Legal holidays

Depending on where you live in Germany, you will find that you have more or less legal holidays. Some are nationwide, but the majority of religious holidays are state specific. If you are looking on determining your city of residency, based on how much vacation you will get, then look for a city in Bavaria. Because of the heavy influence of the Catholic Church, you will find the most holidays there.

If you are looking for the most crazy holiday in Germany, then you will want to find a city that celebrates Fasching (or Karneval). The cities known for this holiday are Köln, Düsseldorf and Mainz. This is similar to the Carneval that one sees in Rio or Mardi Gras in New Orleans. There is a large parade where people are dressed in all kinds of great costumes. The German version adds interesting floats with political humor in them. From what I understand, the tradition was a way to celebrate the harvest. Just like in Mardi Gras, people in the floats toss all kinds of things out to the viewing public. The picture of the little boy in the devil's costume shows what most kids look like. The sit on their parents shoulders and hold out their hands, looking cute, in hopes that the people in the floats with toss them candy and stuffed animals.

To look up the legal holidays in your state, go to www.feiertage.net.