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| 74 Heumarkt / Martinsviertel By Matthias Einhorn |
This postcard was sent from Cologne by my friend Laura (Germany) the day after Rosenmontag, last year. She wrote that the ambience was a bit more chaotic than on the picture...
As read in the Wikipedia:
Rosenmontag ('Rose Monday') is the highlight of the German Carnival, and is on the Shrove Monday before Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent. Mardi Gras though celebrated on Tuesday, is a similar event. Rosenmontag is celebrated in German-speaking countries, including Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Belgium (Eupen), but most heavily in the Karnevalshochburgen ('carnival strongholds'), which include the Rhineland, especially in Cologne, Bonn, Düsseldorf, Aachen and Mainz.
Fascinating - I'd never heard of this before.
ReplyDeleteMe neither, until I got the postcard (last year). There are so many different traditions associated to the Carnival!
DeleteI didn't know it was German! In Beek (Dutch town close to Ubbergen and Nijmegen (there are at least two other towns named Beek)), Rozenmoandag (Rose Monday) is the locally famous day on which the carnaval's parade takes place, with beautifully and funny decorated 'wagens' (kind of cars / open trailers). As a young kid I used to go watch this Rozenmaandag parade with my parents. As a grown-up I wasn't interested anymore, but still I think it a nice tradition.* The people from Beek start building these 'praalwagens' (decorated cars/trailers).
ReplyDeleteHow nice to see that the Germans have a postcard of the Rosen Montag! :-)
*thank you for the other tradition card! It arrived last Friday. Wow, such a large human tower!
- the local people start building the 'praalwagens' a year before!
ReplyDelete(similar to the large sculptures in South East Spain, I think)
As I wrote to Phillip, there are a lot of traditions associated to Carnival... Sometimes, when I visit places, I miss more postcards showing both normal or special things that people do in those places, like festivals and so.
DeleteAnd yes, we are going to set fire on the "fallas" on 19 March. And, on 21 March... "we" will begin to build the sculptures for 2020! :)
I'm glad you like the postcard. But, actually, the tower isn't especially tall. They are really good!