‘All Germans wear short lederhosen, drink beer all day and dance strange dances’ - a still widespread misconception about Germany. But this country of around 80 million inhabitants in the heart of Europe is by no means made up of just Bavaria, but of many regions that could hardly be more different topographically: in the south, the mountain massif of the Alps, behind which the Mediterranean part of Europe begins, and in the north, the flat coast with the sea as a transition to Scandinavia. The Goethe Institut describes the German cities, regions and individual federal states.
Sightseeing
Wuppertal is located in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW), one of 16 federal states within Germany. NRW is the most populous and westernmost federal state. The state government is based in Düsseldorf, which together with Cologne is also an NRW centre of of culture.
The RheinBergKreis provides a good overview of the Bergisches Land, the region within NRW between the Rhineland, Ruhr area, Sauerland and Siegerland.
History
Before entering the country, it is highly recommended to get an overview of German culture and the recent history surrounding German unification.