Fasnet in the Black Forest - 10.02.02

(Click the thumbnails for the big picture.)

The Fasnet festival in Elzach is very old and it's origins lie somewhere in the Middle Ages if not before. Basically the idea is that the Wild Man is supposed to scare away the demons of Winter, or something like that. Originally the costumes were made from forest materials such as lichen, moss, dry grass, snail shells and stuff like that but in 1781 after a number of people had been accidentally set on fire, the Emperor Joseph II forbade the costumes. They were replaced by the red raggedy costumes you see in these photos. The monsters are called "Schuttige" and nobody knows who is who as they are forbidden from removing their masks in public places. They also come armed. Each Schuttig carries a stick made from matted bulls-tail with one or more inflated pigs bladders on the end. Sounds disgusting? Well it is. And when you get twatted on the head with one it not only hurts, but it bloody stinks as well! But it's all part of the fun. In the parade there were probably about a thousand of these guys and girls going through the streets snarling and attacking. And the tall, foreign speaking guy with the camera was not exactly inconspicuous.

That's me by the way.

A lone Schuttig walking past a statue of...well, himself...or herself.

The devil getting ready to lead his parade of Schuttige.

You can see a lot of people who bring their kids along in the parade. These little Schuttige are often more dangerous than the adults. I was personally attacked by the one in the first photo.

The mask that the Schuttige wears is made from wood and apparently no two are identical. There are however, 7 specific groups to which each mask belongs. The most popular is "Fratz" which is shown below. Then there's "Bart" (representing the bearded Wild Man), "Teufelslarven" (which is the devils mask),"Lätsch" (with a very distinctive mouth), "Langnäse" (exactly what it says, Long Nose, representing the ghosts of dead people), the rare "Bäregfriß" (which is a bear) and finally there is the group called "Mundle" (which are the ones in the white costumes).

The "Pig Bladder Shop" where you can re-arm after bursting your bladder over someone's head.

And the band played on.

Ulrike couldn't escape an attack forever.

And they did like having their photo taken as these posers prove.

The long wooden 'grabbers' which were used to take hats from unwary bystanders.

And various other shots.

These two are the Nachtwächterpaar (Night Watchmen Pair)

Nice teeth.

Ulrike's boyfriend Mark chatting to one of the parade marshals.

And of course a host of cute kids.

This is Uli's brother on duty as a fireman. No, he's actually a fireman, it wasn't a costume.

And that was the parade at 3p.m. Then at 7p.m. they all come out from wherever they've been hiding and do it all over again. Only this time, as well as the pig bladders, the Schuttige also have flaming torches. And they've usually been drinking all afternoon. Maybe that's why the keep some firemen close by.

The picture below was someone who we knew, but I'm not allowed to say who it was because the identities of the Schuttige are a closely guarded secret. But if you recognise yourself in this picture, thanks for letting me stay in your house and making it a brilliant weekend. :-)

Even the Schuttig has to have a beer or two. Not so easy when you are not allowed to take your mask off in public.

Madalina gets attacked in the pub.

Again, a lot of effort is put into the whole dressing-up thing.

A Schuttig who looks remarkably like Darth Maul from The Phantom Menace standing beside Gandalf the wizard.

About 4 o'clock in the morning. "I can't take anymore, I wanna go to sleep".

On Monday afternoon we drove back to Munich, and didn't get lost this time. It was a fantastic weekend and I'll definitely be paying a visit back there sometime. The area is beautiful and the people are very, very friendly. And I think they might just remember the mad Rum n' Cola swigging Irishman.