Promoting cultural ties: ‘German Weeks’ to start on October 3

Events seek to give people an essence of German culture, sports, art, music and language

KARACHI: Mark your calendars to get an essence of Germany through a plethora of educational and cultural events beginning from October.

'German Weeks' in Karachi, presented by the German consulate-general and Goethe-Institut Pakistan, endeavours to give people a taste of German traditions, culture art, sports, music and language.

Germany and Pakistan have once again joined hands to promote culture and tradition, said German Consul-General Rainer Schmiedchen during a press conference at Karachi Press Club on Thursday.

German weeks are organised every year to promote German culture and encourage people to become aware of its traditions. This year, the German consulate-general and Goethe-Institut will be hosting 17 events, including musical concerts, exhibitions, spelling competitions, workshops and lectures. The two-month-long event will start on October 3 and culminate on December 13.

"All the supporting schools have also been invited to participate and this year the number of participating students has been increased," remarked Goethe-Institut director Stefan Winkler.

Main highlights 

Announcing the main highlights of the event, Schmiedchen said that the first event will be a workshop on graphic novels with MOSAIK, which is a comic with the highest circulation in Germany.

Another highlight will be 'Fubball - The first German consulate cup in Karachi', which will be held on November 12. In the football tournament, organised in collaboration with Karachi United, the participating schools will be those where German is taught as a language.

Alongside, musical concerts have also been organised, including 'Sufi-Step', where Viktor Marek will perform alongside Ashraf Sharif Khan, 'Jazz Tour' and an electro music concert.

A lecture by Prof Dr Conrad Schetterm, an expert on South Asia and Central Asia, will be held in December to strengthen the bond between the two countries.

Talking about the spelling bee competition, Winkler said, "We have several hundred students participating in the spelling bee competition, which is held in German." He added that the number of participating students has increased as many schools have also asked to send their students for the competition.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 30^th, 2016.