Yesterday, Pauliina and I went to Plevnan Oktoberfest to show Pauliina one of the most famous German traditions. Or at least, have a little pretaste.
The waiters were dressed in the original traditional costumes. While I wanted to explain some of the meenings of these costumes to her, I realized that I myself did not really know much about it.
I just know, that the bavarian “Tracht” is the “Lederhose” for the man and the “Dirndl” for the woman. It was the rope that the workers in the countryside wore. But beginning of the 19th century, it became very famous among the cities as well. Nowadays, the Tracht is a symbol for the bavarian cultural identity.
I explained to Pauliina, that if she wants to go to Oktoberfest in Munich, she needs to be careful with binding her skirt ;-). If you have the ribbon on the left, it means your single (well, at least not married…) and maybe someone comes to flirt with you. The ribbon on the right side means you are taken. If you wear the ribbon in the middle, you are a virgin, whereas the ribbon on the back means you are a widow.
Especially in this southern part of Germany called “Bayern”, tradition and customs have a very high value. When it comes to Oktoberfest, everyone seems to link it to whole Germany. But I really see it as a part and a tradition of Bavaria. Personally, I have never been to the Oktoberfest in Munich yet, but since part of my family comes from Munich, I really want to go there next year.
It was nice to have some beers and food and also listen to an estonian brassband that played some songs. We also sang along the famous short “Prosit” song.
“Ein Prosit, ein Prosit, der Gemütlichkeit,
ein Prosit, ein Prosit, der Gemütlichkeit.”
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