Viescheid/ A party WHEN the COWS come home!

                                                      

   I've often heard the expression "we'll party until the cows come home." 

 I never really gave the expression much thought.  Perhaps VIESCHIED is what the person who coined the phrase meant.

Mac and I attended Viescheid in the small village of Seeg in Bavaria this weekend. Viescheid is a festival where the cows return to their village from the high mountain pastures in the alps.  Here they were attended to by their herders for the summer.

I guess the farmers could have a party until the "cows came home"  in September

because the herders cared for them in summer allowing a little more free time for the hard working farmers.

 

People line the streets to watch this celebrations as

"the cows come home."

In Seeg we strained our ears and knew that the cows were just around the corner as we heard the Oompah band  escorting them into the village atop a wagon.

Here are the herders escorting the lead cows.

Notice their hats with the fresh picked alpine flowers.

The lead cows have elaborate headdresses adorned with their own alpine flowers.

Here's Mac with Mahja, one of the lead cows.  He asked how a lead cow was picked and was told by a herder.  "We pick the best behaved cows to be the lead cows."

Apparently, a lead cow must not be too skittish or the herd will follow suit.

The sound was amazing as the cows rushed by with their bells

sounding, some deep gongs and some smaller tinkling high bells.

I was relieved to see no cow came down with a black cape which means it's herder died during the summer.  We were at one Viescheid where this very sad thing had occurred.

 

The really large bells are too heavy for the cows to wear all the time.

They are just for show when they come home.  However; the cows do wear smaller bells in the mountains. The herders need to be able to locate the cows and can tell which cow is where by the sound of their bells. If you have ever hiked in the alps, you'll understand why this is necessary.

These adorable little German girls brought up the rear on their ponies.

 

The cows are herded into a holding pen where the large bells are removed and farmers come to claim their cows and take them home.

 

Every place you look, you see the lovely lederhosen and dirndls.

I asked one little girl what she liked best about Viescheid and she told me,

"Getting to dress up in my best dirndl."

Now it's time for the party to really get started.

A folk band played.

The waitresses were busy bringing beer as the larger brass band played.

 

The cooks were busy cooking "fest food"

Whilst all the people busied themselves eating the food.

What a party it was!

The tent smelled of sauerkraut, wursts and beer.

The music was fantastic as we munched our way through lunch.

How cute are these two?

Mac and I had a wonderful time at Viescheid.

We thought this picture told it best as the Germans wandered home with even the smallest thinking what a lovely day it was!

Mac says, "Prost!"

If you'd like to attend a Viescheid in September go to

http://www.portal-allgaeu.de/almabtrieb-viehscheid-termin-2010.html

Zeppelin Museum/Hindenburg/Friedrichshafen

 Mac and I saw this craft flying over Lake Constance and we became intrigued.

Why was a blimp over the lake on a regular basis?

Investigating a bit further, we found that there is a Zeppelin Museum in Friedrichshafen with reproductions of some of the Hindenburg's rooms, as well as a company who gives zeppelin rides.

We were very keen to go and explore this museum.

We set out last weekend to explore. It's a great day trip.

Here we learned that the Hindenburg was nearly as long as the Titanic. 803.8 feet long, the construction of this zeppelin was started in Friedrichshafen in 1931 and completed in 1936.

Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin, originally built these dirigibles in Germany.

Mac being an ex-air force man was interested in the construction and military applications of the

zeppelins. He learned that starting in 1914 that zeppelins made over 50 raids on London to drop bombs. He also learned that the reason hydrogen was used in the Hindenburg was because the USA had the largest natural supply of helium and were not going to give it out to Germany due to how things were going with Hitler's government.

Here is the observation deck with the reconstruction of the bank of windows many of the passengers jumped from.

I found a great blog called Faces of the Hindenburg.blogspot.com with

biographical info and pictures of the passengers and crew of this fateful flight.

So, I was all about seeing this re-creation and imaging what these people saw and did on the airship.

As we climbed the gangway, the first room we encountered was a cabin made up to sleep for the night.

The sink in the cabin.  Toilets were not here, but below on B deck.

Our commentary said this was how the cabin was during the day. Note the upper berth folded away.

Those stewards must have worked pretty hard during the trip.

Reproduction of the passenger lounge. Here is the actual art and what the passengers saw on the trip. A light weight grand piano stood in the corner the first year of flight but was removed because of weight considerations.

Just beyond this lounge is the

is the writing room where passengers could write letters or read.

There was also a dining room and smoking room (I KNOW...but lots of people did smoke back then!)

but they had not replicated them.  You can find many pictures of them on the Internet if you are interested.

This picture is a bit difficult to see but it is a mock up of the lounge and writing room in the front and behind you will see how the cabins are laid out.

Here's a copy of one of the menu's from the Hindenburg.

Here is the china that the passengers ate from during their trip.

There is a good video of the Hindenburg's maiden flight on YouTube if this article has made you curious.

I had a wonderful day satisfying my curiosity about the Hindenburg.

Mac gives it a thumbs up and says to tell you, "You can take a ride in a zeppelin over Lake Constance if you contact the Deutsche Zeppelin-Reederei.  Be prepared to spend at least 500 dollars per person though!"

Insel Mainau/The Island of Flowers in Lake Constance

I have been wanting to make a trip back to Insel Mainau since we went with my parents about 11 years ago.

Situated in Lake Constance, it is a must see.

http://www.mainau.de/

We took the boat from Meersburg and headed out to the island. 

 I was on a mission because the dahlias were in bloom and I LOVE dahlias.

This island is the life work of Count Lennart, the son of Prince Wilhelm of Sweden and Maria Pavlovna, Grand Duchess of Russia.  Today the fifth generation of his family manages Mainau.

The peacock made of flowers is one of my favorite sights on Mainau.

A gardener's paradise, there is truly something here for everyone.

There is a Mediterranean Terrace with amazing views.

You'll happen upon enchanting fountains

 and don't forget to visit the butterfly house.

They have fun exhibits for the children of all ages.  Here is Mac trying to figure out how they got these trees to grow upside down.  I wanted to show you so much more but the battery in my camera died.  You will just have to take it from me this place is worth a visit in any season.  Do check out their website.

Mac and Jaxson had a wonderful day.  Here they are smelling what is wafting from the tube to see if they could guess what the scent was.

I believe this one was rose.

Mac gives it two thumbs up and says to tell you, "They have fantastic playgrounds for children, but Mimi wouldn't let me on them."

Well, Mac, we didn't have any children with us...........but next time how about we bring one of the grandsons?

German Weddings/How they differ from American Weddings

Mac and I have now attended two German weddings. We thought you might like to know what a few of the differences are from our culture. The most startling difference was to discover that

a minister or priest can't legally marry a couple. There is an official service performed by a justice of the peace at the town registry office. It's attended by the bride and groom's parents and a few close friends.

Some of our friends had that ceremony 2 weeks before the actually wedding and some a few days before.

The wedding ceremony in the church differs because the minister walks in ahead of the bride and groom down the aisle and the bride and groom walk behind him.

The bride and groom walk into the church together. 

 My German friends explained that there is no need to "give the bride away" as in our culture because technically they are legally married before the church ceremony.

The bridesmaids do not stand up with the couple in the church but are dressed

to be "the wedding party" at the reception.

In Germany, everyone you know may attended the wedding and are served champagne, champagne and orange juice or just OJ if you don't drink. I find this a lovely  tradition because often budgets hinder who can be invited to the reception. This way all your friends and acquaintances can be part of the special day.

At this wedding a German Oompah band played for the guests as they sipped their champagne.  When they finished playing they lined up and congratulated the bride and groom. The receiving line does take longer than in America but, it's wonderful that all who want to be part of your special day and see the ceremony can do just that.

This couple gave all of their wedding guests balloons and the photographer (and me) snapped away.

Then on cue they all let them go.

I did find a site that said Latex balloons are BIODEGRADABLE, so I felt better.

Now on to my favorite subject.  The car the bride arrives in and the bride and groom leave in for the reception is very important. I LOVE the idea of fresh flowers decorating the car.

The choices are amazing.

So pretty!

Elegant!

Or fun!

Like I say, it's all about individual taste.

If you get invited to a German wedding, go and enjoy yourselves.

We sure did!