Germany is strategic located on North European Plain and along the entrance to the Baltic Sea. Extending 853 kilometers from its northern border with Denmark to the Alps in the south, it is the sixth largest country in Europe. Because it lies at the very heart of Europe, Germany shares borders with more European countries than any other country on the continent.
Administrative Division: 16 states (Länder): Baden-Wuerttemberg, Bayern, Berlin, Brandenburg, Bremen, Hamburg, Hessen, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Niedersachsen, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Rheinland-Pfalz, Saarland, Sachsen, Sachsen-Anhalt, Schleswig-Holstein, Thueringen.
There is a fascinating variety of landscapes packed into this country. “A plain dotted with lakes, moors, marshes, and heaths retreats from the sea and reaches inland, where it becomes a landscape of hills crisscrossed by streams, rivers, and valleys. These hills lead upward, gradually forming high plateaus and woodlands and eventually climaxing in spectacular mountain ranges”.
Northern Germany: the Northern lowland of Germany is drained by rivers like Elbe, Weser, Oder, Rhine, Ems, Havel. The land along the Frisian coast is marshy and there are also large areas of wetlands along that part. Northern Germany also has intriguing glacier formed lakes that date back.
Central Germany: the central uplands of Germany are mostly hilly and rugged. The ancient mountains have been formed by ancient volcanic activities. The Rheinish Uplands are divided by two deep and dramatic river valleys: the Moselle and the Rhine.
Southern Germany: between the Central German Uplands, the Alpine Foreland and the Alps lies the geographical region of the Southern German Highlands. The Alpine Foreland is spectacular with its rolling green hills and stunning glacial lakes. The German Alps create a dramatic scenery. The narrow fringe of mountains runs along the border with Switzerland and Austria from Lake Constance (Bodensee) in the west to Salzburg in the east.