Colorful carnival at IWM
The beer was cold, the bar tables set up and the room decorated. Little by little, the colleagues came out of their offices. Our institute director turned into a devil, our Hiwine into a pilot and our research assistant became a rocket today. The first cold drink in hand, they were looking forward to a day full of fooling around, dancing and singing together to the well-known hits of the fifth season.
Aachen is one of the carnival strongholds of the country, the city loves and lives the carnival until "Aschermittwoch" (the day Carnival ends). Thus, this custom is also cultivated full of devotion at our institute and celebrated in the first year since the Corona pandemic under the organization of our colleague Felix Radtke. For this special occasion, the IOT, the ISF and the IKV traditionally joined in the celebration.This year, we met in the foyer of the IWM and toasted punctually at 11:11 am with a cold drink of choice. Since the morning, carnival songs by the Höhners, Brings or Kasalla had been playing through two large jukeboxes, creating an exuberant atmosphere. The ISF provided the catering and a good basis for everything that was to come.
One of the highlights was the costume contest. In three out of four categories our colleagues were able to win and were gifted with an alcoholic treat. From this point on, the IWM had even more reasons to celebrate. An important part of a carnival celebration is of course a caravan, which is led through the whole first floor of the institute. You won't see a cow, many ladybugs or a pilot dancing together again so quickly.
The colorful, exuberant and great atmosphere lasted until the evening. Very few people wanted to go home. But at some point they moved on to the next party, the next beer or to their beds at home to rest up for the coming days of celebration.
With one laughing and one crying eye we said goodbye and were full of anticipation at the same time. Because next year it's "Oche Alaaf!" again.