Karneval is an annual tradition celebrated by many cities in Western Germany, more specifically, Düsseldorf, Köln, and Mainz. It is a celebration, or should I say season, where the city comes together dressed in costume to celebrate, simply for the fun of it. What’s more fun than a week-long celebration wearing creative costumes and drinking with your best friends?!
A huge thanks to Düsseldorf Tourism for inviting us onto this years Europe float during the Rosenmontag Parade!
What’s the Story?
Every celebration comes with a good ole’ story, am I right? Karneval began in the Middle Ages in Germany but has even been said to date back to the Roman times. When it first began, Karneval was a festival in honor of Dioysos, the god of wine, where locals from the Rhine region would drink wine, chat and criticize the government and authorities without any penalty during the days of celebration. They would drink wine into the morning hours, create conversation all night long, and celebrate the end of a long winter.
In the South of Germany, they refer to Karneval as Fastnacht/Fasching or “the night before the fast“. Those of Christian origin would dress up in local and traditional costumes and celebrate the days leading up to the fast with excessive amounts of food and alcohol, purging the body and indulging one last time before the beginning of the fast/Lent. Similarly today, Southern Germans still dress up in traditional outfits and celebrate in the streets of regions like Bayern, Hessen, Baden-Württemberg, and Saarland.
Annual Karneval Events
There’s a reason why Karneval is known as Germany’s 5th season. Karneval consists of a week-long itinerary that’s jam-packed with things to do for both the young and old.
11.11 – Hoppeditz Erwachen (Opening of the Karneval Season)
If you’re part of a Karneval club, the celebrations will begin during the awakening of the Hoppeditz (a fictional character representing the Düsseldorf Karneval) which takes place on 11.11 (November 11th). This is also known as the start of the Karneval season. On this day, club members and friends will gather at the town hall to welcome the Hoppeditz and celebrate all day long. However, until Altweiber comes around, life goes back to normal.
Thursday: Altweiber/Weiberfastnacht
Altweiber, also known as Wieberfastnacht, is the unofficial start of the Karneval season – i.e. this is when the party really begins. The day begins back at the town hall at 11:11 AM when crowds of women storm the city with scissors in hand. Dressed head to toe in costume, the women start the day off by snipping the mayors tie and any other ties that stand in their way that day. Why? This is a tradition that symbolizes that the women are taking over the city.
Friday: Life as Usual
Friday is considered to be the day where one lives life as usual. There aren’t many large events taking place on Friday, workplaces are open and many people are recovering from the first day of Karneval (Altweiber). However, Friday is always a great day to throw your own Karneval parties seeing as the itinerary for the afternoon and evening are pretty free.
Saturday: Tuntenlauf (Queer Run), Kinder- und Jugendumzug (Children’s Parade) & Veedelszoch
Saturday is often a day for the LGTB community and the kids!
For over 20 years, the Tutenlauf has been a big part of the Düsseldorf Karneval. It is an event where men dress up as women showcasing their high heels, long curly hair, and sparkly dresses on the runway. Those who can strut their stuff enough to impress the judges will walk away with a grand prize and a feel-good feeling knowing that all the money raised during the event is donated to Aids-Hilfe Düsseldorf e.V.
The Kinder- und Jugendumzug is an opportunity for all the kids to come out, dress up in costume and enjoy the day in a kid-friendly kind of way. While the Rosenmontag Parade is quite a spectacle, the children’s parade is a sweeter, less political parade where the kids snack on sweets and join along.
The Veedelszoch (neighborhood parades in the local dialect) are smaller parades that take place in local neighborhoods around the city. Lohausen, Eller, Gerresheim, Niederkassel, and Reisholz are often taking part and invite everyone in the neighborhood to come out, dressed in costume, and celebrate Karneval.
Sunday: Karnevalssonntag on the KÖ
Karnevalssonntag is celebrated on Sunday every year along the Königsallee. It is a street festival often recognized as the event to see and be seen, which means this is certainly a day to dress to impress in your best costumes. The entire day long there is music playing, beer tents, and food trucks there to keep you entertained.
Monday: Rosenmontag (Rose Monday)
On Rose Monday, the main city streets close down for the Rosenmontag Parade, a parade where the young and old come out to admire artist Jacques Tilly’s political and cultural masterpieces. There are often well over 50 different floats that resemble Düsseldorf and German culture or mock extremely controversial political topics from the past year. Kamelle (candy and swag) is thrown out into the crowd from the floats moving by as all the spectators fill the sidewalks screaming “Helau! Helau! Helau!“, the local Düsseldorf way to say “Hurra!”
Wednesday: Aschermittwoch
Last, but not least, Aschermittwoch (Ash Wednesday) is when the Karneval season has ended and everyone goes back to work. On this Wednesday, the Hoppeditz is then burned in front of the public eye (again, this is just a symbolic figure representing the Düsseldorf Karneval) and then remains buried until he reawakens for the next Karneval season!
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