Thanks goodness that the weather this afternoon got better. I finally witnessed for the first time the Trachtenfest in Lengenfeld, a small town in Upper Palatinate in the state of Bavaria, Germany. Around seventeen groups participated during the parade and presented and wore different trachten. If I have to translate Trachtenfest in English, it simply means National Custome Festival. "Tracht" means a dress or a custome and "Fest" means festival. German's national customes are called Lederhosen for the male and Dirndl for the female. I will give you more infos about Lederhosen and Dirndl next time. You can continue to read below for more article about Tracht. have fun viewing the photos.

Tracht is a traditional national costume in Germany. Although the word is most often associated with Austrian and Bavarian costumes, many other peoples of Germany have them. Recently, there has been a renewed interest in tracht.

The tracht of southern Germans and Austria has inspired an entirely new fashion style, called Landhausmode (Country Estate Style). Landhausmode, influenced by the costumes of the farmers, peasants and rural people, and characterized by the use of linen, loden (a traditional type of felt that has recently gained popularity worldwide) and embroidery, is somewhat analogous to North American Western Wear, in that there is a relationship between Landhausmode and Alpenrock (a style of rock music influenced by traditional Alpine songs), just as there is a relationship between Western Wear and Country Music. It is also very common in Liechtenstein.
Friesische Tracht from the North Sea isle of Amrum

In northern Germany some of the best known examples are the "Friesische Tracht" and the Finkenwerder Tracht. The "Friesische Tracht" is richly decorated with beads and embroidery. The quality of the work was a sign of the riches and social status of the farmer's wife wearing it. In former times it was brought into a marriage by the bride as part of her dowry. This costume is occasionally still worn at weddings. The "Finkenwerder Tracht" is the traditional costume of the inhabitants of an island in the Elbe river. It is worn by a local folklore group called Finkwarder Speeldeel. The long sleeved dark blue shirts with white stripes of the male costume are popular in Northern Germany for casual wear. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tracht