Friday, October 3, 2008
Yeah! The big drive to Munich today. About 360 kilometers or 3 hour drive. When you can travel over 100 mph on the autobahn, it doesn’t take long, even with road constrution. Thanks to Rick who did all the driving and knows his way around Germany.
Got to our hotel called the Comfort Hotel Munchen City-Center on 33 Landwehrstrasse., and David went to the train station to meet his buddy Robbie who is studying in Rome for a semester. From our hotel, the festival grounds were a 6-7 minute walk. The train station, 5-6 minutes. Town center and the Hofbrauhaus, a 15 minute walk. How cool is that.
Our first Oktoberfest for three out of four of us. What an experience! Over 6 million were expected during this festival, and we attended the last weekend. I have never seen so many people in one place.
Rick had managed to get tickets to one of the smaller tents (350 people) next to the Hacker-Pschorr tent. Appropriately named the Chicken tent. Each of the major breweries in Munich has a tent and there are 14 large tents. Rick went through a travel agency in California and the two young ladies, with the green ‘Got Beer’ tee-shirts, in the picture are Ashley and Anne with Ludus Tours. We were gladly welcomed at their table. Each table seats 10-12 people.
For comparison, if you don’t have tickets to get into the beer tents, you probably won’t get in. If you get your tickets 10-12 months in advance, you might pay 40-50 euros each. If you were to find some now, expect to pay over 300 euros and as high as 500 euros for ONE ticket. (1 euro = $1.50)
The atmosphere in the tents is undescribe-able, so I won’t even try. You must experience it for yourself. The singing and cheers and dancing is something to behold. Quickly we were swept up in the festive mood and joined the chorus.
If you pictured Oktoberfest with young buxom maidens carrying 6 large steins of beer, you would be soooo wrong. (They carry ten) Each stein holds a liter or 33 ounces of beer. Included in our fantastic roasted chicken dinner were two of these steins, each. Ooftha! They might just make a nice souvenir.
Rick and I are talking about organizing a group in 2009 or 2010 to return to Munich for this festival. If anyone reading this has some interest, please let us know. The details will unfold as we enjoy yet another liter of brew.
Yeah! The big drive to Munich today. About 360 kilometers or 3 hour drive. When you can travel over 100 mph on the autobahn, it doesn’t take long, even with road constrution. Thanks to Rick who did all the driving and knows his way around Germany.
Got to our hotel called the Comfort Hotel Munchen City-Center on 33 Landwehrstrasse., and David went to the train station to meet his buddy Robbie who is studying in Rome for a semester. From our hotel, the festival grounds were a 6-7 minute walk. The train station, 5-6 minutes. Town center and the Hofbrauhaus, a 15 minute walk. How cool is that.
Our first Oktoberfest for three out of four of us. What an experience! Over 6 million were expected during this festival, and we attended the last weekend. I have never seen so many people in one place.
Rick had managed to get tickets to one of the smaller tents (350 people) next to the Hacker-Pschorr tent. Appropriately named the Chicken tent. Each of the major breweries in Munich has a tent and there are 14 large tents. Rick went through a travel agency in California and the two young ladies, with the green ‘Got Beer’ tee-shirts, in the picture are Ashley and Anne with Ludus Tours. We were gladly welcomed at their table. Each table seats 10-12 people.
For comparison, if you don’t have tickets to get into the beer tents, you probably won’t get in. If you get your tickets 10-12 months in advance, you might pay 40-50 euros each. If you were to find some now, expect to pay over 300 euros and as high as 500 euros for ONE ticket. (1 euro = $1.50)
The atmosphere in the tents is undescribe-able, so I won’t even try. You must experience it for yourself. The singing and cheers and dancing is something to behold. Quickly we were swept up in the festive mood and joined the chorus.
If you pictured Oktoberfest with young buxom maidens carrying 6 large steins of beer, you would be soooo wrong. (They carry ten) Each stein holds a liter or 33 ounces of beer. Included in our fantastic roasted chicken dinner were two of these steins, each. Ooftha! They might just make a nice souvenir.
Rick and I are talking about organizing a group in 2009 or 2010 to return to Munich for this festival. If anyone reading this has some interest, please let us know. The details will unfold as we enjoy yet another liter of brew.
I'm attempting to capture the horrible time we're having in Munich and at Oktoberfest. I'll let you guess for yourself. Cheers!
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