|
Page 6 of 11
JULY
July provides some of the most exotic and extraordinary events of the year. In midst of July the “Gassatengehen” of the Turkish Pipers takes place at Waidhofen an der Ybbs (Lower Austria). Men forming the procession wear the red fez, the Turkish or Muslim headgear, and play the “Turkish” march. Historically this festivity has quite a meaning: Between 1529 (first Turkish siege of Vienna) and 1532 Turkish soldiers were able to advance westward as far as Waidhofen an der Ybbs where they were stopped by the local scythe-smiths.
St. James (25th July) is the next date you should save in your calendar if you are into wrestling: On the Hundstein, a mountain near Zell am See (Salzburg), Austria’s most important competition in traditional wrestling (“Ranggeln”) opens to the public. This kind of wrestling can be tracked back to the middle ages.
Every three years, on the last Sunday in July, there is a “historic pirates battle” demonstration on the river Salzach at Oberndorf (Salzburg). Also on the river Salzach near Oberndorf the so-called Schifferstechen (a fight between boatmen using spears) takes place in the middle of the river on Sundays in July and August – note at irregular intervals though.
Towards the end of July, on the eve of the opening of the Salzburger Festival, there are more than hundred dancers, clad in regional costumes and equipped with torches, perform a “Fackeltanz” (torch dance) on the Residenzplatz in the city of Salzburg. In this context the torch dance is a traditional way of celebrating ceremonial receptions.
|
