A dedicated follower of tradition

The dirndlkleid is in. Lederhosen are high fashion and at the same time, work-a-day clothing for some. You might think these are only worn to entertain tourists, but here on Embach's big day, the village has seen a brilliant array of traditional dress worn as “Sunday best” rather than fancy dress.

Tradition doesn't end with the clothing. If there is something to celebrate, there is a formula that has been honed through the ages, is followed faithfully and enjoyed immensely.

Put your head out of the window while I am writing this, and you will hear the oompah of big brass instruments thumping out folk music. Today we hosted he official launch of Bauernherbst, farmers' autumn, the annual promotional campaign to woo tourists to visit during the lovely autumn months.

Preparations have been going on at fever pitch for the past few days and the village street early this morning was lined with stands, a climbing wall had appeared, band instruments polished and uniforms cleaned, vats of gulasch were being heated and bauernkrapfen fried (these are farmer-size doughnuts often eaten with sauerkraut).

By mid-morning the tables and benches in rustic bars constructed along the street were filling up, fields were taken over as car parks, stands were busy and the band was playing the old traditional “heimat” numbers. A bevy of officials, VIPs from the regional administration managed to break with tradition to deliver speeches pretty much within the 30 minutes allotted. Then rather than cutting a ribbon, tradition says you hit the whole thing off with a mallet walloping a tap into a (full) beer keg.

A parade of eccentric floats, folk dancing, a bit of thigh-slapping schuhplattler, music and whip cracking demonstration by a local group of schnaltzers, followed by gulasch in the fire brigade garage, coffee and cake outside one resident's house, gröstl in the village centre, bread being baked along the street, stands selling locally-made produce and everywhere folk and patriotic music played by local groups and Embach's village band.

Dancing in the street - the village centre was packed

Everyone was in a good mood, everyone greeting friends and acquaintances, children had fun, families enjoyed themselves, teenage boys goggled at the girls in dirndls rather than their usual jeans, older folk strolled, soaking up the atmosphere and the beer.

Dirndls are in even for fashion-conscious teenagers

That traditions are very much alive is demonstrated in music, in dress, in food and drink and the way the village parties; not for reasons of publicity and to entertain visitors, but because it is the way small village communities have done things for a long time for themselves. Tourists who came across our big day by chance, struck lucky and will be telling the folks back home what fun they had.

Even horses were dressed for the occasion