The Gafarabühel mountain top is supposed to be the most beautiful place for frolicking. There, rich people, more beautiful than Alerunä, danced the whole night with master dancers from Milan and Venice, who were known in Switzerland as secret goldsmiths and thus became filthy rich. Travelling students also claim to have seen them.

The following morning Children of the Fasting would find footprints of the wonderful dark damsels in the trampled grass.

In the Milan Wars, where many Swiss served, a Melser or Weisstanner soldier had been given night-watch duties in Milan. There, he greeted a Lady from a magnificent palace and was coerced to leave. When he had to return to his post at the palace, he looked through a window into a room full of milk and flowers, and saw the Lady getting dressed. He asked her if he could also visit the Gafarabühel. She said he could.

He thought, “There I have experienced my wonderful night” – and with that, he looked so slyly that he forgot to pull on his trousers properly and had to slip out of the palace.

Albrecht, Memories.

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Editor’s note: Another one recorded in the local Swiss-German dialect, and there is a lot here that I don’t understand and doesn’t make much sense at the moment, so help welcomed:

Alerunä – this may be “Alraunen“, a plant Mandragora, Mandrake. DeepL suggested “Alien” and “Alien” and “Foreigner” are generally interchangeable in German.

“steirich” is translated by DeepL as “Styrian” (Styria is a region of Austria), but the “s” is lower case so it must be an adjective not a noun – thank you to commenter below who suggested “Stone Rich”, meaning “filthy rich” (probably because in Switzerland, rich people live in stone houses and everyone else lives in wooden ones’”

“Froufastächind” could be a local version of “Frontfastkinder” (Children of the Fasting) which is referred to in other stories as children born at a certain time who are able to see the dead and spirits, which fits with this context.

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273. Gafarä

Der gräust Härätummelplatz söll der Gafarabühel gsi si. Dört hind richi Härä, schüner als Alerunä, ganz Nächtä tanzet mit Härameisterä vu Mäiland und Veneidig, diä in der Schwiz gheimi Goldouderä gwüsst hind und dermit steirich wordä sind. Mä hätne-n-au fahrendi Schüeler gseit.

Mings Froufastächind hät am Morgä nouere söttägä Härägugelfuehr di wunderfinstä Damäschueli im vertrampletä Gras ufgläsä. In dä Mailinder-Chriege, wous vil Schwizer derbei ka hät, sei amoul z’Mailind ä Melser- oder Wissdannersoldat Schiltwach gftandä. Duä heigem ä Dam vumenä prächtägä Palast us si Namä grüeft und gwunggä. Wener duä nou der Wacht ufft sei in di Pallast, luägne dou ä Frauezimmer a we Milch und Bluet und ufputzt wenä Chünigi und frougnä, eb er der Gafarabühel au bchinni. Er seit des d’jou.

Duä meint sie druf: “Dört hani mingi lustigi Nacht durläbt” – und heigä derbei äsou korjous agluäget, ass er Hinnehut überchu hei und wider se gnoud ass müggli ussi sei us dem Palast.

Albrecht, Erinnerungen