Martinstag

Before I start on this post, I'd like to make it absolutely clear that I have no idea what I'm talking about. My host parents told me that there would be a celebration on the 11th of November, and that it had something to do with St. Martin. I knew nothing about St. Martin (a small flaw in my Catholic education,) so I went to the celebration blindly. There is a basic rundown here, if you are really interested in the history behind the celebration. I'd also like to admit that, if you cannot tell, I am writing this blog around nine days too late. I hope to get better at keeping up with my blog in the future.

Around a week before the 11th, my host parents informed me that we would be going to some sort of celebration, something to do with a Saint and a lot of lanterns. I thought this sounded fun - what with being able to learn about German culture and all - so I was really looking forward to it. We showed up at around 4:30 in the afternoon, and found our way to the general start of what would be the Martinstag procession here in Roetgen. Apparently the general set up involves a man on a horse, -dressed as St. Martin (who appears to be a cross between a roman centurion and Santa Claus- a bunch of children with homemade paper lanterns, and a brass band. We walked behind the mounted St. Martin through the Streets of Roetgen as the sun set; surrounded by children who were constantly running back and forth, tripping, and dropping their lanterns. It was all very interesting, but the meaning or purpose to the whole thing was lost on me. Just as I was bemoaning the fact that Germans don't know how to celebrate correctly (fireworks and food, of course,) we ended up at the final point in our journey - the backyard of the local Senior home. We passed a barbecue covered in cooking bratwurst, and stood by the largest bonfire I have ever seen. Whoever was in charge of the procession had found a good deal of scrap wood -mainly wooden shipping pallets- and had piled them about five feet high, thus creating a massive tower of flame that the collected citizenry of Roetgen assembled around. I noted that the ground here is so moist that the bonfire was built on the Senior home lawn, with no fear that the fire would spread away from the original wood pile. In California we would have to use a beach, as just about every other possible surface is highly flammable. In any case, this is where the night ended, and we returned to our cars and to the safety of our climate controlled homes; hiding from the cold German night.

Although I was rather confused about the whole evening, I did really appreciate the beauty of a herd of children, each with a differently colored paper lantern lit from within which seemed to glow more brightly as the night went on. As you can imagine, the fact that I forgot my camera still frustrates me, but I'll insert some pictures I found online to give a sense of what I mean.

The final picture is of a display of Weckmanns -- rolls that are baked specially for Martinstag. They are extra soft and sweet, and perfect to be eaten with jam or nutella. I am told they represent St. Martin, but no one explained the corncob pipe or the jelly hearts that are inserted in some.