Fasching - Germany's Mardi Gras

Fat Tuesday. Mardi Gras. Carnival.  What ever you call that glorious day before Lent begins where you indulge in those things you're going to give up for the next 40 days.

Most Americans recognize it from New Orleans, because drunk co-eds flashing strangers to get cheap plastic beads is really the reason for the season.  It's tacky, it's totally gauche, and for some reason New Orleans seems to celebrate it year round.

In Germany, things are done a little more differently.  The whole Fat Tuesday thing, unlike America's Mardi Gras revels, actually still does have a basis in history and religion. 

Who's ready for the ultra-condensed version of religious history in Germay?!  

Up until the 1500s, the states and kingdoms of present day Germany were Catholic.  Then this dude named Martin Luther decided the system wasn't so cool and nailed some theses to a door.  The stuff hit the proverbial fan and there were lots of religious wars.  This was bad news for Europe and its already formed countries.  England turned Protestant (except for regular Ireland), France and Italy stayed Catholic, and Denmark and up became Protestant. Russia and Ottoman Empire laughed at everyone because they were Orthodox and too cool for that.

Germany was a different story, because Germany wasn't really a country.  Instead it was all these little states and kingdoms spread out.  Eventually, they would form Prussia and the Austrian-Hungarian Empire, but let's not get ahead of ourselves.  While the other countries were trying to deal...

Too soon?

...Germans were stabbing each other all over the place.  So eventually they got sick and tired of everyone dying and came up this brilliant solution: let the princes of each area pick which religion the people there would practice.  Needless to say, this became a huge political decision (not to mention the fact that it didn't really address the problem of people killing each other).  Most of Germany became Protestant and still is to this day.  And some little places in the southwest Alb mountains stayed Catholic.

Which brings us back to Fasching.  The still Catholic parts of Germany celebrated the last days of freedom before Lent by just well...going crazy. Wearing wooden masks based on the gargoyles of the churches, faces of witches and scary animals, revelers drove out demons and welcomed Lent.  

Not be outdone, the Northern Protestant parts of Germany developed their own tradition called Carnival.  When Napoleon invaded from Catholic France, Carnival fools used the that time of the year to protest their oppression without punishment. In fact, even today many political speeches and parodies of political speeches are given in Cologne (Köln, for you German lovers out there).   One of the most popular costume is that of the Funkenmariechen, which is Germany making fun (surprise!) of the French military costumes.

In your face, France!

During the Cold War, the Northern tradition of Carnival became a national thing for West Germany and the main cities to go to were Bonn (the capital of West Germany) and of course, Cologne.  After the Berlin Wall fell and Germany became whole again, the Germans who were deprived of a reason to party finally got it and Carnival came to Berlin.  Today, the places to party for Carnival are Berlin and Cologne.

But the Southwest corner of Germany forgoes that silliness and still does their own Fasching thing.  Now, yes, people still dress up in funny costumes and go to Fasching parties.

But here at this blog, we are above that.

Yeah, right.
Emily (as a cowgirl) and your Humble Blogger
(as a 1920s flapper who met up with Katy Perry's hair stylist)

Yikes!

We're a good looking bunch!

Our German friend Steffi invited us to this fun Fasching party with her.  The music was similar to the Stuttgarter Volksfest - lots of well-known German drinking songs and covers of pop classics.

The costumes were the coolest part.  Steffi was dressed up from the Grimm's fairy tale, the Star Taler, in a cute black dress covered in stars.  Our other German friend, Clara, was one of the blue birds from Angry Birds. It was super clever and funny. The crowd in the party was an eclectic bunch - there even was a guy dressed up this super scary tiger suit!  We all had a great time!

Silly costumes aside, we got a real Fasching experience during a parade in Rottenburg.  The parade featured different costumed groups from towns around the area.  Most of the traditional costumes feature wooden masks that are hand carved and passed down through the years.  Some of the oldest masks are valued up to 3,000 Euros!

A little boy waiting for the parade,
dressed up as the Frog Prince.
Too cute!

A "witch" stops to chat with his/her friends
before the parade starts.

These Fasching "fools" are called Narren.  In parades they are allowed into interact with the viewers - throwing out candy or heaving glitter/confetti onto the crowd.  The Narren are allowed to prank the viewers as well.  If you're wearing shoes with laces, be prepared for them to untie the laces and take them! Young women, especially if they are attractive or blonde, may be snatched up and carried for a couple of yards or thrown into hay bins and toted a long for a bit.  The Narren at this parade found a man with a bald spot and drew a flower on his head.  Some of the groups of Narren carry sticks that have an a balloon tied to it and smack people in the crowd with it.  Except it's no balloon - it's an inflated pig's bladder. Disgusting!

There were many groups of witches in the parade.

This girl got snatched and confetti'd

Poor thing.

We got glitter-cannon'd too.

I hate clowns.

Like any good parade, this one featured many bands too!

Even kids are part of the parade groups!

I think these are "bears"?

Ew.

Okay, that's cute.

The stuff of nightmares.

Seriously.

The witches build a pyramid.

A lot of the costumes are based on local things - like church gargoyles, farming animals, and even vineyard leaves.  At this point, you're probably wondering, what's with the bells?

Despite being super heavy and totally awkward, the parade walkers jump around with them, in time, and just keep marching.  The loud noises are supposed to scare away demons.  Or something like that.

So that's Fasching!

Next up: Paris!

Entertainment Weekly: Part II - Oscar Contenders

Unfortunately for this post, time got the better of me and the Academy Awards happened while I tried to sleep, folded up like a lawn chair, on a night bus back to Tübingen from Paris.

But maybe you're not a huge fan of the Academy and instead want to hear the opinion of an unqualified 21 year old.

Clint Eastwood approves this post.

Of course you do!

Before I left for Paris, I had the pleasure of seeing two the nominees for Best Picture (As a opposed to last year when I saw none of them. Go me!).  Jake had wound up with an English copy of The Help and luckily for me, I live right across the street from a small movie theater called Museum, which was showing The Artist.

I guess I'll tackle The Help first.

Now, in case you've been living under a rock, the book by Kathryn Stockett was published quietly in 2009 and out of nowhere became that book that everyone was reading (much like Girl With the Dragon Tattoo or even Twilight (much as I hate to admit it)).  I was in the middle of reading it last summer before I came to Germany and I was torn between taking it or One Day on the plane.  I ended up taking One Day, which is also excellent, but I plan on reading the book when I get home.  Because I'm one of those people who want to know if the book is better than the movie. (Answer: it usually is.)

Curiosity got the better of me and I ended up watching the movie before I read the book. Gasp!  Now beyond the rumors that the book's plot was fantastic and moving, I must admit I may have seen the movie for other more selfish reasons....like my love of costumes (by the way, the new Jane Eyre was robbed of the Costume Design Oscar. Did you see those bonnets?!) and my love for the rising star Emma Stone. I think she's an amazing actress with wonderful facial expressions. (If you're looking for witty teen comedy that's actually smart, check out Emma Stone in Easy A, one of my favorite movies) Plus, I just want to steal her red hair.

Check out some of the gorgeous costumes in the movie:

Octavia Spencer (as Minny) and Viola Davis (as Aibileen) play
"the help" who raise white children in the Deep South.
Spencer's Oscar for Best Supporting Actress was truly well deserved!

Jessica Chastain as Celia Foote, the
incompetent, but sweet new wife of Jackson's
richest bachelor.

The movie afforded glimpses into the trapped lives of
both African American workers and white women
in the 1960s.

Bryce Dallas Howard as the evil Hilly, who might be
one of the best female villains in cinema.

And finally, Emma Stone as Skeeter, the sassy wannabe
journalist.
Gah. She is just fantastic. 

Anyway, watch the trailer.

On the surface and judging by the trailer alone it would be simple to dismiss this movie as another film that shows the courage needed to overcome racism in the Deep South in the 1960s.  And part of that is true.  But the movie was truly moving, equal parts funny, sad, and infuriating.  I cried at a couple of parts in the movie (though that really means nothing, I cried at March of the Penguins). Of the heroic main protagonists, I think every viewer will be able to find someone to sympathize with.  My only compliant with the movie was actually the ending, which I felt seemed almost unfinished.  But other than that, it was a great movie with a lot of heart, amazing scenes and acting, plus some wonderful cinematography and costumes. I'd definitely recommend it.  But bring some tissues.

Now, if you've been on my blog long enough, you probably know that this humble blogger has a soft spot for old, black and white movies.  The classics are my cup of tea and I could literally sit and watch TCM for hours, even through the not-so-great old movies. So when I heard the Oscar buzz around a silent film called The Artist, I was ready to go and see it.  Luckily, Emily and I share a passion for old movies so we woke up super early over one weekend and caught a morning matinee at the movie theater (kino, if you want to be all German).

This movie is a must see for anyone who loves old Hollywood or who revels in cinematography.  But even if you don't like old movies or you don't know anything about how a camera works, let alone what counts as cinematography, YOU SHOULD SEE THIS MOVIE.

Instead of raving about it like I want to, I'll just leave the trailer here and let you decide for yourself if you should see it.

Just a couple of warnings for the movie - yep, it's a silent movie and you do have to read a couple of lines. (I didn't go the movies to read?! WHY?!) Most importantly, you have to actually watch the movie and interpret the scenes and the acting for yourself.  Luckily, The Artist's acting and script is perfect so any audience member can follow along.  

Plus, it features this adorable dog named Uggie, who won an award at Cannes for acting. (I am not making this up.)

So do yourself a favor and go see it.  Or least go see it so you can talk about it at family gatherings or at work so you don't look like an idiot who hasn't seen the Best Picture winner for the year.

Sneak Peek!

Hello my lovely followers! It is I, your humble blogger, alive and well after our vacation in Paris.  While I try to unpack and then repack for "Hannah and Will's Excellent Adventure" in London, I'm going to give you guys a sneak peek into the many posts that will come this week.

- Finishing up my movie post (untimely now since the Oscars are over, but oh well)

- Fasching Parade

- Disneyland Paris

- Paris (the real deal)

- Hannah's (and Simba's) Top Ten Travel Tips!

Get excited!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Dear followers,

Thanks for being so awesome, I love each and every one of you. Even you, creepy spam website from Russia.  Even you.

That's not me - obviously - but Leighton Meester is 

expressing the same sentiment I want to express. 

So...yeah...

Roses Are Red
Violets Are Blue
I'm not very creative,
So here are some Valentine's Day pictures for you!

It finally started to snow here so I charged up the camera and faced Single's Awareness Day by taking lots of photos of Tübingen!  Emily and Simba (yes, occasionally he gets to leave the house) came with me!

A shot from the Neckar Bridge.

Earlier in the week, the Neckar river was frozen solid and we were able to walk out on it. Today was not our day and the ice was starting to melt!

Pigeons (the rats of the air) have no fear of the cold.

People feeding the pigeons.

"Caution!!! Don't walk on the ice! Danger to life!"
Lots of Love,
The City of Tübingen

Hey there Emily!

It was cold, but not cold enough to not have a couple of photoshoots!

Rawr! Simba attacks from above.

What a cutie.
Simba, not yours truly.
I'm not that vain.

Okay, maybe I am.

Meanwhile, back at home, I broke out the crafting to give Simba a seasonally appropriate mane.

That is Scotch Tape (smuggled over my parents)
in action right there.
Fast fact: German tape is all kinds of terrible.

Have a great Valentine's Day everyone! Alles Liebe zum Valetinstag!

Lots of Love,
Your Humble Blogger and Simba

Entertainment Weekly: Part I - Alles auf Deutsch

Between finals week, saying goodbye to friends from our Deutsch Kompakt course, and just life in general, I haven't had much time to travel.  Fortunately, there is always some sort of event or show going on in Tübingen or Stuttgart! There is really nothing like the stress of finals week to be an incentive to procrastinate! So here's the first part of a  round-up of the shows and movies I've gotten to see in the past month.

Rebecca: The Musical

Now as some of you may know, I love a good murder.  A good murder story, that is!  One of my favorite murder mysteries is not really a murder mystery at all, but the romantic suspense novel Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier.  Even if you haven't read the book (and you should, because it's good), you probably know the opening line: "Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again".  The novel was released in 1938 and became an instant bestseller.  

Weirdly enough, the novel was used in WWII by the Germans as code source - the whole numbers refer to single words on the page thing. Thanks Wikipedia!

Anyway, it was recently adapted in 2006 into a German musical (okay it premiered in Austria, but the whole thing is sung/spoken in German).  I find this weird for many reasons: a) because it's a novel about British people, b) I don't even know how popular the novel is in English, let alone in German, and c) it's a pretty crazy idea to make a musical out of it.   

Yes, it's true that that in 1940 Alfred Hitchcock made the Oscar winning movie version out of it with Laurence Olivier.  (Actually, Hitchcock made 3 movies from her stories: Rebecca, Jamaica Inn, and The Birds)

This trailer makes it look so tame.

Look at that face.
I mean just look at that face.

But here's the thing, the plot of the book is way better suited for a movie than a musical.  Movies are allowed to be scary.  Musicals require singing and dancing a level of camp that is really not suited for a gothic story.  Okay, yes, Phantom of the Opera (my favorite musical of all time) is all creepy and gothic, but it has a central love story that keeps the plot going...And some people really hate it and think it's campy (to each their own, I suppose).

Making Rebecca into a musical is almost like taking a episode of Law and Order and putting musical numbers to it.  For those of you playing along at home, here's a basic run-down of the plot:  (If you don't want to be spoiled, just skip this giant paragraph)

An unnamed narrator "I" works at the paid companion (read: personal slave) for an American lady.  They're vacationing in the French Rivera when they run into Maxim de Winter (awesome name, no?), a newly widowed wealthy Englishman. There are all kinds of rumors swirling around about his late wife, Rebecca, who drowned at sea. "I" falls in love with Maxim, even though he's much older than she is and broods a lot.  Faced with the choice of being this annoying lady's footstool for the rest of her life or the rich wife of an English guy, "I" makes a logical choice and marries Maxim.  They moved to his sea-side estate Manderley in Cornwall and "I" tries to be a good wife. Unfortunately, the creepy housekeeper Mrs. Danvers is constantly reminding the narrator of how much more awesome the late Mrs. Rebecca de Winter was.  "I" feels insecure and creeped out by everyone there.  She also discovers that her new husband has a lot of issues - mostly angst (the American idea of the word, not the German one).  Trying to feel less useless, "I" decides to throw a costume ball at Manderley and Mrs. Danvers tricks her into a classic fashion faux pas - "I" ends up wearing the same gown Rebecca wore before she died. GASP!  Maxim freaks out and the narrator worries that he doesn't love her, but is instead still in love with Rebecca.  Mrs. Danvers, being a sneaky bitch, tries to convince the narrator to commit suicide off the balcony in Rebecca's room.  Right before the narrator is about to jump, flares go off and it turns out that Rebecca's boat and her body has turned up because of a massive storm.  Enter: court room drama! It turns out that Maxim hated Rebecca, who was a manipulative psychopath who also apparently liked to get it on with her cousin (eww).  He had confronted her about her affairs and general evilness one night on her boat - she revealed that she might be pregnant and taunted him about it being not his child - and he shot her.  And then covered up the murder by sinking her boat in the middle of the ocean. Hurray for the good guy!  The law is about to come down on Maxim for murder, since he did, well shoot her, when it is revealed that Rebecca played Maxim and framed him for murder beyond the grave, what with her being evil and all.  Rebecca actually had cancer, but she had a fear of dying weak so she got Maxim to kill her while also framing him. Nice. Absolved of the murder, Maxim and "I" celebrate their new life together in Mander - oh wait, no. The crazy Mrs. Danvers kills herself by burning their house down.  THE END!


Yep, it's crazy.


Needless to say, I was skeptical of seeing a musical version of the story.  But it actually turned out to be really awesome!  The music wasn't spectacular - I was really distracted by the fact they kept saying Mander-lay when it's pronounced Mander-leigh - but the actors were fantastic. The costumes were wonderfully 1930/40s.  The lead actress looked a lot like Romola Garai (yeah, I don't know how to pronounce it either) who is one of my favorite actresses. She was Emma in the newest miniseries of Emma and it was perfection.

This is a still from the movie Glorious 39
(which I haven't seen yet) but it's set around
the same time period as Rebecca.

The lead actor was styled after Laurence Olivier's controlled performance of Maxim, sans mustache.

He could brood like no one's business

Undoubtedly, the musical was influenced by Hitchcock's film. This was most evident in the role of Mrs. Danvers.  In book, she's just creepy.  Hitchcock ramped up the creepiness by including this vibe of sycophantic attraction between Mrs. Danvers and the late Rebecca. I mean, just look at the still from the scene where Mrs. Danvers tries to get the narrator to jump. It's the stuff of nightmares.

EEEK.

Here's a clip from the musical with Mrs. Danvers.  And because the internet is a wonderful place, someone put English subtitles on the song so you can get the full gist of the creepiness.

The musical used these amazing rotating sets, including a massive staircase, as well as projection technology which allowed for really cool 3D and fog effects.  By the far, the best scene was the epic ending where Mrs. Danvers burns down Manderley.  The set rotates as the character of Mrs. Danvers goes up the staircase lighting each step behind her on fire.  And I mean, real fire! In the end, there is smoke and a huge chandelier crash. 

Sweet, sweet destruction.

It was a pretty amazing experience, but English speakers don't hold your breath.  Apparently, both British and American Broadway producers have qualms about investing in giant rotating sets that light themselves on fire. The funding for two Broadway shows have fallen through already.  I guess if you want to see it, you'll have to come to Germany!  If you're feeling cheap, pop a copy of the movie into your Dvd player.  Or if you're really ambitious, snuggle down for a creepy read.

Rubbeldiekatz

Rachel, Emily, and I were feeling down and we all wanted to see a German movie. Of course, long experience with foreign movies (Rachel, remember Die Krieger und die Kaiserin?!) has taught us that their dramas are completely confusing and occasionally mentally scarring and their comedies are not necessarily funny.  It might have something to do with how humor translates or it just might be a bad movie.  The jury is still out on that one.  We went into the movie Rubbeldiekatz (which roughly translate into "Scratch the Cat") with some serious reservations and we weren't holding our breath.

Rubbeldiekatz is a little like the German version of Tootsie - Actor Alex Honk (played by Matthias Schweighöfer) can't find a job so he dresses as a woman to land a role in American movie set in Nazi Germany (the movie pokes fun at how Americans only come to Germany to film Nazi movies).  Meanwhile, the lead actress (played by Alexandra Maria Lara) is depressed after her boyfriend cheats on her and has a distrust of men. I WONDER WHAT HAPPENS?!

Matthias, Matthias as a woman, Alexandra (from left to right)

The movie features some really funny jokes and occasionally some very crude sexual humor, but overall, it was actually pretty cute.  The German was easy enough to understand (no one spoke in a dialect!) and we understood 98% of the movie! Go us! Even some German word-play puns were understandable.

I vastly preferred it to Keinohrhasen ("The Rabbit Without Ears") which I thought was really terrible and not romantic at all.  Also apparently, the Germans have a predilection with cramming words together to make titles. Weird.

Next up in Part II: It's Oscar Season! The Help and The Artist