Oct 6, 2011

Thanksgiving Fest in Germany

Erntedankfest (Thanksgiving Day) in Germany is celebrated on the first Sunday in October,

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 –

Oct 5, 2011

German Thanksgiving Parade

In Germany, Erntedankfest (Thanksgiving) is celebrated on the first Sunday in October. It is only a religious holiday and while growing up in a catholic village, it meant going to church, just like every Sunday.

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.

Sep 20, 2011

Country Hotels in Germany

The magazine Geo Saison, in its current October 2011 issue, ran an article featuring their choice of the 18 best country hotels in Germany.

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.

 

Aug 27, 2011

Tell me a Good Reason for Living in Germany

or … a picture speaks a thousand words.

Beer in Germany

There are some 1,250 breweries in Germany (accounting for 40% of the world’s total), producing around 7,500 different beers. Half the breweries are to be found in my home state of Bavaria.

But the epicenter of this liquid gold is actually in Franconia (Northern Bavaria), where I am from. It is home to the heaviest concentration of breweries in the world.

I grew up with beer. Friends and family have jokingly suggested to throw bottle caps into my coffin instead of flowers. Sounds fair to me.

You can read more about Germany and beer at Toytown Germany beer.

Aug 2, 2011

July in Northern Bavaria

Another trip to the Heimat  had me take a few shots of the area of Franconia (northern Bavaria) a.k.a. as Beer Country.

sunflower fields lining the roadside

grapes and geraniums on German homes

vegetable patches around Sennfeld

vegetable patches around the village of Sennfeld

 This isn’t the Autobahn…

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

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