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December/January 2009
Gallery: Hundertwasser – Art in Harmony with Nature
by Alevtina Altenhof
When the famous Viennese artist and architect Friedensreich Hundertwasser (1928 to 2000) initiated a series of his green architectural projects around the world in the late
twentieth century, he wanted to bring the message across that since people destroy mother nature when they build a house, they must also find a way to give a piece of land back to her. As a result,
Hundertwasser, who strove for beauty in harmony with nature, attempted to create an art and design project that could represent such beauty. By using irregular forms in his buildings and constructions, which
were dominated by colors and sometimes grass roofs, the Austrian architect not only revolutionized architectural rules and designs, he also managed to make nature the number one priority.
All of this is easier said than done. In fact, living according to the motto “paradise can only be made with our own hands, with our own creativity in harmony with the creative
spirit of nature,” it seemed as if nature took control of the famous architect. Today, there are at least two dozen projects scattered all over the world that may prove this statement. Most of them were
built while Hundertwasser was alive. Among them are the “Hundertwasser House Vienna” (1983 to 1985); the “KunstHausWien” in Vienna (1989 to 1991); the “Quixote Winery” in Napa
Valley, California, (1992 to 1997); the Bech Residence “El Nido,” in Gran Canaria, Spain, (1996 to 1998); the “Waste-Heating-Plant,” Osaka, Japan, (1997 to 2000); and “The Green
Zitadell,” in Magdeburg, Germany, (2004 to 2005); – just to name a few.
While each of the Hundertwasser buildings has its own individual design and colors, there is one caveat that all of the green projects have in common – they are all strangely
shaped and absolutely violate the rules of architecture. If you have never seen one of the buildings, it is hard to imagine what it looks like. I felt the same until I was on a recent sightseeing tour of Vienna
and saw the “KunstHouseWien” with my own eyes. In the cheerless and monotonous face of the third Viennese district, this amazing construction is a colorful spot. The house was built in the late 1980s
on the site of the former furniture factory of the brothers Thonet and is considered the home of Hundertwasser’s masterpiece….
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The Warm Glow of Austria’s Glöcklerlauf
by Matias Tugores Martorell
Snow covers the landscape and the residents of Ebensee don their fantastic candle-lit headgear for their traditional march during winter’s “Wild Nights.”
For at least the past century and a half, the people of Ebensee have been celebrating one of Austria’s quaintest customs: the Glöcklerlauf (literally: the race of the bell-bearers).
This eight thousand seven hundred-strong community in the heart of the Salzkammergut province, one hundred kilometers east of Salzburg, is a world of its own – it still
speaks its own language and has traditions unheard of in the rest of the country.
The Ebenseer have, furthermore, always been known for their insubordination and unshakeable independence. For centuries they came into conflict with the authorities who wanted to produce salt (the only resource of this working-class town) at a lesser cost and haughtily ignored the instructions they received from above.
It is in the Salzkammergut that the tradition of the Rauhnächte (“Wild Nights”), so dear to the heart of the alpine people, came to light. From December 25th to January 6th,
four of these nights whose origins are lost in the Germanic mythology, marked the return of the souls and the apparition of the spirits which were welcomed with fine foods, if they were benevolent, and warded
off with the sign of the cross, noise, and smoke – if they were not.
During the fourth and last “Wild Night,” the figurines of the shepherds receded to the back of the crib to make way for the three Wise Men and their retinue. The
“Magi’s song” was then sung. In Ebensee, where the Glöcklerlauf is believed to have originated, and in all the places where it was celebrated, the singing of this carol coincided with the resounding of the bells carried by the Glöckler who were filing into the town. The combination of these two emblematic events was, for the Ebenseer, highly emotional.
The origin of the Glöcklerlauf remains mysterious and imprecise. The first written reference to it dates back to the 1850s and it is to condemn it, both by the State and the Church, which looked askance at this paganish fête.
However, the Ebenseer, as always, were in no way impressed by the prohibition and went on celebrating it – with a greater determination than before. They played
hide-and-seek with the authorities, who endeavored to enforce a ban. When the need arose, when the local constabulary could not cope, reinforcements were called from outside – but to no avail…
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Following the Franconian Beer Routes
by Sharon Hudgins
The enjoyment of beer is a way of life in Germany, and for a true beer enthusiast, any time along the Franconian Beer Route will be time well spent.
Germany is a beer-lover's heaven, with more breweries than any other country on Earth. That's right: More than twelve hundred breweries – from small family-owned
businesses to huge corporate operations – which produce five thousand different kinds of beers, some of them consumed only locally, others exported around the world.
Nearly half of those German breweries are located in the southern state of Bavaria. And the region of Franconia, in the northern half of Bavaria, boasts more breweries per
square kilometer than anywhere else on the globe.
So if you're a connoisseur of beers – or just someone who likes to drink fresh, foamy beer on tap, only a few yards from where it was brewed – Franconia should
be high on your list of "must-see" (and "must-taste") destinations in Europe.
Franconia covers an area of thirty thousand square kilometers (eleven thousand, five hundred eighty square miles) extending roughly from Nürnberg and Ansbach in the south to
Amberg and Bayreuth in the east, Coberg and Hof in the north, and Würzburg, Aschaffenburg, and the Romantic Road in the west. More than a thousand years ago, a Germanic tribe known as the Franks lived in this
area, their empire stretching as far west as the Rhine River. In 1803, the eastern part of that former empire was incorporated into Bavaria. However, the influence of the earlier Franks lives on in the
region's name of Frankenland (Franconia) and in the inhabitants' sense of themselves as culturally different from the Bavarians to the south.
The historic city of Nürnberg is the regional capital of Franconia and its largest metropolis, with a population of half a million. Franconia encompasses a number of other
smaller but important cities, too, as well as many medieval castles, churches, and monasteries nestled among its green rolling hills and dense forests. Much of the region is still rural, dotted with quiet little
farm villages and half-timbered market towns.
You'll find breweries everywhere in Franconia, from the largest cities to the smallest towns. Many of those breweries also operate an adjacent Gasthof – a cozy tavern,
usually with an outdoor beer garden – where you can sample a variety of local beers made on the premises, accompanied by regional specialties from simple farmhouse fare to fancier feasts. And some of the
breweries conduct guided tours where you can learn how the beers are made – and taste the local brews afterward…
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Münster – A Medieval Marvel with Modern Flair
by Leah Larkin
Its near total destruction during World War II endangered its medieval charm but Münster restored its original face and delights visitors with its bicycle-friendly environment.
Münster made its mark in history in the seventeenth century. This lively city in northwestern Germany was the site of five years of negotiations resulting in the Westphalian
Peace Treaty in 1648, which ended the Thirty Years’, War, a conflict that had involved almost all the European powers and laid the foundations upon which modern Europe was built.
Modern Münster is proud of this claim to fame and its exquisite Friedenssaal (Hall of Peace) where the delegations met. It also boasts contemporary notoriety. The city near the Dutch
border is known as the bicycle capital of Germany. Each of its two hundred eighty thousand citizens is said own at least two bicycles. Cycle lanes and cycle paths abound. The Altstadt (old town) is off limits to
cars, but free for pedestrians and those on bikes. Everyone from the mayor and bishop to the town’s fifty thousand students uses pedal power as the primary means of transportation.
If you want to join the locals on bicycles, visit the Radstation (bicycle station) at the city’s train station where rental bikes are plentiful and reasonable. However, the city
is easy to explore on foot. Saunter down the main street and take in the Old World ambiance.
Münster, the capital of North Rhine Westphalia, was ninety-two percent destroyed in World War II. The city council wanted to rebuild it in a contemporary style, but the citizens were
in favor of preserving the original medieval look. Fortunately the citizens overruled the politicians. All the façades on the Prinzipalmarkt, the main square in the old town, were restored to their Gothic and
Renaissance splendor. The cobbled street, arcades, gables, and towers provide a genuine Old World backdrop to the cafés whose outdoor tables sprawl beneath. Trendy boutiques and designer shops line sidewalks
under the arcades, adding upscale flair to the mini metropolis.
The Rathaus (city hall) with magnificent gables, pinnacles, and delicate window tracery is considered one of the most beautiful civic buildings of the Gothic period. Inside is the
famous Friedenssaal where the envoys met between 1643 and 1648 to hammer out the peace agreement. The room’s outstanding carved wood panels from the sixteenth century, chandeliers, and portrait paintings
of envoys and sovereigns were moved to the Münster castle for safe keeping during the war. On October 24, 1948, the three hundredth anniversary of the Westphalian Peace, the room reopened, restored to its
original state…
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14 January 1784, Prussia and Another Birthday of the United States?
by Robert E. Selig
In the wake of numerous treaties that could lay claim to the date that the United States of America was truly “born,” it may be the 1784 treaty and Prussia’s positive response that
should be remembered as the point of our country’s birth.
- 19 April 1775. Lexington and Concord. Beginning of armed rebellion.
- 4 July 1776. Philadelphia. Declaration of Independence.
- 8 February 1778. Versailles. Treaties of Amity and Friendship and of Military Alliance with France. First recognition as an independent nation by another power.
- 19 October 1781. Yorktown. Lord Cornwallis surrenders. Independence all but assured.
- 30 November 1782. Paris. Preliminaries of Peace.
- 3 September 1783. Peace of Paris. King George III acknowledges the "United States ... to be free Sovereign and independent States."
- 25 November 1783. New York City. Evacuation Day. Last British forces leave American soil.
These are the places, dates, and events that are usually mentioned as possible dates for the day the United States of America were "born." And while 4 July 1776 has won out
over its competitors, 14 January 1784. Annapolis. Fifth Congress of the Confederation is on hardly anybody's list. Neither are 17 May 1786. New York. Seventh Congress of
the Confederation. or 9 July 1785. Paris, Treaty with Prussia. And yet these dates are as important as any of the other dates.
On 14 January 1784, the Fifth Congress of the Confederation, assembled in Annapolis, Maryland, and ratified the treaty of peace with Great Britain that gave America her independence
– not only in the eyes of France, the Netherlands, and Sweden, which until then had been the only countries to have recognized the United States as an independent nation – but in the eyes of the
whole world. Ratification of the treaty was not the final step of making peace, that would come only with the ratification of the treaty by Parliament in London on 9 April 1784, the exchange of the ratified
treaties on 12 May 1784, and their subsequent deposition in the diplomatic archives of Great Britain and the United States.
However, the vote in Annapolis represented not only final victory in the struggle for independence, it also opened the door for the new nation to reach out to the world as "free
Sovereign and independent States." The first to respond to America's overtures was the Prussia of Frederick the Great which signed a Treaty of Amity and Commerce with the United States, the first treaty concluded by the newly independent United States with a foreign power, in the summer of 1785…
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Spreading the Joy – Germany’s Smaller Weihnachtsmärkte
by Don Heimburger
You will still find Glühwein, wursts, and a delightful array of ornaments and holiday gift ideas but experiencing a Weihnachtsmarkt in a smaller village provides a truly unique approach to this
beloved holiday experience.
I am strolling down a row of colorful green and white-striped tents decorated with bright twinkling lights and fresh pine tree boughs. The smell of spiced wine and eggnog wafts
through the air, as vendors sell wooden Christmas ornaments, toys, lanterns, candies, Lebkuchen, and sausages.
I am at a Christmas market, but I am not in a large city in any of the Germanic lands. Instead, I am walking through the small German Christkindlmarkt in one thousand-year-old Furth,
about seven miles outside of Nuremberg.
In fact, should you travel to nearly any of the thousands of small towns and villages in Austria, Switzerland, or Germany beginning with Advent and continuing through Christmas Eve,
you will likely encounter a lively and bustling Christkindlmarkt in progress on or near the city center. Even in the larger cities, smaller unique Christmas markets enjoy a good following. In Berlin, as an
example, there are as many as fifty smaller Christmas markets throughout the city.
These smaller but numerous spirited markets, marked by regional and local traditions, foods, beverages and handicrafts, are typically located adjacent to the town's historic
Rathaus, downtown public squares, or open areas. Others are even more distinct in that they take place inside of fairy-tale castles, on the tops of high mountains, in airports, or on boats anchored in a harbor.
A journey of discovery through these illuminated winter wonderlands brings townsfolk together for friendly talk, offers children a chance to experience the excitement of the season,
and unites everyone as they share one of the most celebrated events of the year.
Germany
In centuries-old Bamberg, which claims more than two thousand buildings designated as UNESCO sites, and which forms one of the largest medieval town areas in Europe, the Christmas
market glitters and glows under Christmas lights on Maximiliansplatz, the city center. The market, with about fifty vendors, has its origins as far back as the early nineteenth century. Besides selling Christmas
candles and decorations, Bamberg has its own gingerbreads and nut breads, and Franconian specialties such as fried sausages and Bamberg Rauchbier (smoked beer), which is produced by drying malt over an open
flame.
However, Bamberg's even larger claim to small town fame perhaps comes from its extensive Nativity Trail which features thirty-four nativity scenes at city squares, in churches,
museums, and other areas in town. People from all over Europe come to see the trail, and tours are organized to see these special nativity displays, which are updated and refreshed every year for the
Christkindlmarkt crowds…
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Torgau – Echoing the Spirit of the Elbe
by Jörg Unger
The beautiful setting of this Renaissance town where Martin Luther preached in the German language for the very first time only adds to its fascinating military history.
Torgau had been condemned to be a military town with barracks, prisons, tribunals, torture chambers, and execution places since 1811, when Napoleon had Castle Hartenfels converted and
reinforced into a fortress. At the end of the 1930s, two of eight German military prisons were located in Torgau – called Brückenkopf (bridgehead) and Fort Zinna, the largest one. Both housed deserters,
insubordinate soldiers, draft resisters, and people who were accused of undermining military strength, espionage, or preferential treatment of the enemy. Later, the inmates also included members of the anti-Nazi
resistance movement and prisoners of war. In August 1943, the Nazi’s supreme military tribunal moved into the Zieten Barracks, where about fourteen hundred death sentences were issued.
During the afternoon of April 25, 1945, soldiers of the 69th Infantry Division waved their self-made United States flag from the round tower of Castle Hartenfels in Torgau, trying to make contact to the troops of the Red Army on the other side of Elbe. After the negotiations by a Russian prisoner of war, liberated from Fort Zinna, Lieutenant William Robertson clambered over the wrecked bridge girders to meet the Ukrainian Lieutenant Alexander Silwaschko of the 173rd Rifle Regiment, 58th Guards Infantry Division, not knowing that the first encounter had already occurred near the town of Strehla, eighteen miles upstream, about three hours before. However, it was the bridge in Torgau, which was chosen to re-enact the meeting for the news one day later and take the famous photograph that marked the approaching end of World War II.
Though the end of war also meant the disintegration of the German military penal system, Torgau did not get rid of its dreadful reputation until German reunification. In September
1945, the Soviet secret police established its special camps in the Seydlitz Barracks and nearby Fort Zinna, of which the latter lasted to be a penitentiary in East Germany until 1990. Today, the Torgau
Documentation and Information Center, founded in 1991, displays the terrible history of Torgau in its permanent exhibition “Traces of Injustice.”
Fortunately, those awful times are over, and the veterans of the 69th Infantry Division – like William Snidow, George Wallis, Bing T. Poon, and Hilton Spokony – returned to Torgau again, putting flowers beside the memorial stones that commemorate the Spirit of the Elbe on the eastern banks of the river. They also honored Joe Polowsky (a member of the reconnaissance patrol that had met the Russian troops near Strehla), who is buried in Torgau – a wish of his last will that was granted by the East German authorities, when he died in 1983.
Beyond the river, you can still discern the first arch of the famous Elbe Bridge, which was removed in 1994, about one year after the new bridge had been opened to the public. A
few yards downstream, the Elbe-Link-Up Monument, designed by the Ukrainian architect Avraham Miletzki, recalls the encounter on the western banks of Elbe. It made Torgau the only place in the former Eastern bloc
showing an American flag throughout the times of Cold War…
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A Taste of Freedom
by Dagmar Zimmer Cianelli
The shiny dime warmed the palm of my hand in the summer sun; like magic the words popped into my head. Finally, I’d be able to buy the Yummy-Man’s Popsicle without Aunt
Helen’s help. Till now, speaking English was easier said than done. It seemed no matter how hard I tried the words wouldn’t happen.
My parents, brother and I became part of the great American melting pot in March of 1952. Dad’s sister, Helen, shared her two-bedroom post-World War II tract house in Columbus,
Ohio, with us. We’d left Germany without knowing one word of English. It didn’t cross my mind to worry…till I started first grade the beginning of April at Linden Elementary School. The classes
in English as a Second Language were still a gleam in some educator’s eye. I was on my own.
Erika, a fellow classmate, was drafted as my translator. She came from Germany a year earlier with her parents and younger brother. Between Erika and my first grade teacher, a patient
woman whose name escapes me, I struggled through my class.
The teacher taught by example with lots of hand gestures. She’d do an exercise, point with her pencil and say, “Now you do it, Dagmar.” I wrote English vocabulary
words in a notebook, the German translations next to them; then tried to find a connection between the words.
Erika read from the list. “Bleistift, Pencil.” My eyes followed the movement of her lips and the sound of her voice. I repeated, “Bleistift, Pencil.” Daily,
new words were stored in my mind, knowing one day I’d get the hang of my adopted language.
Language puzzles presented themselves through my elementary school years. “Plane” and “plain” were mystifying. They sounded alike, but had two different
spellings and each spelling had several meanings. Memorization of each word variation was my only defense. Sounding out new words phonetically created stress. Coming upon the word “stomach,” while
reading out loud in the fourth grade, I sounded out “stoomatch” causing chuckles among classmates. The teacher praised my effort and the snickers stopped.
As a first grader I listened, listened, and watched the children at recess time when they spoke English to me; hoping to make sense of what they said. One day, wanting to fit
in, I tried answering with a simple yes or no. When confused faces looked back at me, I knew the answers were wrong … frustration…
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Language: Mozart, Richard Strauss und andere Komponisten an der Oper von Santa Fe
von Peter Pabisch
Wer hätte je gedacht, dass Santa Fe eines Tages eine wirkliche Konkurrenz für Salzburg werden könnte? Doch ist das innerhalb des letzten halben Jahrhunderts zur Tatsache
geworden, da die Stadt nicht nur eine bemerkenswerte Sommeroper, die von John Crosby 1956 gegründet wurde, sondern auch andere Kunstzweige bietet. In einer jüngeren Umfrage der New York Times nimmt die Stadt
eine der drei ersten Stellen unter den führenden Kunst gesinnten Städten der Vereinigten Staaten von Amerika ein. Man findet hier eine vorzügliche Musikszene, die alljährlich solch berühmte Violinisten wie
Pinkas Zuckerman für zwar kurze, aber erinnernswerte Konzertserien einladen kann. Viele Maler und Fotografen leben und arbeiten in Santa Fe, so dass Kunst von hier ins ganze Land, ja in die ganze Welt exportiert
wird. Daher finden sich in dieser Stadt Galerien, die zu den exquisiten in der Welt zählen, wie die berühmte Peyton-Wright-Galerie mit ihrem deutschstämmigen Besitzer und Manager John Schaefer. Außerdem findet
man hier noch viele hochwertige Kunstmuseen wie das nach der berühmten Künstlerin benannte Georgia O’Keeffe-Museum.
Santa Fes Geschichte ist einzigartig unter den Städten der Vereinigten Staaten, weil es einst von 1610 bis 1848 die nördlichste Hauptstadt Lateinamerikas war, bevor es Teil des
Territoriums wurde, das die USA von Mexiko nach dem mexikanisch-amerikanischen Krieg der Jahre 1846 bis 48 erhalten hatte. Dieser Teil wird heute als Südwesten bezeichnet, der aus fünf oder sechs Staaten
besteht, die alle im späten 19. und frühen 20. Jahrhundert legal zu Staaten erhoben wurden. Daher begann die spanisch-österreichische katholische Tradition im Jahre 1540, als der spanisch-mexikanische Offizier
Coronado mit seinen Truppen im Namen seines spanischen Königs Karls V. hier nach Gold suchte. Dieser König trug auch unter anderen die Titel Heiliger Römischer Kaiser und Deutscher Kaiser, so dass in seinem
riesigen Reich die Sonne nicht unterging. Sobald die Gegend zu den Vereinigten Staaten gehörte, wurde sie die Szene jenes „Western“ Genres, das Jahrzehnte danach in den Handlungen vieler Wildwestfilme
erneut auftauchen sollte. Und wieder wurde Santa Fe während dieser Zeit einzigartig berühmt als Zentrum für abenteuerliche Pioniere und danach für Filmemacher und Schauspieler. So wohnte John Wayne wie viele
seiner Kollegen im Stadthotel La Fonda, wo er Marguerita trank und die bluterhitzende Chillistew oder die erstaunlich aussehenden blauen Tortillas aß. In diesen historischen Hintergrund wurde die Oper von Santa
Fe gebaut und erfreute sich beinahe sofort ihres Ruhmes, wie ihn die amerikanische und die internationale Presse anerkannte…
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Richard Strauss, et al. at the Santa Fe Opera
by Peter Pabisch
Who on earth would have thought that Santa Fe would become a real competition to Salzburg one day? Yet increasingly, over the past half a century, this has turned out to be the
case, since the town does not offer only an exquisite summer opera, founded in 1956 by John Crosby, but it has developed other venues for the arts. In a rather recent poll by the New York Times, the town
ranks among the top three cities for the arts in the United States. It provides an extraordinary music scene and can invite violinists of the caliber of Pinkas Zuckerman for a short, but memorable concert series
every summer. Many painters and photographers live and work in Santa Fe, so that art is exported from there to the rest of the country and even worldwide. Consequently, many among the finest galleries reside in
Santa Fe, such as the renowned Peyton-Wright Gallery owned and managed by John Schaefer, who is of German descent. Furthermore, several distinguished art museums can be found there as well, such as the famous
one named after artist Georgia O’Keeffe.
Santa Fe’s history is second to none among United States cities, because it was Latin America’s most northern capital from 1610 to 1848, before New Mexico became part of
the United States territory won from Mexico after the Mexican-American War of 1846 to 1848. This part is called the Southwest nowadays and comprises five or six states which all received statehood in the late
1800s and early 1900s. Thus, Spanish-Austrian catholic tradition started here in 1540, when the Spanish-Mexican officer Coronado searched for gold with his troops in the name of his Spanish King Charles V, who
also happened to be Holy Roman Emperor and German Emperor – among many other titles, so that in his vast empire, the sun did not set. Once part of the United States, the Southwest became the scene of
western fare that was to become the plot of many a film of that genre a few decades later. Once again, Santa Fe gained a unique reputation during the time when it was a center for pioneering adventurers at first
and for filmmakers and actors thereafter. Thus, John Wayne stayed in Santa Fe’s La Fonda Inn, as did many of his colleagues, to enjoy the local margarita, the heart inflaming chili stew, or the amazing
blue corn tortillas. Into this historical background the Santa Fe Opera was established and enjoyed almost immediate fame, as recognized by the national and even international press…
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Christmas 1954
by Gabriele Villa
To this day, most German people are appalled by the thought of artificial Christmas trees and electrical tree lights. Therefore, I was really surprised when my cousin Annie told
me that this year she had given in to convenience and purchased a string of electrical lights for their “real” tree. “Enough with the wax candles and the constant surveillance,” she said.
However, there was a little mishap. Her husband accidentally snipped the electrical cord when he really meant to trim a branch that was hiding their new crèche. “Now I have to
run out and get another set of lights,” Annie lamented – half amused and half annoyed. To cheer her up, I told her about our Christmas celebration in Berlin – in 1954.
I was ten years old when my parents abandoned the traditional wax candles and invested in a set of electrical candles for our Christmas tree. Every year my father brought the tree
home on December 23rd and critically inspected it before its admission into our living room. If it had vast spaces where he thought it should have branches, Dad performed his usual cosmetic surgery. With an old-fashioned manual drill, he worked small holes into the tree trunk and implanted extra branches, bought especially for the purpose of giving our Christmas tree storybook perfection
Dad clipped our new candle look-alikes onto strategically selected branches, and I helped by hanging the glass ornaments. We also hung foil covered chocolate ornaments, however never
as many as I wished for. Then it was time to add the ever-tedious tinsel. In the beginning, I patiently placed it string by string, but, as the tedium grew and the enthusiasm waned, the tinsel landed on the tree
in bunches – much to my mother’s dismay. After the tree was dressed in its annual glory, the living room was reserved for the Christmas festivities.
After the church service on Christmas Eve, we walked home in the frosty grey dusk that comes early on December days. Soon it was time to light the candles. One click of the switch,
and the tree was aglow. Fake candles or not – it was beautiful! The lights reflected in every glass ornament and every piece of tinsel – sparkling like the stars in a midnight sky…
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At Home: Start Your Own Tradition – Carrot Cakes for Christmas
by Sharon Hudgins
At Christmas-time, the Germans slice their Stollen, the English flame their plum puddings, the French frost their bûches de Noël, and many Americans eat nutty fruitcake – but at our house, the traditional Christmas dessert is carrot cake.
I discovered carrot cake a long time ago, when I was a young government intern working in Washington, D.C. The cafeteria in my office building on Pennsylvania Avenue made an
excellent version of this cake – one layer, heavy, rich, and moist, with a cream cheese icing spread thinly on top. I became addicted to that carrot cake, often eating it twice a day during coffee breaks
(as the bathroom scales soon showed).
Later I learned how to make carrot cake myself. After experimenting with several different recipes, I finally developed one that duplicated the rich flavor and moist texture of
that first carrot cake I had ever eaten. The only difference was the shape: mine was made in a Bundt pan. I baked it for my husband on our first Christmas together – in Heidelberg, Germany – and he
has insisted on carrot cake at Christmas ever since. Instant tradition.
Traditions have a way of varying according to circumstances. One Christmas in southern Europe, our carrot cake contained walnuts that had been given to us by a woman in a
mountain village in Greece. In Russia, I used whatever ingredients were available in the market during the winter shortages. (Thank goodness carrots were plentiful!) In Texas, I always put pecans in it.
Sometimes I serve carrot cake with cream cheese sauce, sometimes without – but it’s essential to drench it in the sweet-fruity glaze, to produce just the right texture and flavor.
Once I baked a carrot cake as a gift for our German landlady in a farm village near Wiesbaden. She shared it with other women in the village, and soon I was besieged with
requests for the recipe. I converted all the American measurements to metric and wrote all the instructions in German. However, a few days later the landlady sheepishly told me that the recipe didn’t work.
She swore that she had followed the instructions exactly – but the cake had blown up in her oven, splattering batter all over the stove.
Much later I learned that the problem was probably a difference between German and American leavening agents – and possibly the difference in the types of flour used in
each country, too. That’s why it’s often hard for home cooks in Germany and the United States to share baking recipes. Another problem is the inaccuracies that sometimes occur when kitchen
measurements are converted from one system to another (e.g., American to metric or vice versa)…
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Walking the Biss
by George Albrecht
It was a system of water delivery that rivaled the Roman aqueducts. Today, Switzerland’s Bisses still carry water and their route makes for a unique hiking opportunity.
“The history of our Bisses are a poignant reminder of the battle for water that was never as bitter or spirited anywhere else other than the centre of the canton. Our Bisses
represent the oldest work of art in the rural genius of Switzerland […].”
Nouvelliste et Feuille d'Avis du Valais, 26 mars 1982, p.34
Paul is definitely his own breed of Renaissance Man. He holds dual American-Swiss citizenship, has traveled the world and speaks four languages. He served in the French Foreign
Legion, was captured and held as a Prisoner of War at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, and eventually retired as a senior United States Army Non-Com. He was custodian of a Forest Ranger Station for the United States
Park Service in California, where he helped bewildered tourists, guarded fire trucks and emergency response equipment, reported Park scofflaws, befriended local wildlife, and was once buried in a twelve-foot
snowdrift. Now my seventy-eight-year-old friend lives in the small village of Sarclentz near Nendaz, Switzerland, in a house built almost two hundred years ago. He is a connoisseur of fine wines, cooks a mean
fondue, is an inveterate reader, and, when not touring Europe in his well-traveled Mitsubishi van, walks the Bisses almost every day with his faithful dog, Shadow.
He walks the what? The Bisses. Switzerland’s alpine irrigation system.
These were once the lifeblood for this Rhone Valley region high above the city of Sion. They are a marvel of creative Swiss engineering and a testament to the ingenuity of twelfth-
and thirteenth-century Swiss peasants who faced the vagaries of seasonal droughts in their high valley fields and meadows. These ancient (and sometimes refurbished and relatively new) irrigation canals are hewn
directly from rock sides, or ingeniously crafted from wooden planks and then suspended from the rock walls, running in a clever web of interconnecting channels. They follow the contours of the mountains and the
folds of the rocky soil, gently meandering under the force of nature to the areas where life-giving hydration is needed.
Bisses were an indispensable communal method of water distribution among the high meadows, directing glacial runoff to valley pastures in a regulated and efficient manner. Wherever
water was needed – vineyards, orchards, meadows, farms – Bisses became to the Swiss Canton of Valais what the aqueducts were to Rome. This sophisticated water-delivery system, built over centuries
and still functional today, combines a network of trenches, sluices, and control gates to make it work…
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Family Research: A New Angle in Researching Ancestors
by James M. Beidler
A few issues ago, this column focused on some of the basic methodologies for finding the hometown of a German ancestor. There are genealogical challenges, however, that require
going beyond the basics.
One thing I have said to fellow researchers upon occasion is that sometimes you need to stop staring at a problem "straight on" and, instead, look at it from a
different angle.
A continuing goal of mine is to find the hometown in Germany for my surname immigrant ancestor, Johannes Beydeler (originally, Beutler in Germany and Switzerland). I have tried
any number of "straight on" methodologies and have spent hours upon hours working at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, poring through microfilms of church records from what seems to be half
the villages in Germany.
The relatively new technology of using DNA as a genealogical tool has fascinated me and led me to think through a project that might help me with the Beutler hometown conundrum.
It would involve using the Y chromosome test, which is based on the fact that, except for rare mutations, a father passes down his identical Y chromosome to his sons.
As a result, a Y-DNA test not only proves a father-son relationship, but, because its mutations are rare, it can show that cousins come from a common ancestor. Here is how this
project would go and what potential it has: I would be tested and would test a close cousin or two, just to make sure that our Y-DNA was the same (thereby assuring that none of us was the result of what DNA
genealogists gently call a "non-paternity event"). Then I would also do enough research to find a couple of more distant cousins (but still descendants of Johannes Beydeler) and have them tested to
firmly establish his Y-DNA profile. After that comes the fun part: I would attempt to solicit several German and Swiss Beutlers to be tested so that the results could be compared. If I found a match, then I
would need to trace their genealogy to the early 1700s (the time period of Johannes Beydeler) especially to find out in what villages their ancestors were living. My money is that Johannes Beydeler's birth
would be found in one of those villages…
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Calendar
NOVEMBER
Ferdinand, IN
November 15 – 16: Ferdinand Christkindlmarkt. Markt Bier Stube. Call 1-800-968-4578 or visit www.ferdinandindiana.org .
Davenport, IA
November 16: Program on chestnuts: A Popular Treat in Germanic Lands. German American Heritage Center, 712 West Second Street. Call 563-322-8844 or email director@gahc.org .
Leavenworth, WA
November 28 – 30: Christkindlmarkt. Call 509-548-5807 or visit www.leavenworth.org .
Denver, CO
November 28 – December 23: 9th Annual Denver Christkindl Market. Denver’s Skyline Park, 16th Street Mall and Arapahoe Street. Call 720-308-2921 or visit www.denverchristkindlmarket.com .
Bethlehem, PA
November 28: Christmas Tree Lighting and Opening of Christkindlmarkt Bethlehem. Visit www.christmascity.org .
Ambridge, PA
November 29: Christmas with Belsnickel. Old Economy Village. Pre-registration and prepayment required. Call 724-266-4500 or visit www.oldeconomyvillage.org .
DECEMBER
Washington, DC
Through January 2, 2009: A Disenchanted Playroom – Photographs by Wolfram Hahn. Goethe-Institute. Call 202-289-1200, ext. 106 or visit www.goethe.de/washington .
Texas Hill Country, TX
Throughout December: Hill Country Christmas Lighting Trail. Call 1-866-839-3378 or visit www.tex-fest.com .
Frederick, MD
First Friday of the month: Der Stammtisch at Brewer’s Alley, 124 N. Market Street. Call 301-631-0127.
Indianapolis, IN
First Wednesday and first Saturday of the month: Docent-led tours of the Athenaeum at 401 East Michigan Street. Call 317-630-4569, ext. 1 or email athfound@sbcglobal.net .
Covington, KY
December 1: City of Covington Mainstrasse Village Tree Lighting. Call 859-491-0458 or visit www.mainstrasse.org .
Pittsburgh, PA
December 5 – 6: St. Nikolaus Party. Penn Brewery, 800 Vinial Street. Call 412-237-9402 or visit www.pennbrew.com .
Fredericksburg, TX
December 5 – 7: Weihnachten in Fredericksburg. Marktplatz, 100 block of W. Main Street. Call 1-888-997-3600 or visit www.tex-fest.com/weihnachten .
Tulsa, OK
December 5 – 7: 10th Annual Christkindlmarkt. German-American Society of Tulsa. Visit www.gastulsa.org .
Leavenworth, WA
December 5 – 7, 12 – 14, 19 – 21: Christmas Tree Lighting Festival. Call 509-548-5807 or visit www.leavenworth.org .
Ambridge, PA
December 6: Christmas at the Village: A Century of Change. Call 724-266-4500 or visit www.oldeconomyvillage.org .
Boerne, TX
December 6: Weihnachts Fest Parade. Call 1-888-842-8080 or visit www.visitboerne.org .
Cincinnati, OH
December 6: German heritage book signing with Dr. Don Heinrich Tolzmann. Findlay Market. Visit www.findlaymarket.org .
Covington, KY
December 6: Saint Nicholas’ Arrival. Mainstrasse Village. Call 859-491-0458 or visit www.mainstrasse.org .
Kutztown, PA
December 6: Christmas on the Farm. Call 610-683-1589 or visit www.Kutztown.edu/community/pgchc .
New Britain, CT
December 7: 5th Annual German Advent/Christmas Service (in German). St. John’s Lutheran Church, 295-303 Arch Street. Call 860-225-4654.
Cincinnati, OH
December 7: St. Nicholas Day Celebration. German Heritage Museum. Visit www.gacl.org .
Davenport, IA
December 7: Program on Nutcrackers and Trolls: Traditional Folk Figures from Germanic Lands. German American Heritage Center, 712 West Second Street. Call 563-322-8844 or email director@gahc.org .
Covington, KY
December 12: City of Covington Candy Cane Hunt. Goebel Park. Call 859-491-0458 or visit www.mainstrasse.org .
Ambridge, PA
December 13: Christmas Fundraiser Dinner at Old Economy Village. For reservations call 724-266-4500, ext. 101 or visit www.oldeconomyvillage.org .
Ambridge, PA
December 13: Christmas at the Village. Old Economy Village. Call 724-266-4500 or visit www.oldeconomyvillage.org .
Spring, TX
December 13: Tomball German Christmas Market. Train Depot Plaza and 100 Block Market Street. Call 281-379-6844 or visit www.tomballsistercity.org .
Brentwood, NY
December 14: Weihnachtsgottesdienst. Prince of Peace Lutheran Church. Call 631-273-5444.
Danbury, NH
December 14: German Cookie Making Class. The Inn At Danbury. Spaces limited. Call 603-768-3318 or visit www.innatdanbury.com .
Davenport, IA
December 14: Annual Christmas Zither and Bell Choir Concert. Call 563-322-8844 or email director@gahc.org .
Harmony, PA
December 14: Harmony Museum’s Annual Candlelight Christmas. Call 888-821-4822, email hmuseum@zoominternet.net , or visit www.harmonymuseum.org .
San Antonio, TX
December 14: Die deutsche Weihnachtsfeier. Margarite B. Parker Chapel, Trinity University. Call 210-653-5112, email webstx@aol.com , or visit www.bethanychurchucc.org/weihnachtsfeier.aspx .
Fredericksburg, TX
December 21: 39th Annual LBJ Tree Lighting. Lyndon B. Johnson State Park, 290 Hwy. E., Stonewall. Call 1-888-997-3600 or visit www.nps.gov/lyjo .
Harmony, PA
December 31: Harmony Museum Pork and Sauerkraut buffet dinner, “Dinner for One” showing, and Bleigiessen. Call 888-821-4822, email hmuseum@zoominternet.net , or visit www.harmonymuseum.org .
JANUARY
Frederick, MD
First Friday of the month: Der Stammtisch at Brewer’s Alley, 124 N. Market Street. Call 301-631-0127.
Indianapolis, IN
First Wednesday and first Saturday of the month: Docent-led tours of the Athenaeum at 401 East Michigan Street. Call 317-630-4569, ext. 1 or email athfound@sbcglobal.net .
Washington, DC
January 3: Salute to Vienna New Year’s Concert. John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Concert Hall. Call
1-800-444-1324 or visit www.kennedy-center.org .
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