Maibaum
The Germans have this great tradition of erecting blue and white May Poles in towns and villages indicating the services available. Every 5 years a new pole is erected by the towns men. It just so happened that my friend's village was replacing theirs this year and we went down to watch the festivities.
The gentleman on the far left is the Burgermeister or man in charge of overseeing the Maibaum celebration. I asked how long the pole raising would take and he said up to 2 hours. I could not imagine why it would take so long and as you can see it was a rainy day and we weren't so keen to stay so long in the cold.
Then the action began. The townsmen gathered for some final instructions...
then the priest came to bless the pole and men participating in the raising...
and with the first heave, the action began.
As we watched these men pull the pole into position it quickly became apparent why it takes two hours; it is something of a dance. I took a lot of video which if I ever get around to editing, does a much better job capturing the scene.
making progress...
Getting closer...
Almost there, but we left before seeing it 100% erect. If you want to see the final position you'll have to visit my friends
blog, she did a great job capturing the entire event and she's a much better photographer! I love Germany, its quaint traditions and willingness work together for community.
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