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75 years later: Former students celebrate an unforgettable class reunion!
Former students meet in Falkenau after 75 years. The focus is on memories, sweets and the start of school in Central Saxony.
75 years later: Former students celebrate an unforgettable class reunion!
A very special reunion recently took place in Falkenau. 75 years after they started school, former students, all over 80 years old, met to reminisce together. Every year they come together to remember their school days and to exchange ideas. When they met, there was no shortage of reminiscing about sweet childhood memories. Free press reports that malt sweets, foam biscuits and the usual Vitalade, a kind of East German substitute chocolate, played a special role among the delicacies.
The meeting provides an exciting insight into the tradition of starting school in East Germany. On the first weekend in September 1950, around 30 first graders started school there. The start of school, also known as school introduction, is an important holiday that is particularly celebrated in East Germany. In contrast to the West, where celebrations usually take place during the week, the back-to-school celebration here usually begins on a Saturday. MDR emphasizes that celebrations in restaurants often take place in the company of friends and relatives.
Food connects generations
The tradition of the sugar cone, which is also considered an integral part of starting school in the East, had its origins in the late 18th century. An early reference to the sugar bag was recorded in Saxony in 1781. This practical bag was and is presented to school children to make the transition from childhood to school easier. The BR describes that the bags are traditionally filled with sweets, school supplies and lucky charms and are intended not only to take away the children's fear of school, but also to make the start of school sweeter.
What's exciting is that East Germany has established its own form of sugar cone. These are often hexagonal and measure around 85 cm. In many cases, children here receive several bags of sugar at the same time, while in the West the bags usually have a diameter of around 70 cm and traditionally there is only one sugar bag per child. To this day, Nestler GmbH, the oldest school cone company in Germany, is an important producer of over two million sugar cones annually in East Germany.
Celebrating together brings generations together
Another beautiful tradition is the Sugar Cone Festival, which has been celebrated since around 1960 and brings the young people together shortly before they start school. Children dance and sing around a “sugar cone tree” from which small sugar cones in the shape of fruits hang. The meaning of these festivals is not only the celebration of starting school, but also the last big meeting of all kindergarten children before they become school children.
The memories that the arriving students share with each other are a valuable asset that not only promotes personal exchange, but also keeps the cultural framework of East German school traditions alive. The combination of school cones and community celebrations not only promotes the education system, but also social interaction - values that are particularly important today.