Kaiserslautern

Kaiserslautern is a town in the south of the Land Rhineland-Palatinate in Germany.

It has 100,000 inhabitants and some 38,000 additional American citizens due to the large military bases in the region.

Kaiserslautern is the home to Ramstein Air Base which is the seat of US Air Forces in Europe (USAFE) Headquarters, the Allied Air Forces Central Europe (AIRCENT) and the 86th Airlift Wing. Americans stationed in Kaiserslauten call it K-Town. The American military presence in Kaiserslautern has decreased substantially in recent years, with consequent economic effects to the area.

Kaiserslautern's other industries include manufacturing, as the home of Pfaff, an internationally-known maker of sewing machines.

The town hall (Rathaus) is the tallest building in Kaiserslautern, and the coffee shop on the top floor features good views of the town and surrounding countryside. In the town itself, there are some ruins of a 12th(?)-century castle of the emperor Barbarossa.

Kaiserslautern's large botanic gardens feature a Japanese-style garden. Another unusual feature is the Waschmühle, an enormous 160-metre public swimming pool, one of the largest in Europe. The pedestrianized streets near St-Martins-Platz contain many restaurants and bars and is a major focus of the town's nightlife.

The town is also home to the football team 1. FC Kaiserslautern.

Japanese Garden in Kaiserslautern's botanic gardens.

Central Kaiserslautern from the Rathaus (town hall).