Kaiserslautern
TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION

At first glance, Kaiserslautern may seem rather unremarkable. But if you take a closer look, you’ll discover plenty of charming details that make the town special. Kaiserslautern’s landmark is the “Rathaus“, or town hall, a plain white multi-storey building. Eighty four metres high, it was for many years the tallest town hall in Germany after its completion in 1968. The views from the bar on the 21st floor are phenomenal.

From here, you can see the 13th century Stiftskirche, the Pfalztheater and the former market hall “Fruchthalle“, no longer a centre of trade but an event location. The ruins of the “Kaiserpfalz“, the imperial castle where Barbarossa once resided, are at your feet.

The “Pfälzer“, the inhabitants of the Palatinate region, are open, friendly people. When you walk through the town, you’ll meet people from over 140 nations. In particular, you’ll meet lots of Americans. Not surprisingly, because Kaiserslautern is the world’s biggest US military base outside the States. The military community of “K-Town“, as the Americans call it, has some 50,000 members.

The Fritz Walter Stadium on Betzenberg, where the local football team 1. FC Kaiserslautern is regularly cheered along, accommodates the same number of fans, in other words, half of the town.

The old part of town is full of bars and party venues, and lots of students like to hang out here. Steinstrasse is lined with cafés, restaurants and bars so that there’s something to suit virtually every taste.

You will also find bistros to have a good breakfast and traditional restaurants where you can try hearty, home-made dishes such as stuffed pig’s stomach (“Saumagen“) or liver dumplings (“Leberknödel“) which can be washed down with a glass of wine. In some places you can also taste home-brewed beer.

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