The Fifth Season has come and gone here in Germany. But wait, there are only four seasons in a year, right? Wrong. We forgot about Karneval! We might also know it as Mardi Gras in the US or Carnaval in Brazil, but wherever you might be celebrating, it’s a time to let loose and enjoy life to its fullest before a season of Lent and more serious life begins again. People dress in costumes and forget their everyday worries for a few days of partying and celebrating.
Officially, Karneval kicks off in Germany on November 11th at 11 minutes and 11 seconds. Work comes to a stop on this day as everyone is out in the streets. Parties and special events continue to happen throughout the months, but the real celebrations don’t start until the week prior to Ash Wednesday. Thursday, known as Weiberfastnacht (women’s karneval), is the first day of celebrating in February. On this day women take back the city! Men dress up with ties that the women cut off throughout the day as a symbol of their power. They are also allowed to kiss anyone they want, so you will hear the men calling out “Bützje! Bützje!” meaning “Kiss me! Kiss me!” If the woman decides, she then may give him a playful kiss on the cheeks. The culmination comes on Monday, or Rosenmontag, where many cities have large parades and street parties.
Karneval in Cologne is especially famous throughout Germany. Thousands travel to Cologne during the week to celebrate and to see the parade on Rosenmontag. The parade is so large that some floats finish their tour before the others even get started on the trail! If you can find a good spot amongst the millions of spectators, you can expect to be showered in candy, flowers, and other special items thrown by the different Karneval clubs as they pass by. It’s estimated that in Cologne, over two tons of candy is thrown out to the crowds!
The students and professors at the AIB definitely didn’t want to miss all the fun! On Thursday morning, we all got in our costumes and headed out to watch the parade across the Rhine in Beuel. Despite the freezing temperatures, everyone managed to have a great time and leave with more candy than they knew what to do with! By the end of the day, the men’s ties were a lot shorter, the women’s lipstick was all gone, and everyone was happy to be celebrating such a fun German tradition! No one wanted the fun to end.
But here we are on Tuesday. Real life strikes again. No more costumes, no more parades. Time to settle down and get back to work. But before we do that, let’s have one last Karneval cheer!
For the AIB! ALAAF!
For study-abroad students! ALAAF!
For Germany! ALAAF!
Karneval, we’ll see you back in November!
Written by Abbey Nelson
