Baking and cooking project

The children made her own butter, they milled grain and cereals, they baked a sort of german apple pie, they made some different drinks.

Heidi Quéré

Easter in Baden-Baden

In Germany, in the kindergarten „Le petit prince“, the Easter bunny comes every year to bring a little nest to the children. This year we celebrated Easter a little differently. The children built a large nest out of sticks in the forest. Some days later, they hiked to the nest that they had made and actually found some Easter eggs, little rabbits and chicks, all made of chocolate, as well as other goodies.
Happily loaded with their treasures, they returned to the kindergarten, where Nikolaj’s father had prepared a huge buffet with hard-boiled eggs, tomatoes, cucumbers, bread and other delicacies. This is how we celebrated Easter this year.

Heidi Quéré

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