Räbeliechtli - Photos!

Today I am flying across the ocean to our new life in Australia... but I have not abandoned you yet! Here are some of the best shots from the Räbeliechtli - which MrsMac explained via her GuestPost a few weeks ago. All of these lanterns are made from turnips!

It was an amazing event, despite the rainy weather. The parade went about an hour and half. I would advise getting there early as the streets fill with people quickly and you want to ensure you get a good spot to take in the action but not be taken out by a float - some of them are very wide!!!  Just grab something yummy from one of the many street vendors and find your spot.

Before or after the parade, make sure you walk around the neighborhoods as well, because all of the houses and side-streets are also decorated with the turnip lanterns, making for a very magical display indeed. It's highly recommend that you take this in next year - the date is set for Saturday the 13th of November, 2010 in Richterswil. Thanks again to MrsMac for sharing this traditional event with Swisstory readers. Be sure to check out her blog, Swiss Family Mac.

Here is a slideshow with all of my best shots. . . see if you can guess what some of the floats are!

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Guest Post: Räbeliechtli

by MrsMac

Last Saturday my husband and daughter attended our town's Räbeliechtli.  It's a parade celebrating turnips.  Kind of.  Basically, the kids parade through the town carrying hollowed out and decorated turnip lanterns with floats made out of turnip lanterns.

We were lucky that a friend of ours made the lantern above for Marion. 

I'll be perfectly honest and tell you all that I have tried my hardest to find an explanation behind Räbeliechtli and have come up with nada.  I've googled, I've questioned neighbors... nothing. 

But that doesn't stop us from enjoying it!  Our town's parade was fairly small but all the kids got involved.

 Pictures above by MrsMac

However, this Saturday night, Richterswil is having a fair, Räbechilbi, before their Räbeliechtli.  The whole town is lit with lanterns to celebrate.

The Richterswil Räbeliechtli is the largest turnip (or sugar beet) parade in the world, according to the Guinness Book of World Records.  And from the pictures I've seen online... 

Picture above from myswitzerland.com

... it looks gorgeous!

The festivities start at 3 pm and the parade at 6:30 pm,  Maybe we'll see you there!

Guest blogger bio: MrsMac's is an American expat in Switzerland. She enjoys exploring life in a different country with a bossy toddler and sweet little baby in tow. She writes about her adventures abroad in Switzerland on her blog,  Swiss Family Mac. 

Note from Swisstory: I am really excited about this and hoping Jace wants to check out some turnip-o-lanterns with me. I did find some more information about this interesting holiday, but in German only... and more here.. After reading this, I found out that this is a kind of Thanksgiving, as in the middle-ages turnips were the modern day potatoes, so the townspeople gave thanks for the bounty and celebrated the harvest each fall. Now it is just another tourist event - the residents of Richterswil are REQUIRED to decorate their homes during the big event with turnip lanterns - and over 25 TONS of turnip are grown in the Zurich area each year for this event alone. WOAH. Thanks, MrsMac for sharing this cool tradition. It is the first I have heard of it! See you Saturday in Richterswil!

Favorite Holiday in Switzerland: Christmas

Welcome The Spotted Sparrow & World Blog Surf Day Readers! 

My favorite Swiss holiday has to be, without a doubt, Christmas. I am so unbelieveably bummed that we will be in Australia this year for December, so I will miss all the Christmas festivities - but that does not mean that you have to miss out on them!

Naturally, Christmas is an important religious holiday in Switzerland but most of the Swiss partake in the Christmas celebrations in one way or another. At the beginning of December, the Advent begins, in which families count down the days until Christmas, either with an Advent Calendar or an Advent candle, marking the Sunday's until Christmas with a candle for each Sunday (4 candles total). But Santa actually comes long before Christmas Eve! In Switzerland, Santa, or Samiclaus, comes on the 5th of December and kiddies that have been good get some sweets, nuts and mandarins (and probably some toys!) on the 6th. Those that have been bad get a sack full of coal from Schmutzli - the anti Santa. Otherwise, Christmas is very similar in Switzerland compared to the US or Australia - tree (check), gifts (check), lots of food (check)... but the festivities are very special and celebrated by many families.

Last year I committed the entire month of December to Swiss Christmas celebrations and the Advent count down... There is just so much to love  - the Advents candles, the Apfelchuechli mit Vanillesause,  the Zürich Samiklaus Swim, and the Weihnachstpyramide - but my favorite part of the Christmas festivities are the Christmas markets! Here is a list of Swiss Christmas Markets in 2009.

If you time it just right, you can probably hit up at least 4 or 5 Christmas markets, perhaps even some in Germany or France where they are also a big to do.Christmas markets tend to start at the end of November and run through Christmas Eve and sometimes the day after Christmas. Make sure you take some warm mittens and lots of money with you - as you will definitely want to sample some of the Glühwein (to keep you warm of course!) and buy some of the best handicrafts and decorations available.Fröhliche Weihnachten (in October) everyone. Start making those Christmas plans now! Before long, it will be 2010 (wowzers has time gone by!) and you will have to wait another 12 months for Christmas. :)

Now, please check out the Next blog on the World Surf Day Tour - Peterhals in Zürich...

I read this blog often, and know you will enjoy Deb's post. Thanks for stopping by Swisstoryblog and please follow me to get future updates on our adventures in Switzerland.

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This post was written as part of the World Blog Surf Day. You can also follow the World Blog Surf Day on Twitter, thanks to our Twitter reporter Karen. Karen is an American expat blogger last seen in Prague. The Wall Street Journal said, "Her blog makes a fun read for anyone looking for reassurance that change can be a wonderful thing--and also for anyone interested in visiting the Czech Republic." Read Karen's Czech Republic Expat Blog-Empty Next Expat.
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Zürich Archeological Underground Tour

The group at Lindenhof, where our tour started

with the Roman ruins underfoot.

Last Sunday, I organized a little private tour for the Swiss Expat Bloggers with Zürich Tourism. The tour was called 'Archeological Windows' and was a tour of Zürich's archaeological highlights, including the Roman remains under the Lindenhof, the old city walls, and even a medieval sewage system under the Niederdorfstrasse. Unfortunately, this tour is only run on a private basis, but everyone really seemed to enjoy going underneath the city and seeing some of the hidden jewels of Zürich's past, so I would highly recommend going on the tour if you get a chance. Here are a few of the highlights that we saw:

 Medieval painting

Rosemarie, our wonderful guide that got a few extra keys to places not originally included on the tour, as we opted for the longer 3 hour tour, showed us a medieval painting in a former dance hall/entertainment hall. This painting is inside a private apartment in the Niederdorf area and was totally beautiful even today.

Exhibit with the old city walls and

interesting drawings of Zürich in medieval times

Near the city library, we entered a building that has pieces of the old city wall in the basement. It was cool to be under the city and see the hidden jems - old sewer pipes and pottery, too. There were lots of interesting drawings on display as well of how the city used to be set up - and something about deer living inside the moat. Does anyone remember what was up with the deer in this next photo?! Help! :) This deer street is now called Hirschengraben though - get it?! Deer... Hirsch!!! Nice. Anyway, we also looked at this Murerplan a lot - a medieval map of Zürich which shows all the water wheels and how Bahnhofstrasse used to be a cow path. :) (zoomed in version here)

This is just a sign I saw on the tour - the person who this is meant for will recognise it I hope. :)

Medieval Sewers

Another highlight was walking through a tiny, itty bitty door on Niederdorfstrasse, into a medieval sewer. I have to admit - the Zürich Tourism does a great job as all these secret places have great signs and information (underground that is) if you have enough time to read it all. My favorite was an informational sign for the sewer display that said, 'Even in the middle ages, the big question was, 'What do we do with our poo?''... ok it did not say that exactly, but something like that. Oh I loved it. It killed me.

Speaking of which, here is a monk that slipped on some poo and was like, 'Man, I wish we had running water already.' Ok so it did not say that either, but I wish it had! You can see the straw above the loo for wiping back then. Ouch!

Inside the Helmhaus - only enterable by key.

We also went underneate the Helmhaus, the site of Zürich's first church which was built by Karl der Grosse on the site where two of the city's Saints, Felix and Regula, were decapitated, then walked 40 paces up a hill where they then collapsed and were later buried. You can still see a rock down there where the supposed decaptation took place under the Helmhaus!

If you are a history buff like Jace, I am sure you would remember more of the details, but even for a non-history buff like me, it was a fun tour... I did not even mention or show pictures of the Roman baths under the city that we saw or the new stained glass windows open for viewing at the Grossmunster Church... both sites open full time to the public...oh there was so much more. If you also have a post about this trip, please leave me a comment to your blog so I can share your feedback!

Again, thanks to all for coming on the tour and hopefully we can arrange another for those that missed out on the first. If you are interested, leave a comment on the Swiss Expat bloggers network or here.

Archeological Windows Tour - Zürich Tourismus
Website
Private tour run by appointment in your language of choice
Maximum 20 people
+41 44 215 40 88

Also check out the write up on this tour from:

• Amanda  at Queso Suizo
  

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Where to get cow bells in Switzerland

The search was on for these babies... well, sort of...

When my family visited in September, we went on the Swiss Tour to take on all tours... visiting Zermatt, St. Moritz, Stein am Rhein, Rapperswil, Appenzell, you name it. We were all over Switzerland. And naturally, my family wanted to take back something typically Swiss as a souvenier and well - it doesn't get more Swiss than a cow bell... however, being my family, it wasn't just a simple cow bell search. Oh no, actually, we wanted horse bells... ! There were horses all over Zermatt with horse bells, so it should be easy in the land of cow bells to find a few horse bells, right?! (Um... Wrong.)

Dog collars - often available at the same place as cowbells... love it.

You see, my family has grown up with horses their entire life - I somehow missed the horse gene - I love them but I was never really great at riding so the hobby was short lived in my case (sorry Mom and Dad about that trailer you got just months before I decided I was no good at riding!)... In any case, my aunt still has horses and wanted to get a few bells to use or give as gifts. And in the search for horse bells - which we eventually found at the Bürkliplatz flea market, at Bürkliplatz in Zürich on Saturday mornings - we found a lot of interesting places that sold cow bells... the best being this handicraft shop in Appenzell (where the bell straps are actually MADE and you can smell the leather and oils wafting down the street, long before you venture inside).

Just take a trip to Appenzell and on Poststrasse in the main town area this little shop is open from 13:30 pm to answer all your cow bell desires. We did buy some little bells here, although they were for cows, not horses, and you can get a wide array of brass (?) or metal decorations, including dog collars, cowbells, and the decorations used on Appenzeller's suspenders and belts... see the decorations on the dog collars above. Just like those!

I was keen to buy this bell as a souvenier, but for some reason the hundreds if not thousands of francs it cost were a bit out of my budget - plus I doubt I would have made it home with this on the train let alone plane! Nevertheless, I did get a very touristy little bell at one of the other shops in Appenzell. But if you want THE REAL DEAL, this is the place to go:

Kunstgewerbe Dörig (aka your one stop shop for Swiss cow bells)
Poststrasse 6
9050 Appenzell
Google Maps
Website
Open Tuesday - Friday 13:30 - 18:00, Saturday 9:00 - 11:45 and 13:30 - 16:00

(Ps. Want to learn about the difference between 'cow bell' two words and 'cowbell' one word - check this out!)

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It's ok. You can 'du' me.

I love speaking German. This we know. But sometimes, the rules of German just make me CRAZY. For example, the other day at work, someone was talking about how she had reached a point with a client that she can talk to her 'per du.' This was a BIG DEAL. She was excited about it. It meant she had broken the barrier and the two were on informal terms... they were officially on 'du' terms. No longer on 'Sie' terms... What is all this du and Sie mess? Well, this is one of the biggest differences between English and German (besides the three genders and the four cases) -allow me to explain the phenomenon that is German formal speech.

Say I run into an old friend at the store and we used to play naked in eachother's paddle pool (direct Bridget Jones reference for any fans...), I would greet this person in informal German:

'Hallo! Wie geht's?' or 'Wie geht's dir? Hast du Zeit?'

But if I ran into a complete stranger or a new client at work, and we have never played naked in any pools together, let alone never met before, and we are not on a first name basis, I would greet him/her in formal German:

'Guten Tag, Herr XXX. Wie Geht es Ihnen? Haben Sie Zeit für mich?'

So in German, when it is informal and you know the person well and are on a first name basis, you can go per 'du' and 'dir' and the accompanying verb forms ('hast du, or bist du, etc) without worry. In formal German, you have to use the formal tenses (haben instead of hast) with Sie or Ihnen. Sometimes, neighbors and work colleagues are forever on Sie terms. They never cross to the dark (albeit friendly) side. It is just not going to ever happen...

I mix up my 'du's' and my 'Sie's' a lot. It is the crux of being a non-native German speaker. I speak 'du' with colleagues at work. It is an American company - so we are naturally all friendly and open and work 'per du.' :) Then in the real world, I naturally 'du' everyone and screw up my whole intro and have to go back and 'Sie' the crap out of the conversation so the person knows I know what I am doing and wanted to give them the respect they deserved...

So on one hand - it is great to have this respect thing built into the language - but on the other hand, I think the German speakers should just give up this whole 'Sie' thing. I think it keeps them at a distance, it keeps them cold and at arms length. I have had conversations with Swiss that are oftentimes confused - 'Well, she du-ed me in the email but I don't think we are per du yet, as she is always like 'Sie' this and that on the phone. What should I do?!' OH THE PAIN OF THE DU- SIEs!?!' To du or not to du. That is often the question.

Well, here is your answer -just 'du' it already, I say... it will make the world a better place and make German easier for us non-native speakers.

Here - I will take the first step. You can all du me.

There ... one down. :)
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Alpabfahrt Urnäsch - Appenzell

On Saturday, I went with my work colleague, Michele, to the Alpabfahrt in Urnäsch, a small village in the Appenzeller region, an area fast becoming my favorite in Switzerland due to the wonderful landscapes, tradition, and cheese!

We went on Saturday for the Alpabfahrt, which literally means 'Alp descent,' and the name suits perfectly as that is exactly what happens. In the Fall, before the weather turns cold and snowy, the (milk) cows are brought down from their lush summer pastures in the Alps, where they grazed all summer long on the vitamin rich herbs and grasses between the Bergs. And their journey down the mountain is celebrated with a traditional march and festival, full of music and dancing and food.

Urnäsch Alpabzug 2009

As taken from the Appenzell Tourism site, here is what happens during the Alpabzug:

The procession of the Appenzeller Alpabzug can start as early as 2 or 3 am, when the farmers start the journey to bring their cows out of the mountain. It is said that in the early hours you can actually hear the cowbells ringing in the distance. When the Alpabzug arrives in the city, the procession is led by a boy, generally in Senne dress, leading a pack of white, hornless Appenzeller goats, herded by a girl in a brown-or blue-striped dress. The herdsman is next in line in Volltracht, or in full traditional dress. On his left shoulder he carries a richly carved bucket. He is then followed by three of the farmer's most beautiful cows that carry the heavy Senntumsschellen or ornate cow bells.

Next march four farmers in the traditional costume (with earrings in the right ear, part of the traditional costume!) followed by the rest of the unadorned cows, or Viehhabe, and the horse with the milking gear, or Alpgerätschaften, and the baby cows and perhaps a dog make the conclusion of the train.

I loved every minute of the event - waiting for the Senne to come, seeing all the cows and hearing the crowd talk about 'What a beaut' that one was or what fine coloring that one had. The atmosphere was great - lots of food and music, and not at all as touristy as I thought it would be, especially considering that this event is what I - and no doubt many others - imagine when they think of quintessential Swiss tradition. There are many more Alpabfahrts happening this fall in case you missed the one in Urnäsch. Just have a search online for events near you.

Beautiful Appenzeller Region - quickly

becoming my favorite area in Switzerland.

Other great posts about the Urnäsch Alpabfahrt:

• Peterthals -Yodel-yea-hee-MOO
• Twissted Swisster - Alpabzug - Bringing the Cows home in Urnaesh
• Swiss Family Mac - Urnäsch Alpabfahrt
• One Big Yodel - Yellow Knickers Live On
  
• Did I miss your post on the Alpabfahrt? Leave me a comment!
  

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Sechseläuten Umzug (Parade) Zürich 2009

As promised, a few extra shots of the Sechseläuten Umzug (parade) from Monday. As I mentioned before, the parade is all about the guilds... well actually the whole event is. Allow me to paraphrase from wikipedia. Back in the medieval days, the guilds were really tough about their working hours. In winter they worked until it was dark and then stopped, but when it came to Spring, when daylight is getting longer, they changed the working hours such that everyone punched out at 6pm. So everyone rejoiced for Spring because it meant they got a bit of daylight when they came home and the bells rang at 6 o'click to let you know it's time to go home. On Sechseläuten fest day, the bells ring for the first time, celebrating the change to the Spring hours (Sechseläuten literally means six o'clock bells you know) and they had a big party and parade to the square to celebrate the end of winter and blow up a snowman effigy- hence the tradition. (Was that spot on? If not read it yourself here...)

The guilds still celebrate wearing their tradtional garb. There is even a guide to follow along so you know what each guild represents - butcher, baker, candle stick maker - literally. And they all have flowers to give out to people and boy do their receive. The difference between the beginning of the parade, this:

and the end of the parade... this:

... is huge. One guy behind me at the parade said it well, 'Yeah, when it comes to flowers, this is bigger than Valentine's Day!'

It is like these guys are celebrity for a day. It certainly is interesting though to see all the flowers and costumes.

And by the way, the guild members these days are not exactly of the profession that the guild originally was. That is no longer followed, I understand. But they keep the traditional costumes nonetheless.

This above was a baker's guild and they handed out rolls and pretzels!

Next to the costumes and flowers, the big attraction was the horses. My were there some fine horses on show at the parade.

The only downside was that after awhile it no longer smelled of flowers, but of horse... if you know what I mean. You had to watch out for it EVERYWHERE!

Kids also paraded. It was cute. The kiddie parade is actually on Sunday though if you want to see the next generation up close.

The only unfortunate thing about the parade and the event, and I am not normally feminist, is that there were hardly any women. Unless you were carrying flowers for the men or had a herd of dogs, like this one below, you were not in the parade if you were a woman. Yes, it is tradition, I know. But come on... where are the women members? I was told by someone at work, too, that the women can walk the same parade route and participate but they have to do it an hour before... yeah.

Regardless, this was an awesome event. Make sure you go next year if you missed it, or check out the video! Enjoy!

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Sechseläuten 2009 & the Böögg (with video!)

So as promised, we went to the Sechseläuten yesterday and took in the Zünfte parade and saw the Böögg (snowman effigy) blow up. I have to admit - all of it was so much better than I had imagined. The Zünfte (guilds) parade went for hours in which thousands of guild members all dressed in their tradional costumes with hundreds of horses and horse drawn floats led the way to the Sechseläuten Platz where the Böögg is burnt. The smells at the beginning of the parade were all horse, but towards the end, all you could smell were the hundreds of thousands of flowers that were exchanged. Jace particularly liked the marching bands and I the horses and riders dressed to the nines. It really is a not to miss event. I would highly recommend it to anyone for a quick injection of Swiss culture and a wonderful community event.

I will have some pictures from the parade tomorrow, but until then, please enjoy this video of the burning of the Böögg. The Böögg lasted just under 13 minutes, which I will take to believe promises of a long summer - as according to wikipedia:

Popular tradition has it that the time between the lighting of the pyre and the explosion of the Böögg`s head is indicative of the coming summer: a quick explosion promises a warm, sunny summer, a drawn-out burning a cold and rainy one.

Regardless, it was entertaining! I will be back next year.

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This is an essential and the latest edition is due out in July. Pre-Order your copy today! Living and Working in Switzerland, 12th Edition: A Survival Handbook

Don't forget the Sechseläuten today!

Today is Sechseläuten! The parade starts at 15:00 and the route is below. The Böögg will be lit at 18:00. See you there! More details in German.


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This is an essential and the latest edition is due out in July. Pre-Order your copy today! Living and Working in Switzerland, 12th Edition: A Survival Handbook