if you come close to cologne, ring me up, I'll buy you a beer or two. cologne is a great party town.
as it is your first trip to germany, I should remind you that beer in germany is different from beer in the US. It contains comparatively large quantities of alcohol, and doesn't taste like water either...
apart from that, there are amazingly little differences between germany and the US. We have electricity, running water ( hot, too ), the interwebs, hot women ( who seem to dig US boys ), are great sports enthusiasts, etc..
one fashion note: if you can, please avoid wearing sports caps, hooded sweaters, shorts, and other "typical US tourist insignia". We do not care if you suppport "St.Mary's Lacrosse", and the Alabama Crimson Tide doesn't play here, either...
I am saying this because I have noticed this behaviour with US tourists in every major european city I have visited. It's almost as if they need to make sure that everybody knows where they're from, even if the locals couldn't give a shit.
Also, depending on the locations you plan to spend the evenings in, prepare for some interesting debates on US foreign policy, the war in Iraq, the upcoming US presidential election, and the like. Most germans I know are quite interested in these topics, and would love the opportunity to get inside stuff from an US citizen.
Overall, I expect you'll have a great time.
edit: I just realized that you'll probably won't pass by Cologne, as Katterbach lies in deepest Bavaria. Lord knows why the US military chose to set up their military installations in the middle of nowhere...
oh well, as Cam said, there is much to see around Munich and Nuremberg
