The Christmas market on Marienplatz in Munich was officially opened on Monday.
Many guests from the district saw the lights on the big Christmas tree go on at around 5 p.m.
The 25 meter high silver fir comes from a garden in Hohenpeissenberg.
Munich/Hohenpeissenberg – The members of the Knappschaftskapelle Hohenpeissenberg caused a stir at the square concert at Rindermarktbrunnen at around 4 p.m.: "Are you from the Ruhr area?" , pulled out their cell phones to take photos and films.
The Christmas carols that the musicians from Hohenpeissenberg played in their miners' uniform were then already more familiar: "Oh Du Fröhliche", "Es ist ein Ros aufsprungen" and - appropriate to the event - "Every year again" and "Oh Tannenbaum".
For the third time in a row, the district has donated the Christmas tree that decorates Munich's Marienplatz during Advent.
As previously reported, the 25 meter high Siberian silver fir comes from the private garden of the Schaan family in Hohenpeissenberg and should have been felled anyway because it got in the way of a power line.
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A team from Hohenpeißenberg ran the mulled wine stand in the inner courtyard of Munich City Hall on the opening day.
© Catherine Hauser
The bus organized by the district, which had driven from Hohenpeissenberg to the state capital, was occupied to the last seat.
Many Hohenpeissenberger municipal councils, pastor Dr.
Robert Kröpfl, the deputy mayor Gerlinde Rasch, mayor Thomas Dorsch, Stefan Fischer from the building authority, treasurer Martina Rauch and of course the Schaan family, among others, traveled to experience the big event.
Also present were the two mayors Max Bertl (Steingaden) and Peter Ostenrieder (Peiting), from whose communities the Christmas trees have come from in the past two years, as well as representatives of the district such as the deputy district administrator Wolfgang Taffertshofer.
District Treasurer Norbert Merk,
and his deputy Matthias Brugger as well as district administrator Andrea Jochner-Weiß and her manager Georg Leis were with the company car.
arrived.
After the stand concert at Rindermarkt, the delegation, led by police officers, followed by the miners' band, which played "Glück auf Marsch", marched past the Viktualienmarkt to the town hall, where the musicians lined up at the foot of the still unlit silver fir for the next performance.
Only they were allowed into the cordoned-off area under the famous town hall balcony, where the delegation from the district presented itself.
District administrator and mayor Dorsch stood next to his Munich colleague, mayor Dieter Reiter, where football stars usually cheer when FC Bayern win titles.
Thousands of onlookers had their cell phones out when he spoke shortly after 5 p.m. and greeted visitors and guests from the district: “I am delighted that there will be a Christmas market again this year.
It's about time." Because of the corona pandemic, the market could not take place in 2020 and 2021.
"A Christmas market without a tree doesn't work.
And a tree without lighting doesn't work either," said Reiter.
That's why the city's technicians attached 3,000 LED lights to the Christmas tree, which is a particularly beautiful example this year.
“There was practically no criticism.
It's a great, beautiful tree." He thanked the district administrator, Mayor Dorsch and the Schaan family for the silver fir and then asked the audience to count down together: "Three, two, one, light",
sounded in chorus and the Christmas tree shone with lights.
A murmur went through the crowd, applause erupted and the Christmas market was officially opened.
Then the district administrator had the floor.
She thanked the donors and everyone who helped hand over the Christmas tree, which was not an easy task.
"May it bring hope, peace and joy," said Jochner-Weiss.
It was a touching moment when the lights on the tree went on, and something special to be able to follow the spectacle from the balcony of the town hall, said the district administrator later, when there was another one in the town hall in the room that led to the balcony Drinks and Christmas cookies were given: "I'm happy that I was able to experience that." As a thank you, the group from the district was invited to dinner in the Ratskeller under the town hall.
There, Reiter thanked him again for the "extremely beautiful Christmas tree" and praised the good cooperation of the guests: "You are all so friendly to each other.
We don't know that."
It cost the district around 10,000 euros to transport the tree to Munich undamaged.
The money is to be recovered by selling mulled wine in the inner courtyard of the town hall.
The communities take turns.
On the opening day, it was the turn of the municipality of Hohenpeissenberg.
It wasn't that good at the beginning, "but things really got going around 4 or 5 p.m.," said Sebastian Ranft.
Andi Strauss also reported this from the fixed mulled wine stand on the market, which the municipality of Steingaden is allowed to operate.
"Almost the whole village is here selling music," says the Music Director.
Before the group from the district started their journey home, most of them had a nightcap at the mulled wine stand in the inner courtyard of the town hall.
The Hohenpeissenbergers were back home around 11 p.m.
Just as the silver fir tree from Hohenpeißenberg was closing time on Munich's Marienplatz and its lights went out for the first time.