FSFlorian Siebeck

1. Article · Sep 30, 2026 · Florian Siebeck

   Western Europe has more scope for soft power – in the form of plush mascots (opens the original)

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   A curious gathering took place on a recent afternoon at Frankfurt’s Dippemess, the city’s historic funfair. It represented the basketball club, the ice-hockey team, the rubbish collectors, the public-transport operator and the youth fire brigade. Even Germany’s central bank had sent someone along. The only unusual thing was that none of them had come in human form. Frankfurt was holding its annual mascot summit.Bembli – a plush, oversized version of the grey-and-blue stoneware jug traditionally

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2. Article · Aug 14, 2026 · Florian Siebeck

   Munich’s Arabellahaus could become a model for saving Germany’s ageing housing blocks (opens the original)

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   When the owner of Munich’s Arabellahaus announced in 2018 that the building would have to come down, residents were furious. Completed in 1969, the enormous, skinny, rectangular structure long functioned as a miniature city, earning comparisons with Le Corbusier’s L’Unité d’Habitation in Marseille. There were leather-clad lift doors, a 24-hour concierge, a hotel, two clinics and even an in-house catering service. But infrastructure ages. The reinforced-concrete frame began to corrode, the façade

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