Society.
 |
Image: Garry Green |
Despite the robust climate, Germans are generally a lot less reluctant to take off all or part of their clothing in public than most peoples. Still, community standards in different parts of the country vary considerably. The full nudity tolerated in Munich’s Englischer Garten, for instance, would never do in Dusseldorf’s Hofgarten.
Topless sunbathing at the city’s various outdoor swimming pool complexes has long since been the norm; topless swimming is somewhat more problematic. At Lorick, a generous part of the big outdoor pool and recreation complex on the Rhine is screened off for nude sunbathers (and flocks of wild geese); similar provisions for nudists can be found dotted around the city.
Incidentally, the German euphemism for nudism is FKK, which stands for Freier Korper Kultur, i.e. “free body culture”. The sauna facilities at Dusseldorf’s various indoor pools, where people tend to frown upon foreigners in bathing costumes, are mixed, though they do offer a Damentag, or “Ladies’ day” once a week; there is no Herrentag.
Yes, of course, there is more to come concerning this fascinating society.
