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• Where to live
• Where to find rentals
• Where to arrange a residence permit
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• Where to arrange a driving licence
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WHERE TO LIVE

COLOGNE: 'A River Runs Through It' could be Cologne's trademark claim. The city is cut cleanly into two halves by the Rhine River, with the 'left Rhine side', as locals call it, being Cologne's centre of gravity. It is home to the densely populated down- town district as well as numerous residential neighbourhoods.

The right Rhine side, by contrast, has no centre to speak of and has traditionally lived a shadow existence, with Cologners calling it the 'Schäl Sick', or the 'Wrong Side'.

Those who are new to the city usually move to one of half a dozen neighbourhoods on the left city side that hug downtown in a semi-circle: Ehrenfeld, Lindenthal, Suelz, Bayenthal, and Rodenkirchen. The city remains a popular destination, especially for bar-and restaurant-hopping singles who tend to live in the Belgian Quarter (Belgisches Viertel) and Old Town (Altstadt).

BONN: Flocking to this now quieter but still prospering town are young professionals from the IT and communication industries, who tend to set up residence east of the Rhine river, in the suburbs of Beuel, Geislar, Vilich and Holzlar. However, the western side of town still holds most of its cultural and leisure attractions. Also located there are Bonn's shopping and Old Town districts, and the still popular residential neighbourhoods of Südstadt and Poppelsdorf. To the south lies the suburb of Bad Godesberg, formerly prime real estate, which for some years now has been losing residents. Adjacent to the Federal Quarter (Bundesviertel), Bad Godesberg used to be the neighbourhood of choice for scores of German politicians, their families and foreign diplomats, before the capital moved to Berlin.

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