The past five days I've spent dancing and singing to Schlagers alongside some of my favorite felines, reptiles, marsupials, pirates, strawberries, hippies, royalty, male nuns, and clowns. It's Karneval time, which is kind of like Halloween, but Karneval is easily on a whole other, much more magnificent level. Alaaf! Aachen! Alaaf! Karneval! Aalaaf!
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| Oh, just chilling with Aachen royalty. |
The festivities really kicked off Thursday, also known as Weiberfastnacht, which means "washwomen's carnival" and originated back in the olden days when it was considered the one day of the year that women had the power. As tradition, women cut off mens' ties on this day. It's also called Fettdonnerstag (not to be confused with Fat Tuesday/Mardi Gras). And of course, since we had no school Thursday and Friday in order to properly observe Karneval, I made sure to be downtown by 11:11 in the morning Thursday-- when the party starts.
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| "Wir feiern die ganze Nacht!" -Die Artzen |
My buddy Isabella and I headed over to a club called Starfish, which has hosted a pretty hopping Fettdonnerstag for the past five years. This year definitely didn't disappoint. We got to see Die Artzen! They're the Disco Pogo/Das Geht Ab guys and are crazy, yet enjoyable, entertainment. When I was a high school freshman rocking out to their music in my bedroom or on the bus with my friend Natalia, I would never have believed that I'd be seeing them live in just a few years. Dreams do come true...
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| "Big ol' explosion-- some, like, confetti comes down." -Dewey Finn |
Friday I enjoyed a different dynamic by celebrating at the Dorfabend in the Walheim tent out in my corner of the Aachen woods. Those first two nights I went out dressed as Prinzessin Lillifee (directly translates to "Princess Lily Fairy"), a German children's book character. Think Angelina Ballerina aesthetic meets Strawberry Shortcake audience with a Barbie-level marketing strategy and budget.
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| I finally got an opportunity to let my natural, California-blonde locks loose. |
And like any good Rheinlander, I had a second costume ready for the remainder of Karneval-- the classic cat/lion getup. That was my attire for a party in the neighboring town Eschweiler, where I got to enjoy even more Helene Fischer and other Schlagers performed live. This music would never be on my iPod, but from now on I'll have a special, little Karnevalschatz in my heart. Whenever I hear Atemlos durch die Nacht or Geh mal Bier holen or Scheiss drauf!, I'll be sent back to the times I sang along to all these ridiculous songs with people in full body alligator and kangaroo suits.
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| They incorporated a bit of Michael Jackson into their performance. |
To wrap up the Karneval experience, I attended both of the major Aachen parades-- the Kinderzug Sunday and the Rosenmontagszug Monday. At the children's parade I definitely felt like a child again. I mean, I was dressed like a cat-thing, scrambling around in the gutter to collect all the candy being thrown from the floats, and dancing to the Mahna Mahna Muppet song being blasted at one point during the afternoon.
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| My haul from the Kinderzug. |
The Rosenmontagszug was even better than the kid's one. There were over 150 floats (compared to the 102 in the Kinderzug), even more fife and drum groups marching by, and simply more people. Something I learned very quickly was when to yell "Alaaf!" It's a tradition out of Köln and whenever someone with a microphone or loud voice yells something, for example "Aachen!" everyone should yell back "Alaaf!" which sort of means "everything's out of the way." Honestly, you could just be yelling "Holla!" or "Woooohooo!" back and people would dig it, but "Alaaf!" is the correct response in Aachen.
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| Alaaf!-ing with some buddies from school. |
The reason for Karneval in the first place dates back to the 1800s and Napoleon's time. Karneval was this short chunk of time during the year when the peasants could really go wild, feast, and make fun of the authority figures in their lives (ie: princes and company). Tradition is apparent during all of Karneval through all the fife and drum bands, dudes wearing the chicest Prussian trends (circa 1865 complete with those silly, white wigs), and the whole Karnevalsprinz dealio.
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| Like probably 55% of the floats, this one was pulled by a tractor. |
Those living along the parade route got pretty creative during the Rosenmontagszug. If they were situated right, for example the second or third stories, the people on the floats could gently toss the candy and other goodies right into their living rooms. Pretty convenient, right? Others even went, uh, "fishing" for treats...
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| Suddenly we looked up and there were umbrellas turned upside-down being lowered from apartment windows! |
All in all, Karneval was an unexpectedly wonderful experience. Shout out to my host family for making sure I got the most out of my first Karneval by staying in Aachen this year! It was everything I'd wished for, and honestly a lot I hadn't hoped for because this five-day-long party can't really be envisioned or even properly described. It has to be lived.
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| Look what fell from the sky! |
Now, thanks to Karneval I have way too many treats collected, a Brazilian flag, some beautiful roses, two costumes, and some new song lyrics carved into my brain. However, the camaraderie and bonding with my friends and town in general during this big festival is what I'll be taking with me. Without the people, Karneval would be nothing. It's something meant to be experienced with your right arm linked in the arm of a cowboy and your other linked with that of a grandma dressed like a literal dinosaur. Alaaf!