The start of Fasnacht

Fasnacht is Basel's most anticipated event of the year. Fasnacht translates to Carnival, and there is a lot to learn about all of the events that surround it. There is a lot of pride in the traditions of Fasnacht, and many "rules" for participants and spectators alike. Official Basel Fasnacht is for exactly 72 hours starting at 4:00 am on the Monday after Ash Wednesday. However, there are no Catholic connections to the holiday, unlike Mardi Gras or Carnivale. According to wikipedia, in 1529, Basel moved their carnival to be one-week later than Catholic celebrations that lead up to Ash Wednesday. This was to make the distinction from Catholic tradition and celebrate more of a "farmer's carnival". Indeed, local Swiss tell us that Fasnacht is intended to scare away Old Man Winter and bring Spring.

So, official Basel Fasnacht will start early Monday morning on March 14. However, the surrounding towns are starting their celebrations this weekend. Today, Landon participated in a school parade ("Umzug") with his class that took place in the town where his school is. The teachers and students have been working on their costumes for the last month -- the masks were made out of papier-mache. Landon's class dressed up as polar bears ("Eisbar"), and it was difficult to tell who was who because they were fully covered. Adult participants dressed up and led the parade with drumming and flutes. Incidentally, drum competitions and ceremonies are a big part of Fasnacht as well.

Note the confetti in the street.

Children in the parade were throwing out candy and lots of confetti. I think the confetti is so pretty, and the tradition is interesting. Some people claim that confetti originated in Basel. The Basel confetti has a particular shape and pattern (see the blue shape on the staff in the first picture), and it is sold only in single colors (so that people can't resell the mixed colors from the street). One of the rules for spectators is that you are not allowed to pick up any confetti from the street. The kids heard this rule from their teachers, and I'm glad they obey!

The kids are very excited about the costumes and sweets that they'll get -- it sounds a lot like Halloween, doesn't it?

Landon as a polar bear

The children walked around for about an hour, before stopping in a park for traditional Fasnacht songs sung by the children. Here is a short video of the parade and some of the music. Enjoy!

And if you'd like to find out more, or hear some more sounds of Fasnacht, the following website has a lot of good information and is available in English: Fasnacht's Committee Website

More to come as we experience the events over the coming week!