„Follow the call of the mountain!” – Foto: Olha Kuzmyn
If I had to summarize the annual bier festival Bergkirchweih in one word, it would be “Prosit!” On the one hand because this word was coined by students around the 18th c., and they remain the most numerous “target audience”. On the other hand because “Prosit” or “Prost” is the German equivalent for “Cheers”, which explains one of the main purposes of Bergkirchweih.
Another famous motto of the festival Der Berg ruft! (“Follow the call of the mountain!”) becomes clear once you come closer and hear its excited roar. You simply cannot miss it or get lost, all you have to do is just follow the crowd of people that moves only in one direction – towards the festival. Berg is a unique creature that appears once a year, sparkles with thousands of lights and makes everyone drink beer (not that bad, right?)
Surprising facts…
- the local nickname of the festival is Berg, but Franconians call it Berch (because it’s simply how they pronounce it)
- it is well known as the “fifth season of the year” in Erlangen because almost the whole city stops working and goes to Berg
- it was founded in 1755 and was just a big trade market at first. Later on, the local government discovered the beer cellars which soon became the main attraction here. So, in fact it’s 55 years older than the Oktoberfest in Munich!
- at Berg you have a chance to ride on the biggest transportable ferry-wheel in Europe which is 55 metres high and it’s really worth it.
The opening
The official opening this year was on the 12th of May but actually you could grab a first bite of a pretzel a bit earlier, namely on the Father’s day almost a week before this date.
The opening ceremony “Anstich” itself is a very spectacular event. According to the old tradition, the city mayor has to tap the first barrel. Then the first lucky ones get free beer from this barrel. The last barrel of beer is also never wasted; it is burried at the location of the next year’s opening ceremony.
Music
Berg has many voices. Foto: Olha Kuzmyn
Berg has many voices: people’s talks, clinking of mugs, records of popular songs and, of course, live music. Young and already famous local bands play covers of popular German and English songs, people dance on benches and tables (though it’s forbidden) and this altogether creates a special spirit.
A peculiar thing here are the songs by Bavarian artists, mainly because of the dialect. Each region in Germany has its own local language and Bavarians have definitely “suceeded” in it. To have an idea of what I’m talking about, just listen to the song “Ham kummst” (heimkommen – come home) by Seiler und Speer (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GWgisTPKCdk).
People
Earlier, to tell the truth, I thought that Germans wear their traditional costumes, Dirndl (a kind of dress) and leather trousers, only in movies… I was so wrong. Even small kids have cute little dresses and trousers. And the preparation and purchasing of these outfits start long before the festival: sell & buy groups on Facebook are usually overflowed by the offers.
Of course, it’s a beer festival, which means that there are some drunk people. Nevertheless, the security does a really good job and in most cases visitors don’t overuse the opportunity to drink. Moreover, only here you can be invited by a stranger for a short dance, on condition that your dance anyway does not last more than 5 minutes and you probably won’t ever meet again.
Kids and adults like taking a ride here. Foto: Olha Kuzmyn
Family’s Day
Known also as Familientag or Kindertag. Actually, I would call it “students‘ day” and not because students are still kids inside. This is what you almost never find in tourist guidance books though it has a major financial value for students. On Family’s Day the prices of many things at the festival, starting from sweets up to carrousels, are reduced almost by 50%! So you can buy twice as many treats and have twice as much fun for the same price.
Conclusions?
Many of the visitors call Bergkirchweih a “cultural shock” or “the total madness”, I would advise everyone to come here themselves and form their own opinions. If you like beer and sausages it’s the right place for you. If you don’t you should at least experience the spirit of Berg.