This different world is the opposite. People are joyous, celebratory even. It is the 200th anniversary of Oktoberfest, also known by Germans as Die Wiesn. There are three types of people there, workers, crazy drunks and the people who laugh at the crazy drunks. Max (2), his friends and I were part of the third group. Just seeing people fall over or hearing Brits chant things about rain and beer was absolutely astounding.
We ventured into the main Hacker-Pschorr brewery tent. As soon as we walk in, we can hear thousands of people singing and drinking. I saw various amounts of people standing on tables or drinking beer or making out with others or some combination of all of those. It was too crowded to get a table so after partaking in the culture, we went back outside and found a table in a much less dense area.
We ordered food and drink and just chilled out in the drizzle for a little. By the time I was about to finish, the rain started picking up, so I hurried and we left the tent area.
The outsides of the 'tents' look like this:
Hacker-Pschorr Brewery Tent
Paulaner Brewery Tent
and Spaten Brewery Tent
Oktoberfest features the big 6 breweries from Munich; Hacker-Pschorr, Paulaner, Spaten, Löwenbräu, Augustiner and Hofbräuhaus. They all have large traditions and huge pieces of the beer market around town and Germany.
Shortly after doing dinner, we walked around the rest of the area, which has many boardwalk-like games and activities. Including.....this!
The Olympia Rings Roller Coaster
I'm not the biggest fan of roller coasters, but I'll still ride them if they look fun. Apparently, this is a famous roller coaster that is always at Oktoberfest. Naturally, I had to ride it. The end result was me breathing heavily for the next 30 minutes so that I didn't puke or pass out. It seemed like a terrible idea at first, but afterward, it was definitely worth it.
Just a few minutes after the roller coaster, we went on the large-but-not-nearly-as-huge-as-the-Texas-State-Fair ferris wheel. Here are some pictures of it and sights from the ride.
After the ferris wheel, we hit up the House of Mirrors. Its pretty much your standard carnival ride. No picture necessary. All the while, it is raining. I know I went on a terrible day, but it was still a blast. It is on the expensive side, so bring cash if you are going to visit.
So that is what I did, meanwhile some friends of mine were on lockdown in buildings around campus. First UT loses a football game, now the tragedy on campus; I definitely picked the right year to go abroad.
I will post again when I get settled in Freiburg on Sunday or Monday.
Have a great weekend everybody,
Adam
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