You don't have to understand the German language to appreciate this video of the "Großer Zapfenstreich" ceremony honoring Angela Merkel. It was the Bundeswehr's formal farewell to Germany's first female chancellor, aired live on German TV. Though an American, I have great respect for Frau Merkel. Her center-right politics don't exactly align with mine, but during her tenure at Germany's helm, she proved herself a formidable and compassionate leader, and arguably the world's most powerful and influential female head of government in recent memory. (I admire the late Queen Elizabeth II for similar reasons, and some might place her just ahead of Frau Merkel in this category.)
The video is rather long, but you might enjoy playing it as "background music" while wrapping gifts (in case you need a break from ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’ by Mariah Carey or ‘Last Christmas’ by Wham).
You might especially enjoy it if you like military music, the German language, or "pomp and ceremony." I'll concede that it has little or nothing to do with "World War II... with a German accent," as it is performed by representatives of the Bundeswehr (today's German armed forces) and not the Wehrmacht (Germany's armed forces during the Second World War).
Consider this my holiday gift to you, my faithful blog followers!
