In the past years, the sweat often flowed from the forehead of the lonnerstadter kerwasburschen. Not only because they had to lift a tree into the air, but also because the sun was burning down on them in the process. This year, on the other hand, the temperatures at the lonnerstadter kerwa were autumnally cool. But even that didn’t stop the kerwas boys from getting their kerwas tree out of the woods early in the morning on saturday. After a stopover for a sausage breakfast at the gasthaus popp in fetzelhofen, we continued towards lonnerstadt, where some visitors were already waiting for the boys.
"There are a lot of young boys with us", frank hablauer explained. There were 45 of them this year – compared to last year there were many new faces among them. While boys are sought elsewhere, there can be no complaints about a lack of new blood in lonnerstadt. Jan kropf led the kerwasburschen for years, but in a few weeks he will be getting married. And that means in lonnerstadt: officially he can’t be a lad anymore. True to an old kerwas song by the lads: "oh du verreck, verreck. Heiroodn you i ned." But with jan kropf it is now: "but when a scheena kummd, heirood at any hour!" So now jan kaiser and benjamin bar organize the young people.
The old hares help out
The old kerwas boys, however, help energetically every year to put up the tree. Together they erected the 28-meter-high spruce on saturday in almost record time. It only took about half an hour for the tree to stand upright. It is traditionally held in front of the "zur sonne" inn the hall in which the church fair has been held for years. For years the stalls of the exhibitors stood in the main street. The kaiser bakery had also set up a pavilion and always served numerous guests. But the backer no longer exists, which is why the kerwa was somewhat "jerked together" this year was: booths, trampoline and autoscooter stood this year in front of the inn "zur sonne in the muhlgasse.
There was also a musical change in lonnerstadt on friday evening. While in the past years mostly the band "reline" was the highlight of the evening played in the sonnensaal, came this year "react" – and the hall was full. On saturday, dj crunch played in the sun hall before the art and craft market took place around the market square on sunday morning. Visitors could admire and buy woodwork, garden decorations and needlework – even if the weather was rather mixed.