RIYADH, 3 October 2006 — More than 500,000 guests are expected to attend the German unification celebration in the Baltic port city of Kiel (Germany) this year. The city, capital of the most northern state of Schleswig-Holstein, is preparing itself for the visitors. The state, which has both a North Sea and a Baltic coastline, is organizing the festivities because the state prime minister, Peter Harry Carstensen, who also visited Saudi Arabia from Sept. 15 to Sept. 17 and is currently chairman of the Bundesrat, the upper house of the German Parliament. Kiel’s position on the Baltic is expected to lend special flair to the celebrations. Several state prime ministers intend to take each other on in a dragon boat race on the Kiel Fjord, a narrow inlet that runs to the center of the city.
Ships at anchor along the coast will provide a maritime backdrop. All 16 German states will present their culinary specialities, sights and points of special interest along the quay. “We intended to celebrate with an informative and cheerful gathering for everyone,” hosting Prime Minister Carstensen said.
After the football World Cup was held in Germany under the motto, “The world as guest among friends”, the German unity celebrations will be called “Germany as guest in Schleswig-Holstein — Welcome to Kiel”.
The climax will be marked by a celebration in the Baltic Hall on Oct. 3, with Chancellor Angela Merkel delivering the main address. President Horst Koehler will then host a reception.
The celebrations in Kiel, with presentations from all the states, are intended to show Germany’s diversity. On the program is a festival of dialects. Here the differing dialects like Low German, Saxon and Bavarian will be heard.
The state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern will hold the celebrations marking German reunification in 2007. For more information, visit www.tag-der-einheit-2006.de.