Embach Times: Magical transformation

This week Embach celebrates 200 years since the founding of the parish. The church is a lot older, the original chapel, later incorporated into the present building, was built in about 1050.

Part of the celebration includes an exhibition of photographs of the village assembled from private collections and taken over many years. It seemed a good idea to take new pictures from similar locations, to show how things have changed…or not.

The village centre is little changed

Setting out early, well before the six o’clock “wake up” call from the big bell in the church tower, it was light, but the village was in shade, the sun just brushing the snow atop the Bernkogel with a blush of pink.

Suddenly, as the sun hoisted itself into view, shafts of light streamed across the fields to the village centre turning wood-covered houses to bronze and bathing the church in a golden glow. No-one else was there to witness this magical transformation as dull light became brilliant and long shadows stretched across the meadows.

To think that this happens almost every day in summer when there is nobody about to gasp at the drama! Maybe hotels should rouse visitors out of their beds on just one day in the week, so they don’t miss it.

Among the many photographs in the collection are views across the village towards the Hochkönig mountain – some distance away but a still a dramatic backdrop when looking north. Here is Father Michael Seer the local priest for over 40 years until 1978 together with his housekeeper Frau Wawi. The priest was often to be found enjoying a beer and playing cards in one of the local pubs and Frau Wawi was renowned for her hens and also cared for the priest’s two cows.

The celebrations will include tours of the church and tower, and a march through the village on Sunday 16^th of June, of the clubs and associations, of course with the village band, concluding with mass.

The day would be even more special with an early start to see the magic of the sunrise.