10 good reasons to love Germany

Eleven million visitors came to the capital in 2013 alone and that number is steadily growing. Most of them are young and want to party. They might aim to take home a little bit of Berlin joie de vivre, experience history walking past its landmarks, go skating on a disused airport runway, or just chill in some cool bars.

There is a die-hard cliché that no one drinks more beer than the Germans. That is actually not true, as on average neighboring Austrians and Czechs knock back a lot more of the amber nectar. But when it comes to the quality of the beer, German breweries are fairly unbeatable - and have been so for some 500 years, thanks to the German beer purity law.

This is what 1,000 calories look like. Germans love their regional specialties, from "Eisbein" pig's trotters with sauerkraut, to kale with a sausage known as "Pinkel." They like their food rich, but they also like to try new things. A growing number of new culinary delights are on offer in most cities - even vegans are catered for. Berlin is home to Germany's first vegan supermarket.

Germans have a very special relationship to their forests - understandable, as a third of the country is forested - making Germany European champion. A walk is relaxing, allows you to witness the change of seasons, and can inject you with new energy.

Anyone who claims that Germans lack emotions has never spent a Saturday afternoon in a football stadium or a sports bar. Seldom are joy and misery as close together as at a Bundesliga game. The best moments are those like the recent World Cup final in Brazil, when the country rejoiced together.

With Bach and Beethoven, Germany is often associated with classical music. But it's also the home of techno music, which reached the height of its popularity in the 1990s. Berlin is where the dance-crazed followers headed. Electronic music from Germany is held in high regard around the world. Anyone still into that sort of music should head to the Berghain or Watergate night clubs in Berlin.

There are thousands of castles and palaces in Germany, but Neuschwanstein in Bavaria is probably the best known. Walt Disney thought so and decided to use the silhouette of the castle as the logo for his production company. Some 1.4 million visitors flock here every year to see the castle and its splendid living quarters, as well as the famous Hall of the Singers.

Now be honest - who hasn't dreamt of pushing their own car to its limits and leaving everyone else behind? This is possible on German motorways. Even though large stretches of the famous Autobahn these days do impose a 120-kilometer an hour (74.5 mph) speed limit - not to mention the many delays caused by the sheer weight of traffic.

It's a term similar to Zeitgeist, Wanderlust, or Kitsch: it's unique and therefore almost impossible to translate. Gemütlichkeit describes a cheerful yet cozy frame of mind. This is where Germans feel at home - safe in the here and now - be it with 1,000 others in a beer garden or all alone in a mountain hut.

German Christmas markets can now be found the world over. But as much as people might complain about the dark time of the year and the cold temperatures during Advent in Germany, the mulled wine still tastes great. And all the traditions that involve lights and candles, from the Christmas pyramid to the candle arch, bring cozy warmth to the hearts and homes of Germans.