for fasching's sake!

The Fasching season has come to an end and folks here are mourning ... (literally, on ash Wednesday hoards of people dressed in black parade through the streets in a funeral procession sobbing like beer will never flow again). But it kicked off with a "Weiberfasching" bang in Amberg last week and we witnessed (and participated in) all the madness.

Weiberfasching translates to Women’s Carnival Day and takes place the Thursday before the Fasching (mardi gras) weekend. It's a day were women rule all and men dress up as women to try to get in on the action.

I must admit there were some damn fine sexy man-women at this party.  Jeremy, Andreas and Franz, on the other hand,  looked like an accidental 80's rock band. Andreas obviously plays bass.

If a man decides to don his manly attire on this day and it happens to include a tie, it is customary, and downright fun, for the women to cut it off.

The town center was packed with folks in costume. The music was playing, drinks were flowing and booties were shakin'. Near the end of the night I was lovingly attacked by a giant bear and a witch stuck her very long nose in my gluhwein.

The Weiberfasching is rumored to have started around the time of women's rights. In the days of ole, women were not allowed to participate in any Fasching activities, so the mens gave us our own day.

Then we burned some bras -  but we still kept our day.