Lifestyle

Parks

Parks are found around everywhere and oftentimes offer insight into society. But how do we use them? How do they differ from one place to another, from the United States to Germany? We invite you to join us on a multimedia journey through parks!

City contours Dresden
Pomp to prefab

Dresden has a reputation for being a bit too baroque, stuffy, and reserved. But the Saxon capital has another different side that is modern, alternative, and surprising. Our author Kaddi Cutz reveals the multiple facets of the Florence on the Elbe and overhauls a cliché or two.

Climate-friendly building
Less is more

Sophisticated building technology and wall insulation have for some years been considered a panacea for reducing CO2 emissions in the building industry. But it doesn’t take much to construct houses with a good climate balance. Also in building the truth is: less is more.

Silence in the civilization of noise
As Quiet as a German?

Why do Germans hate noise so much, what is peace and quiet to them, and how do they enforce their right to quietude? I ask people who live in Germany about the meaning of ‘Ruhezeit’ and find out how to survive in a country that loves its peace and quiet.

City contours Nuremberg
A touch of Bella Italia

Nuremberg has a picturesque flair and history – including some troubled chapters. The city offers a lot that makes life richer: Our author Clara Lipkowski details spots to experience modern culture, art and curiosities.
 

Piesteritz Garden City
Always ahead of its time

Piesteritz Garden City was revolutionary when it was built 100 years ago. As Germany’s largest car-free housing estate, it could still serve as a model settlement today – if its continued existence were not under threat. 

Lifestyle
Sustainable everyday helpers

Most people would like to lead a life that is in harmony with their environment - but it should be as comfortable as possible and without major restrictions. There are actually a few ideas on how to do this – small everyday aids that have a major impact on the environment.

City traffic
The Modern A to Z

Getting around the city could be so easy if it weren’t for everyone else on the road. Here is an A to Z of the most important drivers and riders you’re likely to encounter in the average urban environment.

City Contours Schwäbisch Hall
Probably the smallest metropolis in the world

Anyone who thinks all small towns are sleepy and quiet is quite wrong, or at least wrong about Schwäbisch Hall. It is home to world-class art and theatre and some world market leaders, all conveniently within walking distance.

Travel Sketching
Seven things and the discovery of slowness

Travel memories that remain unfazed by the deluge of selfies: while some people bring countless smartphone photos home with them from every vacation, travel sketchers use brush and paper to record their impressions.

Life in Berlin
Cheeky memes and satirical videos on the web

Memes and short, funny – often viral – videos are now a fixture of everyday life. They’ve become even more popular since the spread of smartphones and are increasingly reaching older generations, too. So it’s only natural that various aspects – and oddities – of everyday life in Germany’s cosmopolitan capital should become YouTube and Instagram memes too. Here are a few humorous takes on present-day Berlin on the web.
 

Granny Trude
Vegan is catching on!

It's never too late to try something new. Grandma Trude has learned some very interesting facts about the impact of what we eat on animal welfare and the environment. And she’d changed her diet accordingly.

Frankly ... integrated
Behind accents and speech patterns

What does the way we speak convey about who we are, and how does it influence our perception of others? Dominic Otiang’a discusses this with examples from Germany.

Frankly … social
Time, people and the city: two hours before curfew

The main station used to be a hectic place packed with people. But that was before the pandemic struck. Maximilian Buddenbohm has been observing some very different scenes there lately.

Frankly ... integrated
Are we ready for female leadership?

Germany has had a female chancellor since 2005. But with imbalances persisting in the society, author Dominic Otiang’a poses the question: Is Germany as ready for another female political leader as it seems at first glance?

Frankly ... Berlin
Nostalgia or a happier future? You can’t get more Berlin than that!

The word sounds like a bygone utopia, but perhaps expropriation is the city’s ultimate future. This week, our Berlin columnist Margarita Tsomou takes you with her on a demo that is the knee-jerk reaction of the city’s diverse society to the overturning of the rent cap.

Granny Trude
Household energy conservation made easy

Many people want to reduce energy consumption at home to protect the environment and save some money while they’re at it. But how exactly should they go about it? It's simple, says Grandma Trude, and she’s got a whole bunch of useful energy-saving life hacks to share with us.

“5× Germany Around the World”
German Lives on Five Continents

(09 April 2021)
“5× Germany Around the World”. In an interview with “The Latest at Goethe”, the photographer Jörg Müller tells us how his photography project – in cooperation with the Goethe-Institut – traced the footsteps of German emigrants.

Frankly ... integrated
Aren’t we all for sale?

While reliving his first encounter with corruption in Germany, author Dominic Otiang’a questions why people turn out to be like that - in Kenya and in Germany. Are we all the same and it’s just a question of opportunity?  

The forest in contemporary art
Innocence lost: caught between city forestation and the club forest

While the idyll of Romantic era songs may be gone, creative artists in Germany still explore the forest today – critically, ironically and with an eye to history. 

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