Finally that first post of 2015

Clearly keeping up with the blog was not a New Year’s resolution.

If it was a resolution, it’s not completely my fault for lacking the resolve. After spending the holidays in Canada, I returned to the Dorf jet lagged and then bed/toilet ridden with a vicious stomach virus.

I fly into the Dorf on the morning of New Year’s Eve. which meant after a long nap, a scalding shower, and some hot wine, Kata and I were able to see the midnight firework celebration.

Or should I say, firework conflagration. 

In the Dorf, and other parts of Germany apparently, a festive fireworks display isn’t under the purview of the local authorities. It is a democratic affair. Everyone gathers in the city’s open spaces, especially along the river, with armfuls of fireworks that would be considered illegal in some countries.

As midnight approaches, everyone begins firing off their fireworks every which way. People are throwing around firecrackers, firing bottle rockets from their hands, and even setting off the hefty mortar-type fireworks. All of this is occurring in the crowds along the length of the Rhine and over the bridges spanning it.

The effect is part chaotic firework display, part Afghan wedding celebration – where they fire Kalashnikovs wildly enough into the air to attract the wrath of jet fighters – and mostly war zone. I’m not sure if anyone lost an eye or a finger, but we wouldn't know since no one would have heard their cries of pain over the commotion.

Oh, and this is all taking place in Germany, a country known for a bureaucracy that has a permit or paper form for for everything. The attitude towards fireworks is pretty laissez-faire here.

Once we got away from the crowds and their indiscriminate fireworks, we were able to stand back and appreciate the chaos, which is hard to find in not-so-chaotic Germany, but isn't so bad when you find it.