Freizeit

1. Leisure is very important in the German-speaking world. To get an idea of the many activities people enjoy, go to one of the major search engines and check out the categories under "Freizeit." To get started, use this address from the German Internet search engine WEB.de (http://dir.web.de/Freizeit/?id=990503-34346-00). In German.

2. Traveling by car is a favorite leisure time activity for Germans. From the home page of the magazin Auto, Motor und Sport (http://www.auto-motor-und-sport.de/) you can find out about motor sports in Germany. In German.

3. Do you enjoy theme parks? Try the home page of Warner Brothers' theme park near Essen (http://www.movieworld.de). Plan a day in the park. In German, French, English, and Dutch.

Essen zu Hause und als Gast

1. What do students eat in Germany? Visit a German university cafeteria, the Mensa at the University of Saarbrücken. You can find menus and pictures of the cafeterias from the home page of the Studentenwerk (http://www.studentenwerk-saarland.de/). In German.

2. Visit Mcdonald's in Germany (http://www.mcdonalds.de/) and find out about the hamburger business in Germany. In German. Or visit the Swiss site (http://www.mcdonalds.ch/pages/default.asp?browser=flash), which offers links to McDonald's around the world. In German, French, and Italian.

3. For more typically German fare, including old traditional German recipes, visit the Restaurant Kolk in Berlin, Spandau (http://www.kolk.im-netz.de/start.html). Click on the menu and plan a special dinner. In German and English.

4. Find a German restaurant where you would like to eat by searching the Web.

Der Führerschein

1. To find out more about driving or learning to drive in Germany visit Fahrschule-online (http://www.fahrschule-online.de/). Here you will find a database of all the driving schools in Germany, as well as information about the rules of the road and links to various car clubs. In German.

2. Visit a museum dedicated to the car industry in Saxony, Automobilmuseum August Horch, in Zwickau (http://www.trabant.de/). This site features pictures and text about German cars ranging from Audi to Trabant, the famous car of East Germany. In German.

Das Theater

1. Many theaters in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland have web sites. See if you can find a theater performing a work by your favorite playwright.

2. The Salzburger Festspiele (http://www.salzburgfestival.at/) is one of the most famous arts festivals in the German-speaking realm. Plays, operas, and concerts are presented each year. Visit the attractive web site to find out about this year's festival, the history of the festival, and pictures of the theaters. In German and English.

3. Germans have been fascinated by the American West for over a hundred years. Visit the Elspe Karl-May-Spiele (http://www.elspe.de/) to get an impression of the European version of the Wild West. Links to information about the American West and the author Karl May, who is greatly responsible for shaping Germans' concepts of the American frontier. In German.

Feiertage

1. Visit Germany's most famous Christmas market, the Nürnberger Christkindelsmarkt (http://www.christkindlesmarkt.de/). You can take a virtual tour of the market, see a slide show, and read about the market's history. You can also choose a German Christmas card to send via mail.

2. The Goethe Institute's home page (http://www.goethe.de) offers a section on German rituals and festivals (http://www.goethe.de/z/50/alltag/rituale/deindex1.htm). Click here to find more information, in photos and text, about Karneval, New Year's, and Octoberfest. In German.

Der deutsche Film

1. Do your own surfing. Over 200 German, Swiss, and Austrian movie theaters have web sites.

2. On the "Bundesstarts" page at the City Dom Kino in Straubing (http://www.citydom.de) you can browse movie posters for the latest releases, each with a short summary. There is also a category called der besondere Film which features more ambitious films. In German.

3. The history of movies can be found on the web site of 100 Jahre Kino (http://www.einhundertjahrekino.de/). This site is the winner of several awards and includes information about German as well as international films. In German.

4. The German magazine Bunte (http://www.bunte.de/) provides movie reviews of all recent releases (http://www.bunte.de/M/m.htm?part=4). You can compare German users' opinions to your own. In German.