Ask many Germans their opinion of Stuttgarters and they’ll have plenty of things to say:they are road hogs, speeding along the autobahn; they are sharp-dressed executives with a Swabian drawl; they are tight-fisted homebodies who slave away to schaffe, schaffe, Häusle baue (work, work, build a house)

So much for the stereotypes: the real Stuttgart is less superficial than legend would have it. True, some good-living locals like their cars fast and their restaurants fancy, but most are just as happy getting their boots dirty in the surrounding vine-clad hills and hanging out with friends in the rustic confines of a Weinstube (wine tavern) or a chestnut tree-shaded Biergarten. In this, the capital of Baden-Württemberg, city slickers and down-to-earth country kids walk hand in hand, with no need to compromise.