It is once again the time of the Kirmes in the villages and towns.
In Schönberg, the Kirmes (annual fair) traditionally always takes place on the weekend after Whitsun. This year [2020] our funfair, like all the others in the area, unfortunately falls victim to coronavirus.
The photo from 1932 shows the traditional erection of the fair tree in Schönberg by the bachelors’ association. So, it is also a tradition that stretches back a century. The picture was taken in front of my parents’ house in what is now Bleialfer Straße. In the foreground, you can see the second oldest house in Schönberg, built in 1808 from the stones and wood of the old Schönberg castle. It is the house ‘Schmotz’ (derived from the German term for blacksmith, Schmid), which today houses a restaurant, ‘Zur Alten Schmiede’ (The Old Smithy). The house above ‘Troch’ (village watering place) was built in 1838 and is home today to ‘Brot & Tee Ecke Keller’ (Bread & Tea Cellar Corner).
Even though there will be no village fair this year 2020, we are all looking forward to 2021.
Claudine Schröder
Schönberg