry, is also common.
Gallery
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Alsace
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alsace
Alsace (French: Alsace, pronounced [al zas]; Alsatian and German: Elsass, pre-1996 German:
Elsaß) is one of the 26 regions of France, located on the eastern border of France, on the west bank
of the Upper Rhine, adjacent to Germany and Switzerland. Its capital and largest city is Strasbourg.
Alsace, previously a part of the Holy Roman Empire, changed hands between France and Germany
several times between the 17th and 20th century.
Geography
Lac Blanc
Alsace has an area of 8,283 km², making it the smallest région of metropolitan France. It is almost
four times longer than it is wide, corresponding to a plain between the Rhine in the east and the
Vosges mountains in the west.
It includes the départements of Haut-Rhin and Bas-Rhin (known previously as Sundgau and
Nordgau). It borders Germany on the north and the east, Switzerland and Franche-Comté on the
south, and Lorraine on the west.
It contains many forests, primarily in the Vosges and in Bas-Rhin (Haguenau Forest). Several valleys
are also found in the région. Its highest point is the ballon de Guebwiller in Haut-Rhin, which
reaches a height of 1426m.
Alsace has a semi-continental climate with cold and dry winters and hot summers. There is little
precipitation because the Vosges protect it from the west. The city of Colmar has a sunny
microclimate; it is the second driest city in France, with an annual precipitation of just 550 mm,
making it ideal for vin d'Alsace (Alsatian wine).
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Cuisine
Alsatian cuisine, strongly influenced by the Germanic culinary traditions, is marked by the use of
pork in various forms. Traditional dishes include baeckeoffe, tartes flambées (flammekueche),
choucroute, and fleischnackas. The south of Alsace, also called Sundgau, is characterized by carpe
frite.
The festivities of the year's end involve the production of a great variety of biscuits and small cakes
called bredalas as well as pain d'épice (gingerbread), especially from Gertwiller, which are given to
children starting on Saint Nicholas Day.
Riesling Grapes
A wine-producing région, Alsace wines are primarily white. Its wines, which have a strong
Germanic influence, are called vins d'Alsace. It produces some of the world's most noted dry
rieslings and is the only région in France to produce mostly varietal wines identified by the names of
the grapes used (wine from Burgundy is also mainly varietal, but not normally identified as such),
typically from grapes also used in Germany. The most notable example is gewurztraminer.
Alsace is also the main beer-producing région of France, thanks primarily to breweries in and near
Strasbourg. These include those of Kronenbourg, Fischer, Heineken International, Météor, and
Kanterbräu. Hops are grown in Kochersberg and in northern Alsace. Schnapps is also traditionally
made in Alsace, but it is in decline because home distillers are becoming less common and the
consumption of traditional, strong, alcoholic beverages is decreasing.
Alsatian food is synonymous with conviviality, the dishes are substantial and served in generous
portions and it has one of the richest regional kitchens. The gastronomic symbol of the région is
undoubtedly Sauerkraut.
The word "Sauerkraut" in Alsatian has the form "Sûrkrût (Saurkraut)", which means "sour cabbage"
as its German equivalent. This word was included into the French language as choucroute.
To make it, the cabbage is finely shredded, layered with salt and juniper and left to ferment in
wooden barrels. Sauerkraut can be served with poultry, pork, sausage or even fish.
Traditionally it is served with pork, Strasbourg sausage or frankfurters, bacon, smoked pork or
smoked Morteau or Montbéliard sausages or a selection of pork products. Served alongside are often
roasted or steamed potatoes or dumplings.
Additionally, Alsace is known for its fruit juices and mineral waters.
A Jewish influence can also be noted in its goods, and in the names of them, through the Yiddish
language.
Architecture
Colmar's old town
The traditional habitat of the Alsatian lowland consists of houses constructed with walls in halftimbering
and cob and roofing in flat tiles. This type of construction can be seen in other areas of
France, but their particular abundance in Alsace is owed to several reasons:
1. The proximity to the Vosges where the wood can be found.
2. Wood was used more than stone because it resisted earthquakes better, due to its greater
flexibility.
3. During periods of war and bubonic plague, villages were often burned down, so to prevent
the collapse of the upper floors, stone ground floors were built and the upper floors built in
half-timberings to prevent the spread of fire.
4. During most of the part of its history, a great part of Alsace was flooded by the Rhine every
year. Half-timbered houses were easy to knock down and to move around during those times
(a day was necessary to move it and a day to rebuild it in another place).
However, half-timbering was found to increase the risk of fire, which is why from the 19th century,
it began to be rendered. In recent times, villagers started to paint the rendering white in accordance
with Beaux-Arts movements. To discourage this, the régions's authorities gave financial grants to the
inhabitants to paint the rendering in various colors, in order to return to the original style and many
inhabitants accepted (more for financial reasons than by firm belief).
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