Grüß Gott? Grüß Gott readers! This month the Linfield gang and I had the amazing opportunity to attend a special Austrian event. On a sunny Sunday morning, the gang and I took two trains and a bus to a town outside of the province of Vienna, called Perchtoldsdorf. The director of the Institute, Ingrid, is from this town and she invited us to come to her village and participate in the festival, “Hiataeinzug,” translating to watch guard parade.
For over 600 years, the community of Perchtoldsdorf has come together to express their gratitude for a rich wine/grape harvest. The vineyards are absolutely beautiful and although we didn’t see them at the time, Ingrid told us that scattered throughout the vineyards, there are small white cabins/cottages, where wine watch guards would sleep and live for a number of weeks while the grapes become ripe. These guards would make sure that people wouldn’t steal the grapes and would even shoot at them if they thought they encountered a thief. After the harvest, the guards come back to the village and everyone celebrates the harvest. Although, nowadays guards don’t really live out in these small cottages, but the community still comes together to celebrate.
When we got to Perchtoldsdorf, the streets were busy and bustling. I didn’t have any expectations going into the day, but I quickly realized that there were a ton of people present and the excitement was palpable. As we arrived there was a church service that was just ending. The festival starts with a sort of thanksgiving service that includes some really amazing music. Even though we weren’t able to make the service, we were able to hear some of that music as it was ending. It was so gorgeous, including Schubert and the like.
With the service ending, we were able to meet up with Ingrid. With the end of the church service, comes the start of the processional. First comes the Hüter (literally “guardians,” more like the watch guards) on beautifully and festively decorated horses. Then comes the band that was inside performing during the service. Following the band is the heavy “Hiatapritschen,” a huge wooden pyramid decorated with leaves, ribbons, that is constantly being held and rotating, being held by a strong person. Ingrid told us that the Hiatapritschen is extremely heavy and two people need to stand on either side of it to make sure it doesn’t fall.
After the service and the processional, everyone moves towards the stage and people on stage sing a bit, people give speeches, and then some people start to make fun of the prominent members of the village (like the mayor or priest). This is all done in good faith though and even though everything was in German and I could not understand, it was clear that this was both a comical and heartwarming event.
During this time, the gang, Ingrid, and I waited for the local taverns to open so we could get some delicious food. While we waited, we snacked on local desserts and sipped on the newest batch of wine that had been produced by the local vineyards. During this time we also decided to climb to the top of the bell tower (which is part of a historical defense tower) that Perchtoldsdorf has. When we got up to the top we had 360 degree views of the village and off into the horizon. It was so beautiful and I am so glad we were able to see everything in such an exquisite light.
After our time in the bell tower, Ingrid took us throughout the village to different restaurants where we first had a delicious meat goulash and then later some fried meats and potatoes. As well, since this was a festival to celebrate wine and the village’s heritage, we all drank wine to celebrate. Glasses of wine were incredibly inexpensive. Each glass was only about 3-4 Euros. Ingrid told us that this festival was a bit of an excuse for everyone to come together and drink heavily. Although I knew that drinking and alcohol are a big part of Austrian culture, I think that was the first time where I had been around Austrians that were heavily intoxicated. I will say, I think I heard German in its loudest form!
Most of the attendees of the festival were wearing tracht- or traditional Austrian clothing. For men this is typical lederhosen and for women- dirndls. Rachel and I had set out on a quest to find some dirndls earlier in the week to wear during the festival. During one of our classes another professor of ours had taken us to a shop that produces tracht. It was so fun to try on all the outfits. I was amazed, though, that the dirndls we were trying on started at 1000 Euros and the cost could keep climbing (we were able to find a great quality dirndl at a lower price at another store). A dirndl consists of a short blouse, a long dress (it can be other lengths too), and an apron. Traditional dirndl dresses often have corset-like tops and can be quite form fitting.
Many people in the city don’t wear tracht out and about. Most of the time, they wear them to special events or to work in the service industry. However, out in the mountains or in rural parts of Austria, people still wear tracht as their everyday wear. Ingrid told us that it was so special at the festival that people of all ages were wearing tracht- it meant that a cultural tradition was still intact.
All in all, it was so great to be invited to spend time with Ingrid in her village celebrating something that is pretty uniquely Austrian. It was so fun to take part in an experience where everyone was happy and excited to do what we were there to do. We were so honored that Ingrid asked us to come and see something that was clearly very important to her. Gosh, it will be so hard to say goodbye to her- we have all formed such a strong bond with her! The event also highlighted how serious people take their traditions and just how important it is to keep these traditions going. It is so serious that it was inscribed in the National Inventory of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Austria by the Austrian Commission for UNESCO in 2009. Each tradition listed on the inventory conveys the richness of Austria’s cultural heritage and strives to continue these traditions into the future.
Auf Wiedersehen for now!
Lizzie
If you want to learn more, check out these links!
https://www.perchtoldsdorf.at/english/Wine/The_Procession_of_the_Weinhueter