So goes the first verse of an old German folksong that pays tribute to the almost proverbial Tyrolean “gusto” and zest for life. The indomitable spirit and exuberant vitality of the Tyro leans is a well-known fact that has often been recorded in verse and song. 

But what is it exactly about the Tyroleans that makes them so lively and spirited? What is the reason for their world-renown? Two Tyroleari ~personalities” immediately come to mind that may help shed some light on the matter. In the USA, it is the avid skier, sports enthusiast and mailorder baron, Bernd Nagy. For over a generation now, he has been sharing his love for his Alpine homeland with Americans by introducing unique folkloric products, gifts and collectibles to every corner of North America through his “House of Tyrolc mail-order catalog. In Europe, it is the South-Tyrolean, Reinhold Messner, who in 1978 made his impact felt by being the first person ever to conquer Mt. Everest, the world’s highest mountain without any oxygen tank whatsoever, and who then completed a solo climb of Nanga Parbat (with an elevation of over 27.000 feet) high in the Himalayas. 

Perfect male specimens all of them, these Tyroleans! And what lovely women they have! Beautiful red-cheeked girls with long dark black flowing hair!! They are truly a lovable lot and one of the most German among the Germanic peoples. Inseparable from their history of course is their beloved Andreas Hofer. He was an innkeeper who became the leader of his Alpine people and even took on Napoleon’s Army They were all true loyal Austrians, these Tyroleans! Even to this very day they still smart from the feeling of having been betrayed by the ceding of the South-Tyrol to Italy after the First World War. 

But a lot has changed since then. The confining boundaries within Europe have fallen — and that is a relief to us all!