Tap That Keg!!!

As his first public appearance after taking Command, my Dad presided over a Dorf Fest (Town Festival) in a little village just outside Stuttgart… When we were picked up, I don’t think any of us were too excited given the rain… But the day turned out to be beautiful in the end and now we know something we didn’t know before… Germans know how to throw a party!

The town was, as always, very quaint and the people so gracious… The Mayor seemed very excited that we and the Garrison Command team were there (I’m still getting used to that whole, having an entourage and making an entrance thing that seems to follow my family around now)… Mostly Drayton, Carolyn, and I just tried to avoid the spotlight and hide in the back with the Command Sergeant-Major’s two kids… Although the town ddid end up embarassing Carolyn by singing her Happy Birthday! The big performance came, however, when Dad gave the command to fire  the honorary black-muskets and tapped the first keg of the festival!

The pressure was definitely on with the keg-tapping! (Germans can talk some smack when it comes to having an American hold the hammer)… I  swear the handle of the mallet was going to come straight off, but  he managed to get it in only two blows (I’m told anymore than three would be quite an embarrassment, but two was commendable for an American… Haha!)

Overall it was a great time… We drank and, as always, ate way too much… There was even a great little American band that played oldies and managed to get my Dad out of his seat and dancing with us (after a number of beers of course! Haha)… I was pleasantly surprised to find that Europeans dance much better than Americans when a local guy, Brendan, grabbed me for a Hustle and Cha-Cha to “Sweet Home Alabama”… Carolyn found a little crepe stand for her new favorite dessert, nutella-crepes… Drayton and Carolyn even made some friends! (imagine our shock  when we looked over an saw our quiet Drayton chatting it up and drinking a beer with a bunch of German teens! Haha)…

I’m definitely looking forward to a lot more German festivals while we’re here. They’re relatively common, whether it’s a town fest, beer fest, or fish fest, the local towns and villages seem to be all about a chance to get-together and have a good time!… I think we’ve already got a local volksmarch on the calendar for this next week… Should be lots more fun, food, and beer! Haha

With Love from Germany… Mary Beth