Frankfurt - Workers in the German banking sector embarked on brief token strikes Thursday in support of demands for higher pay. In the main banking centre of Frankfurt, some 500 clerks held a demonstration called by services union Verdi.

Verdi, Germany's second-largest union with some 2.2 million members, called the so-called "warning strikes" ahead of a third round of talks with employers set for Tuesday next week in Frankfurt.

"We are demanding a respectable rise. It is urgently necessary," Verdi spokesman Leonhard Regneri said, pointing to inflation in Germany running at well over 3 per cent.

Friedrichshafen, Germany - The makers

Freiburg, Germany - GHB has been dubbed "liquid ecstasy," a misleading name if ever there was one. Short for gamma hydroxybutyrate, GHB is chemically unrelated to its fellow club drug Ecstasy.

Frankfurt, Germany - Fans of plastic clogs should trust their sense of smell and steer clear of unpleasant smelling shoes.

Deggendorf, Germany  - German police said Wednesday they had seized five luxury cars and confiscated the owners' driving licences to halt an illegal cannonball run across Europe.

The five men, from Britain and Spain, were believed to be racing from the German city of Cologne on a criss-cross route to Croatia with stops at Munich, Salzburg and Vienna.

Berlin - The commanding officer of the German armed forces since 2002, Wolfg