The mining tradition in the museum park

Rüdersdorf invites you to a big mountain festival with a colourful programme from 30 June to 2 July

The mining festival in the middle of the year is a tradition in the mining areas; it was and still is the social highlight of the year for the miners with a church service and concerts by the mining bands. The mining community of Rüdersdorf has revived this mining custom since the fall of communism and always celebrates its mining festival on the first weekend in July.
"It starts with the traditional evening with a wild boar dinner and French horn players on Friday from 6 pm," says Museum Park Director Stephen Ruebsam about the festival programme. "The mountain festival will be ceremoniously opened at sunset with the entry of the miners with lights and the grand finale by the mountain band."

Saturday is family day with a colourful programme from 10 am: In addition to the popular tunnel tours, stone grinding with the geo club and horse riding, other highlights await young and old, such as archery with world champion Annette Tunn and Tränkler's puppet theatre.
At 2 pm, the live blasting in the opencast mine will take place, which can be watched from the CEMEX mining company's plateau (staircase opposite the shaft kiln battery). "It's always an experience to see tonnes of limestone blasted out of the mountain," says Ruebsam.
The festival tent on the meadow by the Heinitz tunnel is also a special this year with its stage programme. In the evening, "KeinStadtHeld" Tobias Prüfert will get the audience in the party mood with his R 'n' B pop songs, followed by the "Stage Divas" with atmospheric rock music, before the disco invites you to dance the night away from 10 pm.

Sunday traditionally starts at 10 a.m. with an ecumenical service in the Kalkberg church in the town centre.

Stephen Ruebsam explains what's going on in the museum park: "On Sunday, from 10 a.m., there will be a free admission day in the park with a large family programme - for example, this year we have a children's flea market all day long on the meadow by the sports playground."
At 11.30 a.m., the traditional parade of clubs and societies into the museum park begins at the Kalkberg church and ends at the marquee next to the Heinitz tunnel with a gun salute from the shooting club. At 1.30 p.m., the festival continues in the marquee with a concert by the Rüdersdorf mountain band. Afterwards, the bands "MIDRIA" and "Four Steps" will take to the stage in the afternoon.
Ruebsam adds: "There will also be fun and games for families, with archery, tunnel tours, club stands - and the meadow circus will also be back in the park with its fantastic walking acts. It will be a colourful family weekend."

Parallel to the mountain festival, the passenger ship "Emster" will once again be offering round trips on the waters of Rüdersdorf from the Bergschreiberamt jetty at the museum park on Saturday (to book, call 0172 3843544).

Programme:

Friday
5 pm: Opening of the new permanent exhibition "Building material for generations - A Rüdersdorf industrial history" (Heinitzstraße 45)
6 pm: Traditional evening at the magazine and Rumford furnaces
9.30 pm: Miners' procession with lighting and taps by the mining band

Saturday
from 10 a.m.: Family programme on the festival meadow at the Heinitz Tunnel
12 noon: Opening of the "Heinitz 11" restaurant in the former electoral mining clerk's office (Heinitzstraße 11)
2 p.m.: Live blasting at the water management (opposite the chess furnace battery)
7 p.m.: KeinStadtHeld in the marquee
8 p.m.: Stage Divas in the marquee
from 10 p.m.: Disco in the marquee

Sunday
10 a.m. Mountain service in the Kalkberg church (Hans-Striegelski-Straße 7)
from 10 a.m. Children's flea market on the meadow at the sports playground in the museum park
11.30 a.m. Parade with the clubs from the church to the museum park, followed by a gun salute from the shooting club
1.30 p.m. Concert by the Bergkapelle Rüdersdorf in the marquee
2 p.m. Tunnel tours
3.30 p.m. MIDRIA band in the marquee
5 p.m. Band Four Steps in the marquee

- Subject to change without notice -

Museumspark Rüdersdorf
Heinitzstraße 9
15562 Rüdersdorf near Berlin

TRAM 88, Bus 950
www.museumspark.de

Admission:
Friday from 6 p.m. Admission free
Saturday 7 euros for adults, 3 euros for children 6 - 16 years, free admission for children up to 5 years
Sunday admission free

Contact: 033638 79 97 97

Photos: Andreas Prinz & Stephen Ruebsam