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“RALAU!”
The center of Ramstein-Miesenbach is closed from noon to 6 p.m. Tuesday to motorized vehicles. Bahnhofstrassse is closed until 8 p.m.
Fasching is reaching its peak. Throughout the KMC, Fasching dances, fun sessions, masquerade balls and children’s parties are taking place until Wednesday.
One main event in the KMC is the Fasching parade in Ramstein-Miesenbach Tuesday. The Bruchkatze Carnival Association sponsors the annual parade, which is the biggest in the Westpfalz area with more than 1,200 participants.
“For the 61st time we organize this Fasching parade and we did our best to turn it into the season’s highlight,” said Hartmut Schäffner, chief of the parade committee. “The parade will feature 17 carnival associations, eight music groups, 21 walking groups and 24 floats.”
Ramstein-Miesenbach’s sister city Maxéville, France, will send a float with about 50 participants.
Traditionally, various American walking groups and the U.S. Air Forces in Europe Marching Band joins the event.
“It shows the good and friendly relationship between Germans and Americans in our city,” Schäffner said.
“We received registrations for the Kaiserslautern Girl Scouts, Cub Scout Pack 232, the Kool Kids Express Torch Club, the Ramstein High School Step Team and the Roller Girls of the Apocalypse,” said Eva Maldonado from the 86th Airlift Wing Host Nation office. “The 86th Civil Engineer Squadron will join the parade with a truck highlighting 60 years of Americans in Rheinland-Pfalz.”
More than 48,000 promotion items, including candies, will be tossed to the 30,000 to 50,000 spectators. The almost two-hour long parade will begin on Stutzenflur and August-Süssdorf-Strasse. Food and beverage booths will be placed along the 3.25 kilometer route.
Ramstein’s official Fasching shout is “Ralau.”
Residents along the route are asked to decorate their houses to support the celebration.
“Also, parents should watch their kids, and for safety reasons, spectators shouldn’t get too close to the floats,” Schäffner said.
Spectators are encouraged to buy a button for €2 from vendors on the street. This button helps finance the yearly event and it grants free admission to the Fasching party, which will take place after the parade in the Haus des Bürgers.
A Fasching carnival, which features a merry-go-round and activity booths, will be set up in front of the Haus des Bürgers from Sunday through Tuesday.
In the main Fasching cities of Mainz, Köln and Düsseldorf, parades will be held on Rose Monday. Spectators from Germany and around Europe come to these cities to watch the annual spectacle with floats, bands, dancing and marching groups. Participants in vehicles will throw candy or hand out drinks to the crowd along the streets. It is traditional for revelers to sing, sway and dance during the five-hour parades, which all start at 11:11 a.m.
The official Fasching greeting in Köln is “Alaaf,” and in Mainz and Düsseldorf, it’s “Helau.”
Many Fasching events for children take place Tuesday (Shrove Tuesday). Often, children don’t have school that day. And usually, people who work take off in the early afternoon. In most cases, employers allow them to do so, and stores, banks and official institutions close anyhow at 1 or 2 p.m. Tuesday.
In Kaiserslautern, the first street Fasching celebration will begin at 2:11 p.m. Monday at Schillerplatz. The second will start at 2:11 p.m. Tuesday near the city hall. Local carnival associations will present their Fasching princesses, dancing groups and club members holding funny speeches. The official shout is “Kalau.”
