The primary purpose of my trip was to see our son Will who was wrapping up a six month internship at Porsche Engineering in Stuttgart (lucky guy!)  In planning the trip I discovered that Lenzburg, Switzerland—my great-great-grandmother’s home and the setting for the first part of the historical novel I’m working on–was only two hours away from Stuttgart.  A side-trip was in order.

I decided to time my visit around the annual Jugendfest (Youth Festival) celebration, hoping to get a sense of the town’s customs and costumes. My D.C.-based sister Michelle offered to join me and we met up in front of the central clock in Zurich’s main train station for the thirty minute ride out to Lenzburg.  Once there we took a short taxi ride over to the Hotel Krone which has been in operation since 1765.  Situated at the base of the hill below the schloss (castle) and a five minute walk from the old town, the location was ideal and the gummy bears on our pillows set the tone for the rest of the sweet and sometimes silly weekend.

From my research, I knew that the 400 year old Jugendfest celebration included a week of activities culminating with a parade of children dressed in white followed by a mock battle fought between teenage cadets and a group described online as “booty lusting irregulars” (?!) before ending in fireworks launched from the ramparts of the castle.  I thought it sounded ein bischen hokey.  But happily, it proved to be absolutely charming.

Michelle and I spent the day before the main events exploring the beautifully preserved schloss and its cheery formal gardens.

That afternoon we toured the town’s numerous fountains that had been decorated with flowers by local townspeople.  Our tour guides wore the city’s cornflower blue and white colors.

While strolling around we saw firemen stringing evergreen boughs and hanging flower bouquets causing some seasonal confusion. The whole town smelled like Christmas in the height of summer! In the main church where we enjoyed a dress rehearsal of the children’s concert (including an impassioned vocal performance of “Let It Go” and a spirited xylophone rendition of “It Don’t Mean A Thing if You Ain’t Got That Swing”) the floral displays were especially wonderful.

Marching bands and drum corps were everywhere.  An English-speaking woman standing near us for the evening band competition told us that though she and her husband had moved away from Lenzburg they try to come back every year for Jugendfest and their children and grandchildren all participate.  The local townspeople were so enthusiastic about every little detail.

Later that night Will drove over  from Stuttgart and the next morning chatted with more drummers outside our hotel before we headed over to the main square to see the children receive a ceremonial coin from the mayor and then parade with their teachers through the old town.

They were followed by the high-spirited teenage cadets wielding guns with flowers peeping out of the barrels and those “booty-lusting irregulars” which turned out to be adults dressed as marauders from around the globe.

The irregulars were decidedly unpolitically correct. But the adults enthusiastically playing these multicultural villains clearly had no problems with ethnic stereotypes.

After they paraded through town we all marched out to the fields to watch the battles that raged across the farmland.

Finally ending up at the local fairgrounds where a substantial replica of Schloss Lenzburg was burned to the ground.

That night we sat on the edge of one of the decorated fountains in front of our hotel and watched the children parade through the streets one more time–this time with beautiful paper lanterns–before fireworks sparkled above the schloss.

As advertized, the Lenzburg Jugendfest was the festiest of festivals! I almost hesitate to share it with you because I don’t want it overrun with visitors but my, oh my, it was magical and definitely worth attending if your travels take you nearby.

If you choose to go, the annual Lenzburg Jugendfest happens the week leading up to the second Friday of July but the maneuvers are only every other year.  Check here http://www.lenzburg.ch/de/jugendfest.html for further details and look for programs and other information at the tourist information office which is located right across from the Hotel Krone.   

Happy Birthday to my husband, M.J.  Well before Google was invented, he became the search engine in my world. Brilliant, clever, kind and decent–he’s provided the answers to so many questions in my life. Big and little.

Our children mock our geeky courtship–we met in our university’s honors program, competed on the same College Bowl team and got engaged amidst the stacks when he said “what will our children think when we tell them I asked you to marry me in the library?”

Thirty-three years later we know what they think.  They think we were nerdy nerd nerds. (Though I can’t imagine a more fitting and romantic place for two wannabe know-it-alls to commit to spend their lives together.)

When I tell the longer version of our story, I always say that M.J. was the most interesting guy I’d ever dated.  I knew I’d never be bored with him.  And I was right.

Happy Birthday, honey!

Here are a few other things that engaged me this week:

This elegant cast iron kitchenware.

Hand-dyed yarn inspired by duck hunting season.

Learning about the origins of one of my favorite colors—Vosey blue.

Some musings on Sunbonnet Sue and other sentimentalized quilt imagery.

Developing empathy through reading literary fiction.

And finally, painter Llius Lleo talks about becoming an artist.   Lleo on inspiration –”There’s not unlimited space in your brain. . .if you need to see more to do your work, maybe you should do something else.”

Off to make a birthday cake — Happy Weekend!

You may recall from my last post that I was intrigued by chef David Lebovitz’s extensive packing list. A few days later I volunteered to help my sister-in-law Connie, also a top-notch baker, create some desserts for my niece’s wedding in Idaho. Her packing list was equally impressive.

Connie’s mini-van was filled with kitchen implements like tools to cut and roll and form tart shells. There were jelly roll pans to make enormous sheet cakes, cutters to create perfect parfait cake circles, and whisks to make fantastic fillings. There were tiny spoons and great swaths of table decorating fabrics. There were even snacks–like freshly squeezed tangerine juice, pretzel goldfish and almonds–for the kitchen crew.

Grateful that I was just the help and not the dessert table mastermind, I was nevertheless inspired to pitch in with other meals.  After the last tart pan was thoroughly dried and returned to the van, I made this simple apple salad with walnuts and lime as part of a post-wedding dinner.  It’s one of those dishes that’s easy to execute even without the exact recipe. And for those of us who travel a little more lightly, you can use any old paring knife and baking sheet to make the salad.

In other news, my interview with Pottery Barn and Williams-Sonoma Home Executive Vice President Monica Bhargava is up over at William-Sonoma Inc.’s Designer Marketplace if you’re interested in what one of the retail world’s top tastemakers is saying about trends in furniture design. Also, find out which WSHome products Bhargava uses in her own home!