Oktoberfest. Please leave all decorum at the gates.

In the main square of Munich, Marienplatz

Okay, so, Oktoberfest.

No wait, that isn't where this story begins. It really begins in Munich itself. Oktoberfest wasn't for a couple of days. And I might go again before I leave here on Thursday.

Elsewhere in Munich... I should really start writing these things down.

So, our last night in Frieburg, I offered Wes, the American guy we met, Jordans place in the tent we were to be staying in for Oktoberfest. Since Jordan bailed, and everything. So, because I am without a phone over here (a decision I am repeatedly coming to regret), we agreed to meet at the entrance to the Weis'n Camp between eight and nine at night. If he wasn't there, then for whatever reason, he wouldn't be able to make it.

At about seven thirty, it began to rain.

I stood out in the puoring rain from about five to seven until about eight thirty or so, when Wes decided to come to the front gate and let me know that he'd been drinking, and having fun, and hitting on pretty girls, inside the whole time.

He may not have been doing all of those things, but standing out in the rain, with a stein of beer, the only company I had, were the gatemen, Steve and Stefan. All in all, pretty good guys, but it was much nicer inside the main tent.

So we drank. Keep in mind that this is after the huge night in Frankfurt. And we drank a lot. You might notice that as a pattern for the next few days I'm going to describe.

We drank, and talked to tourists, all of us who were there for Oktoberfest, but who hadn't made it that night because of the rain and the fact that the camp is roughly a half hours train ride east of the centre of Munich. Oh, and FYI, Oktoberfest is a short way on the other side of Munich central.

It didn't stop raining until the next morning. And the tent, which was later dubbed 'The Taj MaTent,' leaks. Quite a bit. But not on my side. Wes went to bed still pretty drunk, and woke up still wearing his clothes from the night before, the entire right side of his body soaking wet. And I mean soaking in the way that you can wring out water from them without really trying.

It being Saturday, and this the 200th anniversary of Oktoberfest and all, we decided not to even try to get in that day, but to go to the Hofbrauhaus elsewhere in Munich. It was full, so was the one accross the street, and it was getting cold, and the wind was blowing.

Oh yeah, and Wes was still pretty wet.

So we went to some other bar, which was also full, but Wes managed to talk a few girls into letting us sit with them and drink.

Now, if I recall correctly, from left to right, there's myself, Wes, Nina, Ilsa, Ana, Susanna, Antonia, Olga, and one of the many Italian guys who just would not fuck off, despite being told to do so many times.

Some of the many beers at the table

And they were actually really terrific, amonst them were two Germans, three were Dutch, and one was from the Ukraine. And they were all lovely. So we sat for serveral hours, and drank a whole lot more, and then we decided to see if we could get into a beer tent at Oktoberfest. In the rain. Surprisingly (?!?) it was packed, so the girls decided to go home. And we, well, what would two fairly responsible twenty-six olds do? Go to a bar and drink some more of course.

After trying a Mexican place, Salsalidos, which Wes had been to before, which was full; we decided to go to some underground bar where we met another American guy named Bill, and a couple of Canadian girls. We drank a whole lot more, and talked rubbish to one another. Oh, and by the way, Mai Tais are actually pretty tasty.

Eventually, we lost Bill, and then the Canadian twins, so Wes and I decided to head back to the camp. We'd missed the last train to Riem (suburb where we're staying), so we caught a taxi.

And then? Well, sleep. For awhile. And then we woke up, and went to the Oktoberfest. Now, like I said yesterday, Oktoberfest is kinda like a huge carnival. With about eight to ten really large beer halls throughout. We went straight to a beer hall. There's only so much justice words can give it. So instead, here's a few pictures. And all of them should be embiggenable.

This is what you first see upon entering the beer halls. People dnacing on tables, and singing German drinking songs. Within about a half hour, we were doing the same.

When you're bald, people seem to like pretending you have hair. Especially long´haired Italian girls.

That was about my third or fourth.

For that matter, there were a whole lot of hats etc. being passed around.

Even around the older Germans we were drinking with.

 

I really, really wish that this picture was in focus. It was one of the funniest things from the night.

Many random photos, with very many random people.

Actually, I don't mind this look.

Oh, and the unshaven scumbag look? Not intentional, I just hadn't shaved in about four days. Because I'm a bum.

And more random people.

After that, my commitment to taking photos kind of waned. We drank a whole lot. We had some very good times. And then we went home. Oh, they close the beer halls at around ten-thirty, when they force you to either scull your beer, or throw it away. Or attempt one, and then do the latter. Which may or may not lead to projectile vomiting at security guards. Who, as it turns out, can be quite nimble. And pleasant about the whole situation, but largely because they ducked.

Let it never be said that Oktoberfest is classy, by any means.

Anyways, the next day, Wes decided he'd had enough of the Taj MaTent, and packed it in. I went to an internet cafe, and was so scattered from several day of heavy drinking, that I haven't had a drink since. Time to focus on sleep, and y'know, basic nutritional needs. So yesterday I wandered around munich some more, and took photos of some of the places there.

I believe the name of this, is Saint Pauls. I just kept seeing that name everywhere around here.

And no, I can't quite explain my fascination with gargoyles, I just like them is all.

But seriously, remember that cartoon about fifteen years ago? Kicked ass, that's all I'm saying.

Munich is nice, but aside from the Oktoberfest, and the couple of thousand years of extra history and culture, it just kinda seems a little too much like Melbourne. Although a friend of mine told me off when I said that, after all, it is Melbourne that copied Europe, not Europe that copied Melbourne.

Well, that's about it for now. tomorrow I think I'll head to the Bavarian Alps, there's a place there I swore I had to see when I was here. I'll take pictures.

You are in my heart always.