I can honestly say that I feel as if I were spending Easter in Europe. This is because we are now in a village,which is famous not only for beautiful mountain surroundings, but also for its quite unexpected Bavarian-like architecture. Better yet, it is only a two hour drive from Seattle.
One can eat here typical German dishes, however food connoisseurs can enjoy anything from savory crepes to delicious authentic Danish. It is not difficult to spot Wilkommen signs around; waiters are often dressed in Lederhosen or other Bavarian costumes.
From the city hall’s website, I learned that the complete makeover of Leavenworth was a last gasp effort to save the region; the gamble paid off. Each year, over 2 million tourists visit the region. Interestingly enough, Austrian tourists outnumber Germans.
In October, they can participate in the local version of the Oktoberfest festival. Some time ago, Good Morning America featured the Christmas tree lighting ceremony.
Local displays are not abundant in Easter motifs. Maybe because in the U.S., simple Easter egg hunts are more popular. I did however see figures of Mickey Mouse and Star Wars characters for sale. If needed, gifts from Russia also lure customers.
I must admit that I haven’t Christened the traditional Easter basket. I was almost certain it will be doable when I saw a Catholic church, right next to our pension. Unfortunately, it turned out that it is closed and now serves as a interior for guest rooms.
Our Sunday breakfast will unfortunately not include homemade tartar sauce, but we do have with us Polish horseradish. In the afternoon we will start preparing pisanki.
Tomorrow night we will already be heading back to Bellevue. For Americans, Easter Monday is not a day off. Nevertheless, I will try to discreetly remind Dean why in Poland it is called Lany Poniedziałek…
I wish you all colorful, tasty and sunny Easter! 🙂 Frohen Ostern!
