Monday, September 29, 2008
Captian's Log #5 Stardate 842157
Oktoberfest 2008
Friday, September 26
7:00 PM Sandwiches prepared
8:30 Attempted Bed
9:30 Only Stage 1 and 2, leading to interesting, but forgotten dreams
10:30 Repeated
Saturday, September 27
12:30 AM Awoken from fitful sleep, as well as floormate blasting reggae at a volume I thought impossible for dorm speakers. . .
3:30 Alarm goes off, groggily awake, shower, dress, retrieve sandwiches
4:30 Set off to the Hauptbahnhof (main train station)
5:08 Train to Basel, Switerzland departs, first of four trains
All together there are 10 of us: Nico, Sam, Andrew, Kyle B, Heidi, Brianna, Joanna, Becca, Emma and Myself. There is a ticket option for the trains referred to as "Schönes Wochenende" (Beautiful Weekend), where you can take as many regional trains as you wish, and works for up to 5 people. And it costs 35 euro. Normally, a train to Munich costs around 60euro, one way, so this was a ridiculous deal (even is go time was a little early...)
From Basel we go to Ulm, and then from Ulm to Munich. The last train was packed, but luckily we managed to get 4 seats (the ones that face one another). But it was still 4 chairs for 10 people.
And then the snack man came through. And we all became that much closer :) (The Germans laughed at us, I think it was more at the situation)
We got into München around 12:30, and decide to eat the lunches we packed in a park. It was both beautiful and delicious.
Then we wandered in search of Oktoberfest for an hour. (Fun!)
And we find it, and it was glorious.
Its on this field in München, and unlike, say, the Summerfest, everything is supposably collapseable. The most surprising thing was how much like a carniveal it was. There was your tilt-o-whirl, your pirate ship swing, a ferris wheel, vendors with delicious and terrible foodstuffs. There were also a ton of children, which was unexpecting given the drinking connotations attached to the fest.
What was wonderful is that pretty much everyone was wearing traditional Lederhosen and Dirndl. Like Halloween, if everyone decided to wear similar costumes. Are there any such events in the USA? Where people don national outfits, and celebrate? I kind of wish there were. . .
(Also, Lederhosen are DAMN sexy)
Eventually we found our way into the Biergarten of a tent, and the 10 of us manage to fit together at a table. Remarkable. Promptly, Maß (~1 liter of beer, pronounced mah-ss) were ordered, and we settled down to drinking and merrymaking. At one point someone pulls out a mini-trumpet and starts playong songs, and others got up on the table to dance, and the rest "sang." Truly Oktoberfest.
At the biergarten I had 2 Maß, and the group had broken into 2. With some lovely New Zealanders my group wandered to the Paulner(?) biergarten, and we all had another Maß.
Ultimately a poor decision.
Around 11:30, 11:45, we decided it was time to leave, and to regroup at Burgerking!
Don't get too excited, its pretty much exactly the same. More expensive though.
Then three of us- Sam, Heidi, and I- decided to sit out the next couple hours at the Hauptbahnhof while we waited for out 5:30AM train back. The rest went on a wonderful, drunken adventure through München were, apparently, quite a bit of hallucinating took place. Horray lack of sleep!
We get on the train, and everyone promptly sleeps. We switch trains in Ulm, sleep. Switch trains in Basel, then back in Freiburg where everyone pretty much showered, and slept.
For the times I was awake on the return, the landscape was super foggy. Think of every epic morning battle scene (I'm thinking especially Civil War films) and THATS how foggy it was. Something about it fascinated me at the time.
So that was my Oktoberfest, as incoherent as the renditon is!
Also, Valerie, I got your letter. Thank you!
Friday, September 26
7:00 PM Sandwiches prepared
8:30 Attempted Bed
9:30 Only Stage 1 and 2, leading to interesting, but forgotten dreams
10:30 Repeated
Saturday, September 27
12:30 AM Awoken from fitful sleep, as well as floormate blasting reggae at a volume I thought impossible for dorm speakers. . .
3:30 Alarm goes off, groggily awake, shower, dress, retrieve sandwiches
4:30 Set off to the Hauptbahnhof (main train station)
5:08 Train to Basel, Switerzland departs, first of four trains
All together there are 10 of us: Nico, Sam, Andrew, Kyle B, Heidi, Brianna, Joanna, Becca, Emma and Myself. There is a ticket option for the trains referred to as "Schönes Wochenende" (Beautiful Weekend), where you can take as many regional trains as you wish, and works for up to 5 people. And it costs 35 euro. Normally, a train to Munich costs around 60euro, one way, so this was a ridiculous deal (even is go time was a little early...)
From Basel we go to Ulm, and then from Ulm to Munich. The last train was packed, but luckily we managed to get 4 seats (the ones that face one another). But it was still 4 chairs for 10 people.
And then the snack man came through. And we all became that much closer :) (The Germans laughed at us, I think it was more at the situation)
We got into München around 12:30, and decide to eat the lunches we packed in a park. It was both beautiful and delicious.
Then we wandered in search of Oktoberfest for an hour. (Fun!)
And we find it, and it was glorious.
Its on this field in München, and unlike, say, the Summerfest, everything is supposably collapseable. The most surprising thing was how much like a carniveal it was. There was your tilt-o-whirl, your pirate ship swing, a ferris wheel, vendors with delicious and terrible foodstuffs. There were also a ton of children, which was unexpecting given the drinking connotations attached to the fest.
What was wonderful is that pretty much everyone was wearing traditional Lederhosen and Dirndl. Like Halloween, if everyone decided to wear similar costumes. Are there any such events in the USA? Where people don national outfits, and celebrate? I kind of wish there were. . .
(Also, Lederhosen are DAMN sexy)
Eventually we found our way into the Biergarten of a tent, and the 10 of us manage to fit together at a table. Remarkable. Promptly, Maß (~1 liter of beer, pronounced mah-ss) were ordered, and we settled down to drinking and merrymaking. At one point someone pulls out a mini-trumpet and starts playong songs, and others got up on the table to dance, and the rest "sang." Truly Oktoberfest.
At the biergarten I had 2 Maß, and the group had broken into 2. With some lovely New Zealanders my group wandered to the Paulner(?) biergarten, and we all had another Maß.
Ultimately a poor decision.
Around 11:30, 11:45, we decided it was time to leave, and to regroup at Burgerking!
Don't get too excited, its pretty much exactly the same. More expensive though.
Then three of us- Sam, Heidi, and I- decided to sit out the next couple hours at the Hauptbahnhof while we waited for out 5:30AM train back. The rest went on a wonderful, drunken adventure through München were, apparently, quite a bit of hallucinating took place. Horray lack of sleep!
We get on the train, and everyone promptly sleeps. We switch trains in Ulm, sleep. Switch trains in Basel, then back in Freiburg where everyone pretty much showered, and slept.
For the times I was awake on the return, the landscape was super foggy. Think of every epic morning battle scene (I'm thinking especially Civil War films) and THATS how foggy it was. Something about it fascinated me at the time.
So that was my Oktoberfest, as incoherent as the renditon is!
Also, Valerie, I got your letter. Thank you!
12:28 PM
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