Introduction is located in Central Europe, bordering The Baltic Sea and the North Sea, between the Netherlands and Poland south of Denmark. Germany is the sixth largest country in Europe with 16 states.
Introduction
Germany is located in Central
Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea
and the North Sea, between the
Netherlands and Poland, south
of Denmark. It is the sixth
largest country in Europe with
16 states. Germany is one of the most
beautiful countries in the world
and full of diverse culture and
rich heritage. Germany is known
for so much but one thing in
particular is definitely it’s food.
Mainz is my home ;-)
Introduction Germany is full of culinary delights and
known for their beer, festivities, food
specialties and entertainment.
Being that my mother is German and I have
lived there for 15 years; I know all about just
how much Germany has to offer and how
wonderful the food is. I know many dishes do
not look too appetizing but you can’t judge a
book by it’s cover. If you are reluctant to try
many German dishes due to the fact of it’s
appeal, you will miss out on some of the best
cuisine. German cuisine has been labeled as very
fatty but bordering close to Italy and France
has worked in it’s favor because they were
able to adopt many of their spices and
cooking methods over the last 200 years but
reform it into their own way.
There are 3 major regions in Germany:
The North German PlainThe Central UplandsThe Alpine Foreland
Regions
The North German plain is made up of the major
geographical regions. It shares borders with the coasts
of the North sea and Baltic sea. In this region lies
some of the major rivers to include the Rhine, Ems, and Elbe river.
The Rhine river
The Central uplands stretch all the way from France to Poland and to Czech. Within this region are many forests and valleys such as the Taunus forest , Black and Bavarian forest.
The Black Forest
Regions
Last but not least is the Alpine Foreland region. This region is right in between Bavaria Swabia and Baden- Württemberg on the west side and the Salzach river on the east. The great city of Munich lies right in the heart of it all. The Alpine Foreland is made up of plateaus and rolling foothills with major rivers such as the Isar, Inn, and Lech river.
Regions
German
cuisine
varies from
region to
region
based on
the
geography.
The type of
cuisine
served in
the
mountainou
s areas will
not be the
same as the
cuisine
served in
the regions
in close
proximity of
water.
RegionsPickled
Herring.
Yummy!
Although food varies per region many dishes are still eaten nationwide. The North and Baltic Seas provide more fish for the northern region such as pickled herring, ( which I love) trout, salmon, and fresh sardines. Beef, goose, and lamb are also eaten in the north while things such as pretzels, noodles, potatoes and dumplings are more common in the south. Pork is the most common meat ate all throughout Germany but in the form of sausages. There are so many different types of sausages but called wurst in Germany; such as Rohwurst, Teewurst, Bratwurst, and Mettwurst. Every single one of these I am accustomed to and love.
Regions
Did you know that German Americans are one of America’s most significant
ethnic groups? Germans have influenced America’s cuisine in
numerous ways. Germans brought their food to the states to help transition easily and make good
relations with Americans.
Cultural Diffusion
German immigrants living in New York in the early 1900’s
Germans have brought so many different types of food to America that it is impossible to list. Some of the food the German immigrants brought included beets, cabbage, ham, herring, sour cream, sausage, rye bread and potatoes. German cooking has been around for so long that many do not even notice how much it is incorporated into American culture such as the jelly doughnut, pretzels and even frankfurters. Jelly doughnuts by the way are called “Berliners” where I am from.
Cultural Diffusion
Spargel & Potatoes
Knödel
Milchreis mit Cinamon
Here are a few of
my favorite dishes.
It is so hard to
chose just a few
when there are so
many, But I use to
love when my
mother would
prepare these
dishes and every
time I go back to
Germany she
already knows
exactly what to
make me.
Cultural diffusion
Germany is definitely know for its over the top deliciously fine deserts and bakeries!
Cultural Diffusion
Pastries and deserts are enjoyed morning and afternoon, often with coffee.
~2 of my siblings~ I am proud to say
that Germans really
do embrace their
heritage and they
show it in numerous
ways. Cultural
landscape is not
only defined as
buildings, gardens
and roads but also
by modes of dress,
smells of food and
even sounds of
music. I have one
thing that comes to
mind when I hear
this and that is the
tradition we
celebrate called
“FASCHING!” My
family and I
celebrate it every
year.
Cultural landscape
Fasching goes as far back to the Romans. It celebrates the end of winter and coming of spring and is months long.
locals celebrate Fasching by dressing up in costumes, attending masquerade balls and sit-down affairs where speakers comment on politics and other matters in comic rhymes, and celebrating at parades in cities throughout Germany.
During the parades beer and wine is handed out by the float, along with large pretzels and baked goods. German music is played loudly throughout the streets and the streets are filled with the smell of German food, happy people dancing and giving strangers hugs and kisses. I love it!
The expression used during Fasching is “Hellauuu”.
Cultural landscape
Germany is also known for its beautiful castles all around the country. So much history exists in all of them and even in grade school our field trips consisted of visiting multiple cultural landscapes to include many castles, the oldest cities like Röthenburg and beautiful gardens.
Schwetzingen Castle Linderhof Castle
Cultural landscapes
Distance decay is a decrease in similarity the farther things are apart. This is seen with many different ethnic cuisines especially if brought over to another land.
Today German-Americans still eat traditional German dishes which, over time, were adapted to accommodate local ingredients.
Distance decay
I have been to many places that have sold German food and once I have tried it, it is nothing like the authentic German food. For example sauerkraut tastes differently and even the bratwursts made in America are just not like the ones in Germany. Bread is a major part in German food and the so –called German pastries as well as rolls are not even relatively close coming from a native German. If you want some real, authentic German cuisine the best place is to visit the beautiful country itself…Germany!
Distance decay
http://www.wiesbaden.army.mil/sites/about/ttd/fasching.htm
http://lawrence-koppy.suite101.com/the-foods-of-germany-that-changed-america-a218513
http://www.germanculture.com.ua/library/facts/bl_geography.htm
http://www.mapsofworld.com/germany/regions/
http://germanfood.about.com/od/introtogermanfood/a/introtoger.htm
http://briansmith.suite101.com/german-cuisine-a78828
References
De Blij, H.J, & Muller, P.O. (2010). Regions: Geography Realms, Regions, and Concepts, 14E, 22. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley and Sons