Friday, February 27, 2009

Martenitsa

March 1. is a day of the rich Bulgarian tradition, and wishes for health, love and a good harvest. This is the time when Bulgarians exchange amulets - the so called bulgarian "Martenitsa" and tell each other, "Chestita Baba Marta" (Happy Granny March).
Martenitsas offered by the Deutscher Kindergarten Erich-Kästner
Martenitsa is a small piece of adornment, made of white and red yarn and worn from March 1st until the 22nd March (or the first time an individual sees a stork or swallow). Mart is the Bulgarian word for the month of March.
The name of the holiday is Baba Marta, a Bulgarian tradition related to welcoming the upcoming spring. The month of March, according to Bulgarian folklore, marks the beginning of springtime.
Therefore, the first day of March is a traditional holiday associated with sending off winter and welcoming spring.

Algarve Carnival

Since the Algarve climate is so benign, carnivals take place in February.
The events seem to be a amalgamation of pagan springtime ceremonies and the Christian celebration of Shrove Tuesday.
In Algarve, we go for a more markedly out-doorsy approach and parade around in themed floats and suchlike.
Many towns and villages hold their own events, but the oldest Portuguese carnival, is the one in Loulé.
It would seem that planning for Algarve carnivals starts early in the year, and many locals get involved, making the thousands of paper flowers that adorn the floats. Local participation at the actual events extends to the farmers, who turn out in their tractors to pull the floats. Many get into the mood of the event, with their outfits themed to suit.
Each Algarve carnival seems to have something different to offer.
Most carnivals have a theme, and there's much good-natured satiricising of life's woes and joys, with a particular penchant for having a tilt at politicians, both local and national.
One notable aspect was the wide spread of age groups among attendees. It would seem that Algarve carnivals have something for everyone.
Babies and young children were dressed up for the occasion.
Many of the older young folk sprinted about spraying each other with coloured goo, and popping the occasional egg over each others' heads. It seems that this behaviour is a throwback to pre-carnival times, when rival gangs of youths would throw discarded food and mud at each other. Then, someone came up with the notion of formal processions of carts...

Carnival Song "Carnaval vem Chegando"

O CARNAVAL VEM CHEGANDO

O Carnaval vem chegando

para brincarmos a valer

Máscaras disto ou daquilo

Para ninguém nos conhecer.

O João tem papelinhos

A Maria Serpentinas

Ó Rita traz um apito

Vê lá se não desafinas.

(Refrão)

Vem o Zorro e o bandido

O Drácula e a princesinha

e até o Lobo Mau

dá a mão à avózinha.

(Refrão)

Carnival in Deutscher Kindergarten Erich-Kästner

Carnival in the Kindergarten “Le petit prince“ in Baden-Baden

We celebrated our carnival on February 19. This is the day which is called “schmutziger Donnerstag”, which means “Dirty Thursday” or “Fat Thursday”. In shops, in the streets and everywhere people were dressed up in pyjamas or masqueraded as cowboys, princesses, pirates or something else.
In the kindergarten the theme was “Fairy Tales in Europe” and especially the story “Les bons amis”. So you can even see a carrot on one of the pictures.
We danced and sang songs, we ate a lot of nice things and we made loud noises with music instruments. The people didn’t greet each other by saying “hello”, but “hellau” and “narri narro”. At the end we were tired and happy. So we are awaiting impatiently our next carnival.

Heidi Quéré, Kindergarten Le petit prince

Carnival in Germany – Baden-Württemberg


Carnaval is a festive season which occurs immediately before Lent; the main events are usually during January and February. Carnival typically involves a public celebration or parade combining some elements of a circus, masque and public street party. People often dress up or masquerade during the celebrations, which mark an overturning of daily life.

Alemannic Fastnacht
The « Swabian-Alemannic" carnival begins on January 6 (Epiphany/Three Kings Day). This celebration is known as Fastnacht. Variants are Fasnet, Fasnacht or Fasent. Fastnacht is held in Baden-Württemberger, parts of Bavaria, and Alsace. Switzerland and Vorarlberg, in Austria, also hold this celebration. The festival starts on the Thursday before Ash Wednesday, known in these regions as Schmutziger Donnerstag or Fettdonnerstag. In standard German, schmutzig means "dirty", but actually the name is from the local dialect where schmutzig means "fat." Elsewhere the day is called "Women's Carnival" (Weiberfastnacht), being the day when tradition says that women take control. In particular regions of Tyrol, Salzburg and Bavaria traditional processions of the Perchten welcome the springtime. The Schönperchten ("beautiful Perchts") represent the birth of new life in the awakening nature, the Schiachperchten ("ugly Perchts") represent the dark spirits of wintertime. Farmers yearn for warmer weather and the Perchtenlauf (Run of Perchts; typical scenery) is a magical expression of that desire. The nights between winter and spring, when evil ghosts are supposed to go around, are also called Rauhnächte ("rough nights").
Heidi Quéré

Monday, February 2, 2009

Winter pictures from France - The snow

Monday, 2/02/2009 - It's snowing in Ploubazlanec. Pupils are very happy !

Sunday, February 1, 2009

The english version of the "LES BONS AMIS", "The good friends"


"It's snowing so much that the fields are completely white, completely white.
The little rabbit has nothing left to eat. Nothing.
He opens the door.
"Brrr!!!.... How cold it is!"
The little rabbit goes looking for something, anything to eat.
And suddenly he finds ... guess what?
Two orange carrots, this big, that were sleeping under the snow.
Munch, munch, munch. He eats one of them.
He isn't hungry anymore.
He says to himself:
"It's so cold, it's snowing so much, that the little horse, my neighbor, must surely be hungry. I'm going to take the other carrot to his house."
The little rabbit runs, runs to the home of the little horse, his neighbor.
Knock! Knock!
The little rabbit opens the door...
Ah! The little horse isn't there!!
The little rabbit leaves the carrot ... and departs.
In the snow that slides and cracks the little horse is looking for something to eat. And suddenly he finds ... guess what?
A big beet, white and purple, that formed a little bump under the snow.
Munch, munch, munch. The little horse eats the beet.
Good, good! He isn't hungry anymore, and he returns to his house.
He returns home, sees the carrot, and says:
"Who brought me that? It's the little grey rabbit: I saw his little pawprints in the snow! That little grey rabbit is so nice!"
Then he says to himself:
"It's so cold, it's snowing so much, that the sheep must surely be hungry. I'm going to take him this carrot right away and then come back home."
The little horse gallops! Clop! Clop! Clop! Clop! Clop! Clop! To the big sheep's house.
Knock! Knock!
The little horse opens the door.
Ah! The sheep isn't there!
The little horse sets the carrot down and leaves.
The big curly sheep had gone to look for something to eat. And suddenly he finds ... guess what?
A red cabbage hidden deep in the snow.
He eats the cabbage leaf by leaf, munch, munch, munch.
He's not hungry anymore and he returns to his house.
The sheep enters his home, sees the carrot and says:
"A carrot, who brought me that? It's the little horse, I bet: I see his hoofprints in the snow!"
And the sheep also says:
"It's so cold, it's snowing so much, the deer must surely be hungry: I'll take him the carrot and then come back home."
The big sheep trots, trots on the snow, which is slippery and crackly, on the frozen fields through the woods.
All the way to the house of the little red deer.
Knock, knock, the sheep opens the door...
Ah! The deer isn't there!
The sheep leaves the carrot and departs.
The deer had gone to look for something to eat. He had found ... guess what? A tuft of frozen grass and the buds on a little pine tree.
He eats so much of that that he isn't hungry anymore.
He goes back home, sees the carrot and says:
"Who brought me that? The brown sheep, I think: he left a bit of wool behind as he left here."
And the deer also says:
"It's so cold, it's snowing so much, the grey rabbit must surely be hungry. I'm going to take him this carrot right away and then I'll come back home."
The little red deer jumps, jumps, over the hedges, over the holly, in the leafless woods.
He arrives, he finally arrives at the door of the little rabbit.
When he returned home, the little grey rabbit had fallen asleep.
The deer opens the door very quietly and sets down the carrot, very quietly, next to the bed.
The rabbit wakes up.
The deer says to him:
"It's so cold, it's snowing so much, perhaps you have nothing to eat! I brought you a carrot."
And so it was that, from the horse to the sheep, from the sheep to the deer, the carrot returned to the little grey rabbit.
Ah! Such good, good friends!