Foreigners wearing Tracht

No! I will get them fixed.

(though it may actually end up being 4, ahem)

I said smiles, not smirks.

I was told by my boss that under the Third Reich, the Nazis required Bavarians to dress in Tracht, so the tradition sort of died down a bit after the war. The resurgence seems to be led by the younger generations. Perhaps it is connected to their overall attitude toward the war and the fact they were never forced to wear their tracht.

http://books.guardian.co.uk/reviews/histor...1317789,00.html

Are you sure? I thought the kilt was originally Irish?

http://www.albanach.org/kilt.html

Its a skirt on a man for God's sake!

Actually I think that the http://www.utilikilts.com/ are pretty damn cool, but not something I could ever pull off I think basically.

but tempted...

No, non Bavarian men should not wear Bavarian Tracht. It should be compulsory for all women to wear dirndl. Sorry, but that's just a fact.

And can anyone explain to me why black women in particular look so good in them? I've only seen one or two, but I had to stop walking for fear of tripping over my tongue. (Sorry if anyone finds this racist or otherwise offensive, it isn't meant that way.)

I think it is just the "novelty" value that is making your head turn.

That would explain a lot now that enough time has passed...

@JE, that book review was good.

It was more a sort *pant* *pant* reaction, actually, J_E

the belted plaid is both Irish and Scottish in that it is Celtic style of dress that is entirely ancient. However, the philibeag, which is the style of kilt with the massed pleats at the back which is traditional in Scotland, was invented at the Carron Ireonworks in Scotland by an English Quaker foreman who was worried that there were too many accidents from plaids getting caught in machinery.

absolutely right BTC, amd the tartan designs are also very modern. Belted plaid could be found amongst Celtic peoples from Ireland and Britain, as well as mainland Europe. Even the Scandanavians had a very similar style of clothing. In fact, the word "Kilt" comes from old western Norse iirc.

Well with the foreigners wearing tracht and the like, it means the manufacturers of those shirts with all that writing all over them actually do some business. It seems the only people who wear those shirts are non-German..

And I seriously doubt the theory regarding young people wearing tracht. They wear them because the dirndl has been very well marketed as being extremely sexy. They see it as a fashion statement nowadays at bierfests.

I know a guy who has one of these - the leather version. He loves it. The fact that he's young, fit and fast and wears it while running over hill and dale only adds to the appeal.

I feel faint . ...

Not a great picture, but the best I could find. Note that all parties involved; male, female and photographer, were severely hungover.

Last year I attended bnoth the Erding herbstfest and the Wies'n wearing a really nice set of lederhosen that I bought in Munich. The response I got from people was overwhelmingly positive. There are many people who genuinely appreciate it when an obvious foreigenr such as myself don the tradional Bavarian costume. I agree with Monkstown. These people who are whining and complaining about "foreigners" wearing lederhosen are most likely the same racist, xenophobic c**ts who don't like foreigners at all.

Having been to Oktoberfest only twice this year, once normally clothed i.e. jeans and T-shirt, and the second with dirndl, all I can say is that the second time with dirndl was ten times better. I had been lent the dirndl by a friend who insisted I wear it, against my better judgement I did. The reason behind my initial reluctance was that I thought it'd be odd, being Asian and wearing something so Bavarian in a city which is not renowned for its diversity; and ultimately that I'd just somehow look wrong.

However, I was made to feel like I belonged i.e. no negativity from anyone I met, and really got into the spirit of things. For next year I'm going to have customized dirndls made in Pakistan, one in silk and one in cotton for a fraction of the price and with the added bonus of ethnicity.

Sorry, didn't feel like reading through fifty other responses which certainly feature the same theme:
Justifying Ausländers wearing Tracht is pretty easy when you consider how effing hot the women look in a Dirndl. Verily, my French Canadian wife was actually born to wear hers... fo sho.

@Hams, I'm really glad to hear that you had such a positive experience and boy I can't wait to see you next year.

I loved the fact there were so many guys in kilts there too!

Oh - I'll second that!

Hams - excellent idea!

I never bought a dirndl in the 4.5 yrs I lived here because I don't feel like it's my culture or heritage to indulge in. I'm not Bavarian, and I certainly don't feel German or even identify much with them. I feel like it's not my right, just as I wouldn't wear a sari or kimono or whatever else - I don't want to offend the people and their culture as it could be misinterpreted as me taking it lightly.
2 weeks ago, I caved in and bought one for a fancy dress party, but I doubt I'll wear it to next year's Oktoberfest. Maybe, maybe not. Depends how I feel then. Most younger Bavarians are welcoming of anyone wearing Tracht, but there is a resonating feeling of 'why do they want to wear our traditional dress' from the older generation. Which I kind of agree with; it's nothing really to do with me, not my tradition. Maybe after a few more years I'll feel like it's part of me, but not yet.

Well, to each is own I guess.
I have alot of patients (older) that all asked me if I was at the Wiesen, I replied yes, and then I said, I also have 2 dirndls, and they were all happy, and said, that is the only way to go to the Wiesen. They think its great that people are dressing up for it. I never had one person make a negative comment about foreigners wearing Tracht.

Yeah I think it's a very personal thing.

Btw I just realised that I did wear kimono (or more correctly, yukata) in Japan - there it is expected you do so in a ryokan, regardless of whether Japanese or not. If you don't, you're more likely to offend them if you do. With Tracht, I don't get that impression; it's not a must as even the Bavarians themselves don't all own or wear Tracht.

I was hesitant to buy the traditional Bavarian outfit, but was talked into doing so by my best German friend. Once people found that I was a Bavarian-speaking (not Hochdeutsch!) American wearing Lederhosen, I received nothing but positive comments from young and old. I was surprised, since I expected a negative comment or two, but didn't receive any. Maybe they were just made behind my back...

This is me (on the right) with my friend Alex (on the left).

Shouldn't that post be in the Siamese Twin forum?

More the beer-spot forum.

Don't want to cause controversy but i'm sorry, that pic loves ever so slightly gay to me.

Aw, come on, dave.. A gay comment from a guy whose profile pic is a teddy bear?

Yeah, my smile is a bit goofy in that pic, but no matter. Look at the pics on our website if you want to see the women our outfits attracted.

Okay, back to work. A great weekend to all.

Some people like dressing up. Its a free world and people should dress up if they wish. Look at the Sealed Knot reliving history. Do what you want, I would hate it I have never liked dressing up at all. Dinners suits is as far as I have gone and I have never dressed up for Ascot but enjoy seeing those who do. When you have had to wear suits for work I prefer to dress down. But each to their own.

Freud is alive and well. What, no mods caught up with that one yet? Let's preserve it for posterity just in case they do.

It seems that foreigners wearing Tracht is approved of at the highest level , Oktoberfest ends with beer-swilling record.

I am a foreigner and wear Tracht but...
I´m Scottish wear a dress and get all the chicks, not like all the sad Amis and Sassenachs who have to "borrow" German Tracht.
I love my parents to death I really do.
See you all next year,
Oh P.S. I actually wear mine now and again for the sheer devilment of it just cos I feel like it and I can!

where's the proof you get all the chicks?

You want my address book, no way!
I was only attacking male foreigners, I love the females in Dirndls, OOOOOOHHHHHH!!!

i want proof your little black book would be nice or battle wounds work too...

there is no denying it, i fully believe sea king thank god for tartan! woop woop.

Wounds ie...Bite marks and stuff? No!

You call that an attack? Ye-up, you wear a dress allllllright.

You want me to attack you? A crazed, sexually starved drunken Scotsman in a dark room you honestly think you could resist?
This is not Brigadoon,( more like Paisley) and I hope you are wearing the Ruby Slippers, you may need them!

You sweet talker you.
Tap tap, get me the fuck outta here, tap tap, I wanna go home.

So! That´s him well and truely dealt with, you can never depend on cheap Ruby slippers just when you need them, I myself alway go for manoloblahnik that´s what I call Ruby Slippers

So moving on from there, so young lady or chap what´s your name ?

Several German colleagues advised me not to buy "cheap" Tracht, i.e., not to go someplace that will outfit you from head to toe for 200 Euro. They think cheap Lederhosen looks stupid on anyone, especially foreigners.

I agree.

What can I say you both look stupid wearing the national dress of an other country, wear your fucking own! Berks!
Caterpiller baseball cap and dungarees are not very fetching I must admit!

Correction: Lederhosen, at whatever price point, looks pretty stupid on almost everyone.

I know an American man, who has lived in Munich dog's years and is married to a Bavarian, and who wears a Landhaus shirt and jeans to his government job just about every day. Looks great and doesn't offend anyone.

Point being, wear the Tracht or the Tracht-lite if you want to, but there are compromises you can make to achieve the local and/or festive touch.

Well, on Friday at the Hacker Schorr tent, I was wearing my dirndl and I saw two young American guys running around in red white and blue track suits with U-S-A in white across the back and with blue headbands with their names on them. Totally tacky. Plus, they were arrogant as all hell. They asked me (yes, me!) how many Mass I drank so far and bragging that they had already had 3 (it was only 12:15). I told them that they were embarassing.

Did they look something like this?

If so they must be fans of that film called "Beerfest". The film features some Disneyified version of Octoberfest. A film by retards, about retards and for retards.

I agree.
I personally think the Oktoberfest -as it is now- has nothing to do with bavarian tradition anymore.
It has become a big "carnival-festival" for people from all over the world who want to get REALLY drunk and find their perfect excuse in "bavarian culture".

The Bavarian Tracht was never about "being sexy" or "getting compliments" as I read in this thread here...
Just go a few kilometers south into one of the the bavarian villages and watch bavarians in the streets on a normal Sunday.
I bet you wont find one girl with a Dirndl like those (with huge insight) that you see on the Oktoberfest.

Bavarian culture is not about getting drunk like crazy and behave stupidly... sorry guy, dont wanna disappoint you.
The Oktoberfest is now a big tourist-moneymaking-machine. And the whole concept of "hey lets get drunk in the name of bavarian culture!" works perfectly fine for those making big bucks. If you want to support this - just go ahead!

I am bavarian and havent been there in many years. And lots of my friends dont go there anymore, either. Its become so expensive and nobody wants to see their children what is going on there... sad but true.

deutschinmuc, I do still go there every year but I never went there for the beer, I actually don't like beer. I go there for the rides.