Flammende Sterne 2012

Me, my hubby and my little girl just love fireworks. Since we moved here, we make it a point that we get to watch at least one fireworks show every year. I guess my love for fireworks shows began when I went to Japan and witnessed the Hanabi festival for the first time. I've been fascinated by it since then.

Flammende Sterne 2011: Chinese musical fireworks show

One of our favorites is the Flammende Sterne, which is a three-day event and showcases musical fireworks from three different countries. This year's Flammende Sterne will be take place on Friday until Sunday, August 17-19, still at the Scharnhauser Park in Ostfildern. Since it is on it's 10th year, I am sure it will be another special and spectacular fireworks show. Three countries who will compete will be England (Friday), Spain (Saturday) and Germany (Sunday). The musical fireworks itself lasts only for about 30 minutes but the program starts at 6:00PM, with a "flamy" birthday show, live music and food. 

We do not really go inside the event area since we are there just for the fireworks. What we do is find a spot outside the event area where we have a good view of the sky. A good spot is the parking lot near the park. Then we just bring pizza and drinks and some picnic blankets so we can relax and won't go hungry while waiting for the fireworks to start. I didn't get good photos last year since I didn't know how to set up my camera but I hope I will be able to take some good ones this year. If you know what settings are best for a Nikon D5000 when taking fireworks shots, could you kindly leave me a comment? I highly appreciate it!

And oh, to get to the Flammende Sterne, just take the U7 line from Stuttgart Hauptbahnhof going to Ostfildern and get off at any of the three stops: "Kreuzbrunnen",  "Scharnhauser Park" or "Parksiedlung". Hope you find yourself a good spot! Enjoy this year's Flammende Sterne. I am so looking forward to it!

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The Flammende Sterne 2011 in Ostfildern

I have always loved fireworks! The first ever grand fireworks display that I got to witness was in the summer of 2007 in Tokyo, Japan during the Hanabi Festival at Showa Kinen Park. It was a very amazing sight for me, and I watched with awe and wonder as the sky lights up in various shapes and colors. Bless the person who discovered that fireworks can be used in a very creative and wonderful way.

When we got here in Germany, I thought I would be missing the fireworks shows but boy was I mistaken! I learned about the Flammende Sterne back in 2010 when my Japanese classmate from my evening German language lessons told me about it. And it's not just one night of fireworks wonders but three nights in a row!

And so last August 19-21, the 9th Flammende Sterne took place at Scharnhauser Park in Ostfildern. The Flammende Sterne is an annual international fireworks display competition. Three chosen nations would compete each year and since it is a musical fireworks display, it really is a great show. It was our second time to watch the fireworks this year, 2010 was our first time. The participating nations were Greece, China and USA. We were only able to watch the China and USA fireworks show though but it was really a great display.

I thought USA was the first prize but I was surprised when I saw the results:

2011
1. Hefung Fireworks Co. Ltd., China
2. Nanos Fireworks, Griechenland
3. Walt Disney Parks - Brad Cicotti, USA

Of course, I was armed with my camera when we went there. I even took time to study and research about fireworks photography since there was also a photography contest. Unfortunately, my photos were not so good. Perhaps I need to experiment more. Or perhaps I need a new camera that has a built-in setting for fireworks. I wonder if this feature is available in casio cameras digital because if they are, I would definitely save for one!

But anyway, here are some of photos that I consider my "best" shots:

These photos were from the Chinese Musical Fireworks display. Now, you be the judge. What do you think?

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