Epiphany. The Day of the Three Kings is on January 6 and the day is a holiday in Bavaria.
Children dress up as the three kings who visited Jesus in the manger in Bethlehem. The kids knock on doors and offer to write a symbol of blessing over the top of people's entry-way doors. In exchange, the “blesee” is expected to give a donation to the Sternsinger, an organization that does various charitable works around the world. This year's target is "Together against Child Labor." There is a well-produced video that you can see on YouTube here.
The formula is quite simple: the 20 and the 18 on either end signify the current year. I have heard two storied about the meaning of C+M+B and have had locals get vehement about my telling the "wrong" story. One version is that it stands for the names of the 3 wise men, Kaspar, Melchior, and Balthasar. The second story is that the C M B stands for the latin, “Christus Mansionem Benedicat” – basically, God Bless this House.
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