Friday 23rd November
This moon was seen low in the sky over Drachselsried around 07:00. The colour and detail was spectacular.
The Kirwa started on 31st August on a wet and cold day, but this did not stop the procession from the village centre to the Schlossbräu beer hall. After a wonderful summer the weather changed on the first day.
As the village has two well known breweries, they take turns in share the Kirwa festival. Kirwa is a combination of religious and beer festivals, plus on Saturday the open air street market.
For many people, the chance to drink this years beer in their own homes, was available in bottles. But this does not have the same effect as drinking from a Masskrug (1 litre) surrounded by hundreds of local people, guests and visitors.
Due to the weather, the number of market stalls and visitors was down on previous years, but at least it stayed dry.
This normally used as the storage hall for the brewery, but makes a good place to enjoy a great bier and food. Lively music on all four days.
Kirwa is held every year at the end of August.
Blütenstaub is the German word for pollen and this April arrives as one of the largest on record. The yellow powder comes from all the trees in the forest combined with the pollen from apple, cherry and plum trees plus all the flowers. Normally winds and rains have washed it away.
This year, due to the milder winter and little snow or rain, everything came together at once. Mid April was hot at around 27c. Wikipedia has a good explanation.
Check out the local facilities in Drachselsried
The 45th Drachselsrieder Kirwa was held from the 1st to 4th September. As 1st September is also the first official day of autumn the weather decided to change from the 26-28c from earlier in the week to a cold and wet 16c. The Kirwa is a church festival originally called Kirchweih, now a yearly village festival.
The village is very lucky to have two successful breweries the, “Schlossbräu” and “Falterbräu” (See map for location). Each takes it in turns to host the Kirwa, this year it is the Falter Breweries turn. The horse drawn beer wagon leads the procession followed by different groups from the village, finishing at the brewery. One of the first actions is the tapping of the first Mass bier by the village Burgermeister. The rest of the evening was spent talking, eating and drinking, with a local music group playing.
The highlight for the many visitors is the street market that follows the main road through the village. The number of stalls varies, this year it was just under 200. Plenty of Streetfood stalls. Weather was depressing. but that did not stop the people from enjoying themselves.
This is the day for seniors meet up and enjoy time spent together. Members of the local Senior homes are also present.
The last day, Normally for clubs, companies and Burgermeisters from other towns and villages. The festival closes before midnight.
The Hotel Falter is currently undergoing a major renovation. But the restaurant is still open and serving meals.
This is the largest hotel in Drachselsried, and has been in the family for many years. For English speaking guests, it is worth knowing that credit cards are not taken. The hotel normally has plenty of parking spaces and is situated a few metres from the village centre. Adjacent is a family glass business. 2 banks, the Town Hall (Rathaus) and the Information centre and post office. A chemist is also available.
For more facilities in Drachselsried please visit the Interactive Map.
Rufbus is the local name for a “Call a Bus” service between certain villages around Drachselsried. Different services are available from some of the main connection points. For Drachselsried this is Bodenmais. Others include Zwiesel, Viechtach.
Bookings can be made under 09921 94 99 964, English spoken, or on-line at www.arberland-verkehr.de (only in German)
Using the “Call a bus” service from Drachselsried, the bus is available between Drachselsried, Arnbruck and Viechtach, then connections by train can be made. A very good trip using Rufbus is Drachselsried to Viechtach, the train to Goteszell, train to Zwiezel, train to Bodenmais and bus to Drachselsried. All for about €12 per person. A great way to spend the day sighting, and the train ticket can be used multiple times on the one day. Other trips from Drachselsried to Bodenmais and onto Munich, or Passau can be made. Ticket prices are for train fares are different. Also a great idea in the wintertime to go skiing.
Very popular is taking the train and the cycling back along the prepared forest track. Bikes can be taken on the bus and train.
As long as the Rufbus is booked at least 1 hour in advance there should be no problem, the bus services finishes at 21:00, on Sundays about 15:20. Car free travel from Drachselsried to many parts of Bavaria can be undertaken using the local Rufbus, or “Call a bus” service.
Great idea, good for the environment and your pocket. More information on the Drachselsried resources
Images from the 2016 Christkindlmarkt held in the Dorfplatz, http://www.cheapativanpriceonline.com Drachselsried on Sunday 4th December 2016.
In partnership with the Bavarian Government, the Drachselsried area is upgrading the local Internet cable to super fast broadband, or Breitband. This should be completed and in operation by the end of the year. Resulting in download speeds between 30Mbits – 50Mbits, and uploads speeds 2.7Mits – 10Mbits.
The installation of glass fibre cables for the high speed Internet Broadband is under way. This cable extends from Drachselsried to Blachendorf and Oberried.
Road works everywhere
Existing users will still be able to access the Internet with DSL, a new cable will provide VDSL-DSLAM. This means to access the Internet connection a new router will be needed. The FritzBox 7490 is recommended, there are international language versions available.
An insider confirms that when the system is fully operational, towards the end of 2016, a free Hotspot at the local Information centre will be available.
Many Clubs and organisations run a “Christbaumversteigerung” or Auction after Christmas each year to raise funds for their organisation.
On the 6th January 2016, it was the turn of the Drachselsried Freiwillige Feuerwehr (volunteer Fire Service) to hold its annual Christbaumversteigerung, meaning Auction. The hall at the Falter Brewery opened at 18:00 and the evening began at 19:00.
Each item had a number. The tickets cost €1 for 3 tickets and all the prizes were donated. Members of the Fire Service went from table to table selling the tickets. Most tables were full of guests and won prizes, which range from wine, spirits, and bier krugs, chocolates, teddy bears, dishes and many small items.
Welcome to the new updated Drachselsried website. As an Englishman living in the village, it made sense to create a local website about the village and what type of lifestyle is possible.
Many changes and updates are planned and information for inclusion in this website is welcome. A video from a Drone and a drive through are under way. It takes time to assemble information.