Have Lederhosen, will Travel...

     As the Harvest Moon prepared for her Full cycle this Wednesday, another "date day" with my husband lead us on a journey to a European hideaway, nestled safely in the Pacific Northwestern-most parts of North America. Less than two hours from Yakima Valley, is the "Shining Star" of the Mount Stevens' range of jagged mountain peaks, which in the Wintertime would resemble the Swiss or Bavarian Alps. In the state of Washington, you will find a 'taste of Bavarain culture and charm', in Leavenworth, like so many small towns in Central Washington, it was originally established as an ore and coal mining town and nearly became a ghost town after the logging camps broke down and the railroad changed their route to Wenatchee. The imagination of two men, building a restaurant, in the 1960's, creating a cooperative endeavor in community integrity, consistent in the Bavarian theme and architecture, for almost 50 years. As we drove thriough the town, we did not see one neon sign, nor did we see McDonald's golden arches. Besides the paved roads and newer modeled cars, the architecture is akin to a Bavarian Village, and the villagers were preparing for their 44th annual "Autumn Leaves" festival, this weekend on Septmber 28th, 29th and 30th.

     There were quite a few tour buses, apparently coming from the Seattle area, enjoying the entertainer singing "Edelweiss" in the gazebo area of the plaza, with a blue/white painted pole, which looked to me like the tallest Maypole, I'd ever seen, complete with the 'folk art' placards, as we heard tell it was even used for "Maifest" celebrations each year.

     Our first stop was the Leavenworth Visitor's Center, where we were introduced to Sherry Schweizer, their director of media relations; we began talking about the upcoming Oktoberfest events, when she offered to take us to the Beer Gardens for lunch. We gladly accepted the offer and walked with her to the Main Street, with a smile on every face that we passed, we approached 'Munchen Haus', and a clock tower chimed, introducing a 'Bavarian couple' sharing a dance, then the door closed and a cuckoo chirped, to announce midday's beginning. Sherry couldn't have timed that any better; of course her timing for feeding us was perfect, as well.

      Normally, I'm not a connoisseur of sausage however; my German heritage was remembering the sweet aromas of apple cider sauerkraut, that my grandmother prepared with her homemade bratwurst - that's what I ordered. We sat down amidst beautiful hanging flower baskets, fall leaf decorations and a copper waterfall, tinkling to the German music playing in the background, when the owner, Pam Bruletle sat down, to chat with us until our food was ready. Sherry talked about the Salmon Festival, from the previous weekend, while we made 'yummy sounds' enjoying each bite of 'sensory memory' to my ancestry. The Edutainment that she described, disappointed me only because we'd chosen not to come last weekend. The Native American cultures are part of the community, and are celebrated during this annual event, hosted and held at the Leavenworth National Fish Hatchery. She spoke extensively about the twelve tribes that participated, including an encampment and the educational experiences of releasing a salmon, following its journey through the rivers, to the ocean and back home to its spawning ground to begin the cycle again. There were storytellers, an animal costume parade, an interactive reptile expert, Scott Peterson, and Wildlife Rehabilitators from the Sardis Raptor Center, as well as Native American drumming, dancing, singing, exhibits and traditional cooking. Representative to the cultural experience were the Tlingit, Cherokee, and Yakima nations, teaching their harvesting skills, while sharing the cultural significance of this extremely important resource - the Salmon, an experience that I will certainly not miss next year!

When we were finished with our delectable German sausage treats, Sherry walked us down the street to the Nutcracker Museum, where she continued telling us about Oktoberfest happenings for the first three weekends in October, she was proud to announce the return of Munchner G'schicten, a Munich, Germany based band coming straight from Germany's celebrations to perform the second weekend, as well as newcomers, Die Hochfellner, also from Germany performing the first weekend, for their debut in Leavenworth. The Edelweiss Tanz Gruppe, Alpenfolk, Gordonaires, Smilin' Scandinavians, Happy Hans, Gary Malner, Johnny V, and Musikkapelle will also be performing throughout the festivities.

Sherry then introduced us to the curator and author of a book about Nutcrackers, Arlene Wagner, who directed us to watching a video beginning, introducing us to the history of Nutcrackers. Apparently, the only Nutcracker museum in the United States, with over 5000 nutcrackers, dating back to the 14th century, from over 40 countries, in every shape, size and material on display behind glass, in addition to nut bowls and picks and a collection of nutting stones, over 4000 years old. The strangest of all, to me at least, were the nutcracking shoes, not very chic, nor did they look very comfortable. Of course, the museum would not be complete without the mention of Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite Ballet and the Mouse King, the inspiration for Arlene's collection, as she was a dance teacher who performed the ballet and began collecting these 'gems' for her studio. In 1996, she and her husband, George, started a foundation to create this amazing little museum, she also manages the shops 'Nussknacker Haus', below the museum and the 'Tannenbaum Shoppe', down the block a click. Arlene mentioned that Christian Steinback, the German craftsman who created and signed many Nutcrackers in this collection, as well as his inclusion to her video history, had passed away this past February, but she would continue his historic legacy of an Art, losing popularity to cheaper Asian import copies and duplicates. Arlene was dressed, as most merchants in Leavenworth, wearing 18th century dirndls, lederhosen and other Bavarian clothing, called Trachter, which apparently appeal to the 1.5 million tourists that visit here annually.

The Autumn Leaf Festival was the first festival kicked off in the late 1960's, by Ted Price and Bob Rogers, who were inspired by a visit to the once all Danish themed town of Solvang, CA, to building their 'Squirrel Tree Restaurant' and later the hotel, attracting tourism with the Bavarian them, still in tact for 47 years. February and March seem to be the only months not included in their Calendar of Festive events, while I recalled Sherry becoming the most animated, speaking of the Christkindlmarkt and the Christmas Lighting Festival, held in late November through early December, obviously sparking her Christmas spirit, in anticipation. She described that on the Friday night before the lighting ceremony, Leavenworth stays in the darkness, adding to the excitement of the evening following bringing the festivities to gathering at dusk to sing "Silent Night", before lighting the Alpine Village brightly, to twinkle like the "STAR", this little town of 2100 dedicated folks have created to shine!

The Wenatchee River runs behind the Main and Commercial streets of Leavenworth, many of the hotels and B&B's views are of the River and Waterfront Park, a nice walking trail for novice to professional birdwatchers and nature lovers. Our walk presented a few red-winged blackbirds, a Raven fishing and a Great Blue Heron, off in the distance while we looked at Blackbird Island. This walking park was kept impeccably clean and deserving of their standing with Audubon's Washington State Birding Trail, in the Cascade Loop.

To learn more about Leavenworth, check out some of the embedded links, throughout the article, as they also offer Micro-breweries, Wineries, skiing, sleigh rides, horseback riding, hiking, river rafting, and the most diverse shopping opportunities, representing most European countries, including fine crafted jewelry, like what I happened upon in Der Goldsmith - hmmm 'Sparkly".

TK Rosevear/ WindOwl Travels