Week 21: Liebstattsonntag & Schlögener Blick
Today is Liebstattsonntag
Which translates to ‘Show Love Sunday’ and is special to our town in Gmunden. As an outsider, it seems like another version of Valentines day. Bakeries displaying their homemade gingerbread heart cookies decorated with special love messages. Balloon hearts hanging from the entrance archways in the city center and living booths are placed around town talking about what this day means.
Its historical significance dates back to the 17th century. In 1641, Bishop Leopold Wilhelm of Austria invited all the poor of the city of Gmunden to a joint meal on the fourth Sunday of Lent. Feeding the poor was a way they “showed their love” – as in love for one’s neighbors. While traditions have evolved, Leibstattsonntag remains celebrated every year by the thousands of people who gather in Gmunden showing love and friendship with a gingerbread heart. It begins with a mass in the church and is followed by a parade through the cobblestone streets of old town and ends in the town hall square with speeches and a concert. Here is a photo I found of the parade from 2017.
In 2014, Liebstattsonntag was included in the list of Intangible Cultural Heritage Sites of UNESCO. This year, it will be a virtual event. I am tired of missing traditional events because of covid, but Eric and I purchased two gingerbread hearts and walked through the town anyway.
Yesterday was SWAN Day
At first I thought it was a day for the animal kind of Swan, just like National Dog Day. After googling ‘March Holidays’ finding inspiration for a blog topic, I learned ‘SWAN’ is an abbreviation for ‘Support Women Artists Now.’ Then I remembered Eric’s Grandma made us a quilt with swans on it! I thought it was a cool coincidence that a female quilt artist made a quilt of swans for me and Eric and we now live in a place where swans are seen gliding across the lake outside our window. As we went for a walk down the esplanade to pick up our Liebstattsonntag heart cookies, we also brought the swan quilt with us. Checkout her blog where she shares the quilts she makes.
Schlögener Blick and a Castle Ruin
If you have ever been to Horseshoe Bend in Arizona, then the Schlögener Blick will provide you with a familiar feeling. One of many curves along the Danube River creates this unique view with Castles and fortresses waiting to be explored. The castle ruin we found was Burgruine Haichenbach and dates back to 1160. Most of the castle was destroyed but the castle gate, parts of the ring wall and the restored residential tower are left standing.
Since the Roman Empire, the Danube has played a major role in delivering commercial goods between 10 different countries (Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Romania, Moldova, Bulgaria, and Ukraine) and we saw two barges navigating the water during our time there this weekend.
