A bit of Jachenau in the middle of Saxony - and not just at Christmas time

Created: 12/23/2021, 5:00 PM

By: Veronika Ahn-Tauchnitz

A piece of Jachenau in the living room of Crimmitschau: the crib and the figures come from the Jachenau wood sculptor Josef Scheifl.

© Kretzschmar

“Love at first sight” - that is what the Kretzschmar couple from Crimmitschau have in common with Jachenau.

In every holiday you bring a piece of the sun valley home with you.

Jachenau / Crimmitschau - Stephan Kretzschmar and his wife Ursula live in Crimmitschau in Saxony.

Both love the Jachenau.

They spend their vacation there at least once a year - and have been for over 25 years.

The couple also has a little piece of Jachenau at home in Saxony.

The Jachenau wood sculptor Josef Scheifl made the nativity scene and the associated figures.

“The first thing we did was buy the holy family,” says the 72-year-old.

Year after year, Kretzschmars brought another piece home with them.

Ox and donkey now fill the stable, plus there are shepherds, sheep, two little angels and the three holy kings.

Only the camel is still missing from the scene

Only the camel, which is often put to the side of the wise men from the East, is missing.

Somehow, for Stephan Kretzschmar, that doesn't really fit into the alpine nativity scene.

In addition, the animal is now quite big compared to the other figures.

"But maybe we will decide again for a young, little camel, that doesn't take up so much space," he says.

Two saints are still at the top of the wish list

There are two saints higher up on the wish list: Nikolaus and the raftsman saint Nepomuk.

A saint already adorns the background of the nativity scene.

There you can find St. Florian, which was also bought during one of the visits to Jachenau.

“I think it fits in there quite well,” says Kretzschmar.

Stephan and Ursula Kretzschmar from Crimmitschau.

© private

The couple ended up in the Sonnental by chance.

After the fall of the Wall, the two went on vacation in Ruhpolding in the early 1990s, and later in Marktschellenberg in the Berchtesgadener Land.

But the somewhat overwhelming view of the rough rock faces was not hers, says Kretzschmar.

"We were looking for something sweeter."

The two have spent their holidays on the same farm for over 25 years

At home, the 72-year-old shop came across a book entitled “Inexpensive overnight accommodation in Bavaria”.

While leafing through, he came across the Jachenau.

It was a community with 800 inhabitants, spread over 15 kilometers, he read there.

"So I thought: It has to be quiet there." He requested brochures and looked for accommodation in Sachsenbach.

But nothing was free there.

“So we kept looking.” Finally, the couple came across the Krinnerhof in the Berg district.

In 1993 the two spent their first vacation there.

“We liked it so much that we went there twice next year.” Since then, Kretzschmars have spent at least ten days on the farm every year.

In the meantime one of the grandchildren is also going to Jachenau

“It was love at first sight”, is how Stephan Kretzschmar describes his relationship with the Sonnental.

This is probably also due to the fact that Jachenau offers wonderful motifs for the passionate photographer and enthusiastic hobby painter.

He and his wife love to hike.

It doesn't have to be the very steep tours, rather the leisurely ones, says Kretzschmar, who worked as a division manager for the power supply at the municipal utilities until he retired.

The next two generations are now guests at the Krinnerhof.

The couple is always accompanied by their daughter and one of the two grandchildren.

The Bavarian dialect?

no problem

Incidentally, the Bavarian-Saxon understanding works well, says Kretzschmar.

The locals would always try hard not to fall into dialect too much.

“Otherwise I'll ask my wife.

She understands that better, ”says the 72-year-old and laughs.

Now, at Christmas time, the crib is in the Kretzschmars' living room.

She will stay there until Easter.

Then it moves into the living room cupboard - but remains “clearly visible behind glass”.

In summer, the next stay at the Krinnerhof is on the program.

Let's see what Jachenauer wood carving Stephan Kretzschmar brings home with him.

.