Garden Fair opens Wednesday to visitors

by Petra Lessoing
Ramstein Public Affairs

The Garden Fair Kaiserslautern will re-open its doors Wednesday for its ninth season.

Until Oct. 31, visitors can enjoy a variety of flowers, exhibitions, activities and entertainment.

Garden fair spokeswoman Sandra Laux said this year they had to relocate the main entrance, which is now between the Casimir Restaurant and the flower hall right next to the ticket office.

Visitors can get to this area by entering the new parking lot on Lauterstrasse, up the road from Papasote Restaurant. Other parking lots are at the end of Forellenstrasse and at the corner of Lauter- and Burgstrasse, which was last year’s parking lot.

Throughout the season, visitors can find blooming flowers in the flower beds and in the flower hall.

“Some of the flower beds are easily accessible; they are our walk-in flower beds,” Mrs. Laux said. “Visitors can just walk into the middle of it to be able take the right photo.”

Every two weeks, new flowers and plants will be arranged in the flower hall to match a theme.

Other attractions are the dinosaur exhibit with about 80 dinosaur models and the Biblical, farmers’ and Japanese gardens.

The willow church on Kaiserberg hill also celebrates its fifth anniversary this year.

“The live and constantly growing church is unique within southwest Germany,” Mrs. Laux said. “Interested couples even can get married in our willow church.”

A wedding ceremony with up to 100 people, including admission, costs about €200.

Christening ceremonies cost €100.

“We are happy to help find a chaplain or priest if needed,” said Sissi Kösling from the German-American Community Office in Kaiserslautern. “For their celebration, they can use the restaurant up there or arrange for a picnic.”

Children can enjoy the variety of playgrounds, a skate rink, soccer field, beach volleyball field and miniature golf in Neumühlepark. A playing castle will be placed next to the beach volleyball field.

“We want to integrate children by helping to build and paint the castle,” Mrs. Laux said.

Adventure lessons under the open sky are offered in the “green classroom.” School children can participate in more than 40 educational classes about nature, culture and the environment.

The Kaiserslautern Garden Fair also presents a variety of musical events, children’s programs, family fests, displays and markets. Guided tours of the area are available for five to 30 people and cost €40. Guided tours of the vineyards, willow church, Biblical Garden and the pharmaceutical garden with herbs, spices and medical plants are free.

Daily admission times are 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m.

to 7 p.m. Saturdays, Sundays and during German school breaks.

Daily tickets cost €6 for adults and €3 for children. The evening tickets after 5 p.m. are half-price.

Customers of the Kaiserslautern technical works, TWK, can obtain reduced season tickets for families for €15. TWK has sent out information letters to their customers. For more information, visit www.gartenschau-kl.de or call 0631-71007-00.

For details on getting married or christened in the willow church, call Mrs. Kösling at 0631-36330-14 or e-mail info@gaco-kl.de.