Faschnacht

Germans are big celebraters - any excuse for a party seems to be good! In this area (Mainz especially) they are known for their huge Faschnacht celebrations. Faschnacht (called Fasching in Bavaria) is similar to Carnevale or Mardi Gras; a celebration 'blowout' held before the beginning of the somber Lent season. We are big Mardi Gras fans, after the years in LA and several trips to Mobile's MG, but what struck us is the average age of the partiers here! Even more, uh, 'seasoned' folks really get into it. They really do the costume thing, too - and you get a lot of attention (and plenty of free refreshments) if you are in costume. We actually were participants in the Mainz-Kastel parade, walking the entire route in costumes! The kids got a chance to truly be a part of a German tradition, and they were both a big hit with the locals. (That's Joe and Tracey Ryan, our neighbors/one set of the Cast of Crazies, with us.) We went to watch the Wiesbaden parade, again in costume. It was a lot of fun.