Sheep on a German hillside

This is a rare sight, even in the country side such as Northern Bavaria. We pulled up, so I could take a few pictures against the dark skies.

Shepherd with dog

Beautiful moment. Peace on Earth. Lonely traveller. Loyal friend.

Happy New Year!

The village of Sennfeld (near Schweinfurt) has its own tradition of celebrating this special day with a parade, dancing, eating, and drinking.

Minimum age is three for enrolling in the public dance performance

Thanksgiving - traditional dances

Dancing around the tree - fertility symbol

Traditions of songs and dance

Another dance, another outfit

My three-year-old grandniece will join the junior dancers next year.

Tradition is a guide and not a jailer.

- William Somerset Maugham -

Besides being a regular Sunday in church, on Erntedankfest though, the church gets decorated with the year’s harvest of vegetables.

Protestants however, celebrate Thanksgiving in style. The neighboring villages of Sennfeld and Gochsheim (near Schweinfurt) are both mainly protestant. Both have a Erntedanksfest Umzug (Thanksgiving Parade) with a big fest afterwards. The most popular food items on the list are Zwiebelsplootz and Federweißer.

Zwiefelsplootz and Federweisser

Here are some pictures taken in Sennfeld (Lower Franconia) on their Thanksgiving Day parade.

Thanksgiving Parade, German style

Men in feathered hats

Some little German helpers

Advert for renewable energy

Thanksgiving Parade participants

Thanksgiving Parade

bountiful harvest

It was a rather short parade, but worth attending. Sadly enough, the number of participants keeps shrinking as interest in traditions is slowly fading.

These country hotels are spread out all over the Germany, reaching from the North Sea down to the Alps. One of them is located in the heart of Germany, namely Hotel Schloss Zeilitzheim in Northern Bavaria.

On of our visits to my hometown in Northern Bavaria, we had an overnight at Hotel Schloss Zeilitzheim.

Country Hotel Schloss Zeilitzheim

Quoting an excerpt from the Geo Saison article, written by Hannah Glaser:

Den jungen, gutgelaunten Hausherrn von Schloss Zeilitzheim treffen wir im Garten, auf den Knien beim Löwenzahn stechen (We found the young and good-humored castle owner in the garden, on his knees pulling weeds).

This, among other daily routines, contributes to a familiar atmosphere when staying at the hotel.

Country Hotel Schloss Zeilitzheim

Hotel Schloss Zeilitzheim ranked 7th on the Geo-Saison list (full list available on Presse-Portal).

For more information, visit Zeilitzheim Castle Hotel in Bavaria, Germany.

sunflower fields lining the roadside

grapes and geraniums on German homes

vegetable patches around the village of Sennfeld

Home is the place where, when you have to go there, they have to take you in.
- Robert Frost -

In the early 19th century, there were close to 30.000 Bavarian breweries, among which many would be classified as home breweries by today’s standard. Some were village breweries and delivered only to the local inns. Almost every monastery had its own brewery as well.

In 2008, the number of breweries in Bavaria was 627, of which 300 alone are in the region of Franconia.

The region of Franconia is divided into Upper, Middle, and Lower Franconia – see map.

Upper Franconia, also sometimes referred to as Bierfranken (Beer Franconia) has close to 200 breweries.

Bierland Oberfranken in Upper Franconia offers 54 beer tours throughout the area. For more information, visit Bierland Oberfranken.

Another site, Bierland Franken, offers tips on self-guided tours such as hiking and biking trails, information about beer seminars, etc.

Beer served in Franconia/Germany

Prost!

As dusk was rolling in, we were putting on the finishing touches and I noticed how well-kept every single grave looked. The flowers looked splendid, the path was clean, and then I realized it had always been this way.

Graveyard in Germany

Many graves had Stiefmütterchen (pansies), which literally translates to little step mothers.

Pansies, a.k.a. Stiefmütterchen in Germany

Additionally, it is difficult to get much work done as the graveyard, out of all places, is such a social place. Feel lonely on a Saturday evening? Go to your local cemetery, that is where you find a lot of your old friends and acquaintances. Mostly senior ones who have not connected with you on facebook yet.

I was approached by locals who would not have talked to me during my teenage years. I don’t blame them either… people come together for a common cause at the graveyard, and the connecting factor of sharing a family member’s loss overrules any other preconceived notions, at least in regards to my teenage years.

My aunt, who happened to be at the graveyard, told of her most recent visit to Norway, where most graves are covered by a slab of stone (at least the one she had been to). In the U.S.A, I saw many grave stones surrounded by grass only.

Weekly visits to care for the grave are a must-do in these villages, just like sweeping the sidewalk on Saturdays.

Scheinfeld has something the other two might not have – a three-day guided beer tour (up to eight people) which includes plenty of Freibier, a carriage ride, tours of breweries and much other noteworthy information relating to barley brew.

At the end of the tour, you will get furnished with a “doctorate degree”, signed with the title of Dr. bierologis causa.

The Aischgründer Beer Route is about 50 km long and runs between the towns of Bad Windsheim and Uehlfeld. Along the tour, you will stop at seven different breweries and plenty of local guest-houses. There are also paths such as the Bierwanderweg (beer hiking path) and the Bierradweg (beer biking path).

Franconian beer

For more information about this guided tour, visit:

Arbeitsgemeinschaft Aischgründer Bierstrasse, Hauptstrasse 1 in 91443 Scheinfeld

Tel: 09162 – 12412 or bierstrasse.de

Just this past Friday we experienced a Vollsperrung (complete closure) and had to take the scenic route towards Schweinfurt. It was worth it, though.

The ADAC published the following results for the A3 (Frankfurt – Würzburg) for 2010:

3000 traffic jams, 3500 hours of waiting, with 6600 km in total.

We passed through villages we had never seen before, some with unusual names such as the one below – Opferbaum (victim tree of sacrifice tree).

Village of Opferbaum (Victim Tree) in Franconia

Rolling hills, plenty of bikers and bicyclists, and tons of sunshine were our companions on this trip.

Springtime in Germany

We even got to take the ferry across the Mainschleife as we had to make a book drop-off to Schloss Zeilitzheim and there was no other way to get there, but to cross the river by ferry.

Mainschleife ferry

It was a good 3:15 hour scenic drive instead of the usual 2:15 hours on the Autobahn.