Lifestyle

Big-band jazz, rock, blues, Dixieland and soul music will fascinate visitors at the European “BURG JAZZ” Music Festival July 27 and 28 at Nanstein Castle in Landstuhl.

The two-day summer 2013 Technology Exposition, hosted by the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association, finished Wednesday at the Ramstein Officers’ Club.

The annual drifting fest in the Leinbach Valley between Frankenstein and Waldleiningen will take place Sunday. The Otterberg forestry office and the communities of Hochspeyer, Frankenstein and Waldleiningen will sponsor, in cooperation with local associations, the annual “Triftfest” from
11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Biedenbacher Woog (pond).

Members of the KMC celebrate U.S. Independence Day with live music, children’s activities, carnival rides, food specialties, games and a fireworks display July 4 on Ramstein.

Metz is about an hour away from Ramstein and a great introduction to France’s cuisine and culture. Head there by car or join one of the USO’s tours to the city.

Driving down the “Burgenstrasse,” or Castle Road, a themed route in Southern Germany and the Czech Republic that runs between Mannheim and Prague, one of the first castles you will pass is Heidelberg Castle, the most well-known ruin in the period of romanticism.

The historical part of Kaiserslautern, called the “Altstadt,” will turn into a party zone for the annual Altstadtfest July 5 to 7.