1st May tradition in Luxembourg: Méekranz! Whilst some hit the streets with the trade unions for their traditional 1st May marches, the Luxembourg youth goes into the wild to produce their wreath of foliage. The local Café with the biggest "Méekranz" obviously has the best customers, so the competition's on.
Once the bottles of beer have been drunk and the wreath is completed, it is loaded onto the tractor and taken to the local pub. Through the whole village, it is applauded by the locals and accompanied by the marching band. When they arrive at the local pub, the "Méekranz" is installed and the landlord offers a round of schnapps to all the villagers. The Fête du Village has officially been launched for young and old!!
The tradition of bundling fresh foliage together in a wreath, started long before May 1st has been known as the International Labor Day. Like so many, this tradition also goes back to a heathen feast during which blessed herbs and palm branches were scattered through the houses and each room was sprinkled with holy water, in order to keep the evil spirits at bay. Since it also marked the start of the sunny season it was frequently doused by a hearty drinking session with May-wine.
Keep your eyes open and see if you can spot some Méekranz outside your “Duerfcafé” on 1st May.
The ingredients for a successful Méekranz are:
- 1 local pub
- 1 friendly landlord
- 1 sleepless night
- 1 hangover
- 1 tractor
- 1 group of people who can hold their drink
- 2 crates of beer (minimum)
- Oh…and fresh spring foliage
