थे थ्री मोस्ट बेऔतिफुल देस (सतीस श्रोफ्फ़)

European Ethnology: The Three Most Beautiful Days of the Year in Switzerland (Satis Shroff)

It was fasnet-time (fasching, carnival) in the alpine countries of Switzerland, Austria and Germany. The streets were full of wild men and women, witches, devils, knaves, masked figures galore. And on March 2, 2009 there was, of course, the famous Swiss Morgenstraich in Basle, an unforgettable experience, after the German merry-making was long over and the witches had shed feigned tears, burned effigies symbolising the banishment of winter.

The Swiss friends across the border were looking forward to the Fasnacht, which they call in Schweizerdeutsch ‘drey scheenste Dääg,’ the three most beautiful days of the year. Swiss bankers had to face the music this time during the Fasnacht celebrations from March 2 till March 4, 2009. The financial crisis was the major object of ridicule according to the Fasnacht-Committee, which has received 42 applications for the Morgen Straich procession in Basle. They were represented 21 times by different Fasnet groups, and the Dutch were known for their good behaviour and financial generosity, even in Basle’s red-light establishments. The TV show a Swiss ‘farmer searches for a wife’ (Bauern sucht Frau), the Botellon`-drinking-orgies and the Basler dialect issue in its Kindergardens were other favourite themes. The tendency is to speak standard German from the Kindergarden onwards till the university studies.

Even Bollywood was a big theme this time, in which the blonde Swiss female figures wrapped themselves in saris, and were led by a gigantic figure who looked like an actress from Mumbai. I talked with some Swiss ladies of the clique and they were simply delighted to be a part of the tamasha or spectacle, and the Swiss were lampooning about ‘Bollymania,’ in a 60-line poem: Hollywood, Bollywood, dog-eyes, women in trance through Hindu elegance, Bollywood is love and pain, Swiss and Indian cows, the Swiss Heidi doing the belly-dance to get rid of her fat by means of Ayurveda, Karli, Werni, Paul and Andi wearing diapers like Gandhi, Mumbai Buddha and yoga, Mandala and Tandoori Masala, Indie-fever, Miss Schwyz (Rekha Dutta), ‘exootisch and erootisch! And in the end a compliment:

S’länggt, bim draime gligglig z’syy,
Drey Dääg, dangg Bollymanie!!’

I met and American student named Diana once, who wanted to get rid of her heavy US-accent and threw the accent symbolically into the Dreisam river, which I found hilarious. Perhaps the Swiss should also follow suit and throw their Schwyzer accent into the Rhine, symbolically, of course. The cliques distribute long pieces of colour paper with caustic comments, at most times verses dripped in vitriol. Here’s one such rhyming poem about standard German in Basle:

“Fir uns isch es glaar
und mir stehen der fir y
z’Basel a mim Ryy
uf Hochdytsch darf nit sy.“

I love the Swiss accent and the dialect, and it would be a shame to get rid of it. The people of Alsace (Elsass) in France, which is a German speaking enclave, promotes Alsatian-Deutsch. I can’t imagine my friend Jean-Paul who comes from the Vosges, speaking only French. Alsatian is also such a charming dialect.

On the other side of the Rhine, my countrymen say nasty things about the Schwyzer accent. They even go so far as to call it a disease of the throat. I find it rather charming to hear German being spoken with a Swiss accent. Vive la difference, nicht wahr?

According to the Fasnacht-Committee, last year there were 485 groups, and this year there were 29 less, which means at least 12,000 active Fasnacht participants walked along the lanes of Basle, lampooning about Switzerland’s world of banks and other items.

At 3:30am people started pouring into the city of Basle: mostly from abroad, Alsace, Germany and Italy. Exactly at 4am the lights went out in Basle’s inner town buildings. An uncanny silence shrouded the city, and thousands of spectators listened and looked around, holding hands lest they didn’t lose themselves among the sea of humanity around them. Suddenly, 200 lanterns began to shine and masked figures made their appearance, elegantly distributing colourful leaflets with the sujet or motto of the respective cliques, which were actually lyrics lampooning Swiss politicians, Sarkosy, Brown & Merkel included, their speeches in the past year, promises, collateral decisions that have backfired, scandals or whatever. Cortege´with cliques, Guggen musicians, Chaisen and wagons and horse-driven coaches. The wonderful and colourful costumes and sujets (printed mottos), Gugge songs, glowing lanterns, drums and shrill piccolo flutes. For your patients, you are rewarded with oranges, chocolates, sweets, roses and mimosa by the people behind the Fastnacht masks. The Basler Fastnacht developed gradually to its present unique form. In 1900 there were Trachten groups wearing traditional Swiss clothing and utensils of daily use according to one’s profession, brass bands and even a Carneval Prince. The Gugge musicians turned up at the beginning of the 20th century.

You are advised to take a break at 4:50 after the magical music session of the Morgenstraich. Have a traditional Mehlsuppe (flour soup for 7,50 Franks) or a piece of Ziibelewaaie to strengthen yourself.

A loveable Basler Fastnachts pair at the Kohlenberg were Frau Breesmeli and Herr Luschtmolch: she with a pointed nose and a long flowing beige dress, and he with an orange wig, black hat and teeth like a well-kept horse. In Liestal, 330 Chienbäse or wooden wagons with piles of wood, arranged like towers, were pulled around in the Old Town. This tradition dates back to 1902. I asked a young Swiss onlooker about her opinion and she said, “I like it.” She found ‘lässig and toll.’

Engadin has its own 2000 year old tradition when it comes to banishing winter. The 1st of March is celebrated as
the Chalandamarz every year. Schoolkids go about with heavy bells through the hamlet to drive winter away. In the early days Chalandamarz marked the beginning of the year and was celebrated to banish the evil spirits. I thought the Schwarzwäldertorte was the non plus ultra of cakes, till I tried the Engadiner torte. If you haven’t tried it, you must do it sometime. It’s delicious.

I love the sound of the shrill piccollo flutes and drums of the Swiss cliques. When you come to think of it, you’re one of the 10,000 fasnacht revellers. There are witch costume balls everywhere in the evenings, where you eat salted pork, drink schnaps, but hopefully not, one too much for the road, even though fun is the order of the day.

Whereas the Breisgauer members of the Narrenzunft celebrated their 75th jubilee on February 1, 2009, in Switzerland’s small Klinen Valley the ‘Wild Maa’ reached land at 11am on January 20, 2009 and was greeted with firecrackers. On the bank of the Rhine were the bird Gryff and the ‘Leu’ were waiting to greet the ‘Wild Maa,’ surrounded by hundreds spectators who’d come to see the spectacle. The three symbolic Swiss fasnet figures danced all the way to Small Basle for the big-shots of Basle. The highlight was the dance in the middle of the bridge across the Rhines near Käpplijoch, and a thunderous crowd, accompanied by blue coated drummers, wearing white wigs and quaint hats like the Tin Drummer.

In the middle of Thun, a town in Switzerland, the Merlinger group ‘Grönbachgusler,’ costumed as blood-suckers with vampire-like canines jutting out of the corners of their mouths, black and white striped clothes and big drums were to be admired. This was the day of the ghouls.

In Evolene (Switzerland), you could see the Strawmen in outsized clothes that are actually gunny-bags stuffed with straw, each with a broom in the hand, protruding, exopthalmic eyes and dangerous looking fangs. These figures went around the narrow lanes of Evolene after the Sunday mass was over, according to the annual Fasnacht tradition of the Canton Wallis. The masks were indeed awesome, as they went about cleaning the snow in Wallis. In Allschwil, they even had a Herrenfasnacht, a gentlemen’s celebration. Sunday was the day when the Cliques and Guggen went about with their flutes, drums and gugge-music along the streets of Aesch, Therwil, Oberwil and Laufen. This year the Allschwiller celebrated the 60th anniversary and poured into the streets in merriment, despite the rain.

It has been a long, snowy, icy, rainy winter this time, and all want to see the sun again. Spring can’t be far behind, but first we’ll have to banish winter in grand style, you know, the European way.

On February 24, 2009 the lovely town of Breisach upon the Rhine invited all fasnet-friends to celebrate the Brysacher Fasnet the whole day. And on Ash Wednesday, when everything was over, the people of Freiburg washed their wallets at 10am in the clear, cold water of the Freiburger Bächele, a sort of canal that runs through this Schwarzwald town, as it is thought to be auspicious, and will bring one happiness and financial benefits in the course of the year. What a pleasant thought, now that the WEF is over, isn’t it?

©satisshroff 2009
N.B. If you want to know more about the Swissfasnacht and want to visit the celebrations next year, do look up: www.fasnachts-comite.ch
www.fasnacht-liestal.ch

About the Author:
Satis Shroff is a prolific writer and teaches Creative Writing at the Albert Ludwigs University of Freiburg. He is a lecturer, poet and writer and the published author of three books: Im Schatten des Himalaya (book of poems in German), Through Nepalese Eyes (travelogue), Katmandu, Katmandu (poetry and prose anthology by Nepalese authors, edited by Satis Shroff). His lyrical works have been published in literary poetry sites: Slow Trains, International Zeitschrift, World Poetry Society (WPS), New Writing North, Muses Review, The Megaphone, Pen Himalaya, Interpoetry. He is a member of “Writers of Peace,” poets, essayists, novelists (PEN), World Poetry Society (WPS) and The Asian Writer.

Satis Shroff is based in Freiburg (poems, fiction, non-fiction) and also writes on ecological, ethno-medical, culture-ethnological themes. He has studied Zoology and Botany in Nepal, Medicine and Social Sciences in Germany and Creative Writing in Freiburg and the United Kingdom. He describes himself as a mediator between western and eastern cultures and sees his future as a writer and poet. Since literature is one of the most important means of cross-cultural learning, he is dedicated to promoting and creating awareness for Creative Writing and transcultural togetherness in his writings, and in preserving an attitude of Miteinander in this world. He lectures in Basle (Switzerland) and in Germany at the Akademie für medizinische Berufe (University Klinikum Freiburg) and the Zentrum für Schlüsselqualifikationen (University of Freiburg where he is a Lehrbeauftragter for Creative Writing). Satis Shroff was awarded the German Academic Exchange Prize.