Oktoberfest in Munich, Germany

One of the things on our bucket list when we moved here last year was going to Oktoberfest. Hotels and other accommodations book up fast for this event so last winter we booked our hotel and bought our lederhosen and dirndl while in Munich.

First started in 1810 to celebrate the wedding of Crown Prince Ludwig to Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen, Oktoberfest is now a 16 day festival celebrating beer, in which people from around the world gather with Germans who have probably been going since they were 3. This is known as the world's biggest fair having something for everyone of all ages. We were astounded at how large the grounds were, holding roller coasters, ferris wheels, carnival games, and of course the beer "tents". Some of these tents can hold up to almost 10,000 people and each tent has its own character and feel to it.

One of the many rides.

One of the tents.

Roller coasters

We'd say about two-thirds of the people in attendance were dressed in the traditional lederhosen and dirndl outfits, almost one-third were in regular clothes, and the rest were in other outfits like kilts. People of all ages were wearing the traditional Bavarian attire and we think we fit in perfectly.

After walking around for a while and looking at the scene around us we went into our first tent, Paulaner. We were able to find seats, though even on a Thursday at 1pm it was pretty crowded. The waitress came right away and we ordered two beers in the only size that is possible at Oktoberfest, a liter stein. Sitting next to us were three Munich residents who were taking off of work to enjoy a day at the festival.

A fun table!

After a liter of beer each we decided to move on to another tent, Augustiner. By this time it was around 3pm and it was a little harder to find seats. We were squeezed in between some very drunk Germans and some friendly Italians. We didn't stay here long, just sharing a liter of beer, and we only have one picture from inside the tent. The drunk guy on the right's English wasn't very good and the guy on the left is laughing because he told him many times that they don't speak English. Jon and I were trying our best to translate back and forth. 

Squeezed in the middle

Augustiner

We moved on to the Hofbrau tent and once we found seats, decided to stay there for the rest of the time. This tent is notoriously known as the tourist tent, though Germans still come because they like the atmosphere and meeting people from around the world. Things got a little rowdy here... by the end of the night everyone was standing on the benches and singing the traditional drinking songs. I also remember "Que sera, sera" being played. After five liters between the two of us at this tent things got a little fuzzy (alright, very fuzzy) but from what we remember we had a good time.

In the beginning...

Luigi and Mario

Very packed!

Later on...

We're not sure when we left or how we got back to the hotel, but we do remember stopping to play a carnival game involving bb guns. It's always a great idea to have these shooting games right outside of the tents at night, don't you think?

He hit 6/10 shots and could barely see straight! (9/10 sober the next day)

And this is what happened to our camera after we dropped it with the lens out.

We went to the Oktoberfest grounds the next day, but didn't drink. Instead we strolled around, played a few games, and bought some souvenirs to take home. Overall, we were really impressed with the organization, efficiency, and order of the entire event and we don't think a beer festival of this magnitude could work in other countries. We will always remember... what we remember. :)