Bavarian Grill - Plano, Texas

The correct answer for the last quiz question: May Day!
and our winner gave us permission to share her entire answer with you!

In the German-speaking countries the first day of May is a national holiday, similar to Labor Day in the United States. It is the International Workers' Day - Tag der Arbeit, when workers gather for rallies and speeches, to collectively express their unity. However, it is more than that. To this day a variety of May festivals abounds. May was a joyous time in the ancient calendar. The fairies (pagan spirits), the rulers of May, would help Earth to clad herself once more in green. In farming areas, spring, summer and the beginning of autumn were filled with work--interrupted only by the midsummer celebrations. May Day was very much anticipated, and weather rules abound: "Mairegen bringt Segen" (Rain in May brings blessings). It was the day when in some areas the cattle were taken out to pasture for the first time. A part of the celebrations are ceremonial plantings of seedlings or young trees. The Maypole is put up and there are dances around it. There may be a May play or a May Queen contest. In some areas, a whole village may gather around a Maypole. Everybody holds hands, dances, drinks, and is happy not to have to be at work for a day. There may be a merry procession to Maypole or dance hall, where the May Queen ceremonially declares winter defeated and opens the dance. The Maypole and the dance around it is a major symbol of spring's reawakening of fruitfulness.
May was known as the "Wonnemond," the month of lovers where a young man's fancy would turn to love. In May the largest number of weddings take place. Over time the Maibaum (May-tree) lost its original meaning, that of celebrating a wedding. In days gone by, young unmarried men of the village would organize and sponsor parties, dances and celebrations, to get the unmarried maidens of the village into the spirit of May. If then a wedding would take place, a tree decorated with colorful streamers and ribbons would be placed in front of the bride's house. The traditional Maypole dance starts with long ribbons attached high up on the pole. Each dancer holds the end of a ribbon. The circle of dancers begins far out from the pole, so the ribbons are kept fairly taut. There should be an even number of dancers, facing alternatively clockwise and counterclockwise. All dancers move in the direction they are facing, passing right shoulders with the next, and so on around to braid the ribbons over-and-under around the pole. Those passing on the inside will have to duck, those passing on the outside raise their ribbons to slide over. In Bavaria May 1 is an especially important day for it is "Unsere Liebe Frau als Schutzfrau Bayerns" (Our Dear Lady as Patron Saint of Bavaria) also called the "Fest Patrona Bavariae". Festivals there have a special Bavarian flavor.
In Bavarian villages, it has been the custom for centuries to cut a tall and straight tree, a day or two before May 1, place it in the middle of the village and decorate it with a wreath of spring flowers and colorful ribbons. One of the traditions is to attempt to steal the Maypole of the neighboring village on the night before, and to hold it for ransom, usually a couple kegs of beer. At the same time villagers had to make sure that their maypole was not stolen by their neighbors. Another Bavarian tradition is the Maibaumkraxeln (Maypole climbing) contest. In many parts of Bavaria guys battle to see who can climb up the shaven and polished tree trunk the fastest, a task made even tougher by soaping down the Maypole, so that climbers only have a good shot if they smear ashes, tree sap or pitch on their hands. The goal is to win the Brezeln und W�rste (pretzels and sausages) that hang atop the pole, and to impress the girls down in the crowd. Beginners climb carefully, gradually and in spurts. Veterans will grab a hold of the tree between hands and feet and climb right up. These are trees, 15 m (46 ft.) high, without branches, no bark, and slick as a grease pan! Kathy


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