Celebrating Easter in Germany is much more than a trip to church, an Easter Egg hunt, brunch, and a nice hat. Easter is a major holiday in Germany, and the events go beyond home and church. Preparations start well before Easter Sunday! and don’t end there. Many Easter traditions we follow here in the US and elsewhere stem from German customs.…
Tag: german easter traditions
German Easter Nest Tradition- From Germany to Texas
My friend Chuck grew up in Yorktown, Texas, about an 1 ½ hours south of New Braunfels (the heart of German Texas), where his great great grandfather Johann Jost settled in 1848 after leaving Womelsdorf, Germany. Much of his family is still there. Because of the pandemic stay-at-home order, his sister is sorting through Afflerbach family history, and recently came…
The Osterbaum / German Easter Tree- Make Your OWN Easter Tree
Every year during the Easter season, my mother would place a few budding branches in a vase and hang colorfully painted eggs from them. This was an Osterbaum, an Easter Tree. Some call it an Osterstrauss or Easter Bouquet since it’s in a vase. But what is an Osterbaum? Osterbaum, in German, means Easter Tree. This pretty decoration brightens the…