Oktoberfest

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Hey guys,

This weekend we had arranged to spend an extended weekend in Munich celebrating one of the biggest festivals in the world - My Birthday, i mean, Oktoberfest. However prior to setting foot in the festival grounds, we had planned to find a pub which was showing the AFL Grand Final. Whilst this was difficult to find, we managed to locate one in town via a web search. It was due to kick off at 5am... Somehow we all managed to press the snooze button enough times to sleep through the game. Oh well we were taping it on Sky back in London. Surely we could get through 4 days in a foreign country without knowing the score.

After switching from Hostel to Hotel that morning we all made our way to the Oktoberfest grounds. Did you know that the Oktoberfest was first held in October, 1810 in honour of the marriage of crown prince Ludwig (Mad Ludwig) to Princess Therese von Sachsen-Hildburghausen? Me either, but i thought i would throw that in for good measure. Despite its name, the festival actually runs predominantly through second half of September and finishes in October. I didn't know what to make of this place the first time i set foot into the grounds. Sure i expected crowded beer tents, traditionally dressed waitresses serving 1-litre beers and a lot of aussies/kiwi's/SA trying to out drink each other, but the festival offered so much more.

We arrived at 8.30am and lined up at the Hofbrauhaus Tent. This tent is notorious for aussie visitors and is quite possibly the most well known tent. However as the doors opened at 9am the tents (don't be discouraged by the word tents - they are more like warehouses!) filled up and thousands of people flocked to the seats at the tables which most would call home for the next 12 or so hours. Even though this tent (one of 14 in the grounds) seats over 10,000 people, we had no chance, we got toward the front and they were turning people back. Geez - it is 8.30 in the morning, you'd think these people were alcoholics or something. We then pondered our next plan of attack. We wandered over to the Spatan tent and saw 2 seats at the end of a table. Mick and I quickly accommodated these seats as we saw other parties eyeing them off. Each table fits 8 people (comfortably) and 10 people (pissing in each others pockets). There were eight of us. Slowly but surely we managed to squeeze 6 people on the table. For the uninitiated, if you are not seated, you will not get served! So it was imperative that we got a seat. Most people stay in their seats the whole day (except to take a leak). In the end we got another couple of seats on the table behind us so it was all good. That first beer went down like water and i knew i was in for a big day. The Bavarians can drink (including the chicks) and they also consume large quantities of food, most of it traditional hearty fare such as sausage, hendl (chicken) and the good old sauerkraut. Errr.

The girls hit the wall early and Beth had to be thrown into a taxi. Mark reluctantly escorted her to a cab and just gave the cab driver €25 and the card for the hotel and sent her on her way so he could reclaim his seat - Classic Stuff! I don't blame him though, it was only 2pm, many hours of festivities to go. Seriously a seat at Oktoberfest is like prime real estate. We learnt some German chant which i have no idea what we were singing but we started one up of our own and taught it to the Germans - "Da Da Da Da Da, Da Da Da Da Da, Da Da Da Da Da Da Da Da Da, Da Da Da, We are the Navy Blues..." Funny stuff. We actually chipped a few of the steins in the process as we united to sing and clash glasses proclaiming "PROST!" "(Cheers)" We made many friends throughout the day and even managed to speak some German. "Du Bist Huebsch". Not sure what it means but it seemed to be working. The Bavarians wore their traditional costumes and the chicks looked hot in their Drindls. The blokes on the other hand probably struggled to breathe. The term squashed plums comes to mind...

Everyone, except me, left around 8pm coz i decided that i wasn't done and wanted to kick on with my new Bavarian friends. I even went on some of the rides. God knows how i kept it all down particularly on the rollercoaster. Not even sure how or when i got back to the hotel, but i do know that i had a nasty hangover the next morning.

If one was to compare Oktoberfest to other festivals, comparing it to the Melbourne Show would be like comparing Endeavour Hills Under 11's Football to the AFL Grand Final. With its 14 beer tents and seating for 100,000 beer drinkers, it attracts 6 million people each year. It is said that 30% of Munich's annual beer consumption is consumed within this two week festival and i could see why. I met a geezer there who actually took annual leave from work for two weeks to attend every day. Oh and by the way each stein is about €8 by the time you tip the waitresses (to make sure they come back). Imagine what this bloke was spending a day. Now that's commitment.

I have a fair collection of beer glasses at home and the Oktoberfest beer mugs would make an attractive addition to my collection. Fortunately, i already have some that Baz had brought back from his last visit. They seem to be a very popular souvenir among visitors, particularly Aussies, Saffas and Sheep Shaggers, but it appeared that smuggling a souvenir was a lot harder than many people thought due to the size of them. We were strongly advised to keep the receipts of the mugs we 'purchased' because police are known to search people for stolen mugs, even away from the fest area. Apparently the fine is €50.

On the Sunday we took a time out from damaging our kidneys and caught a train to the Neuschwanstein Castle which is near Hohenschwangau and Fussen in southwest Bavaria, not far from the Austrian Border. This castle is the most popular tourist destination in Germany and served as the inspiration for the Castle you might often associate with Disneyland. This was nothing short of spectacular and admittedly it was up there with the Chateau de Chillon (see previous blog). We actually left Munich at around 11 and didn't arrive back until a similar hour that night, although this can be attributed to the of time waiting for trains, buses etc.

On the subject of trains, what do you think would be the chances of getting on a train, let alone on the same carriage to a castle, with two other aussies, who just happen to blurt out out the words i didn't want to hear for another 4 days 'See the Eagles got up by a point'. We all just looked at each other and were ready to kill them. We had got through 2 days without the slightest hint of knowing who won, only to hear these words. We all just threw our heads back and groaned. They immediately looked at us and i explained the situation. Would have been a great game to watch not knowing the conclusion. Oh well.

Anyway, back to the Castles. The Hohenschwangau, Maximillian's castle and Ludwig's boyhood home, was impressively decorated. It was filled with gifts from various other countries, including a shield covered with every Bavarian coat of arms. That particular piece was given to Maximillian as a wedding present, behind it hang an axe (symbol of Bavaria) and a mace (symbol of Prussia, where his bride was from). Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau are both covered with swans because before the royal kings of Bavaria moved in there the knights of the swan had a fortress there. Maximillian decided to build Hohenschwangau on one of the old fortresses, Neuschwanstein on another (hence the name: "New-Swan-Stone"). The knights had all long since died off (by the 12th century they were gone... these castles were built in the 19th).

All in all, these castles were the products of too much money and too many fairy tales. Ludwig loved the epic history of Germany and all the romantic ideas of his time. It shows. Every room in it depicts scenes or themes from its history. Construction of Neuschwanstein was privately funded, and stopped nearly the hour Ludwig died. Tours of the unfinished castle started 6 weeks later. The hike to the nearby Marianbrucke (Mary's Bridge) was worth it. Not only is the view of Neuschwanstein great, the falls below the bridge are crystal clear and picturesque. We got some fantastic shots, although i can picture it as being even more spectacular in the winter months with the covering of snow. All in all the day was a success and and a change of scenery from the hustle and bustle of the Oktoberfest. This place gets a big tick on my list of places visited.

From happy to sombre could probably describe the mood as we went from celebrating 'beer' and hiking to castles, to visiting Dachau concentration camp. Dachau is known for having been the location of the first Nazi concentration camp. The camp was established uder the supervision of the hideous Heinrich Himmler in 1933 and served as the model after which many other such prisons were subsequently built. Those incarcerated in Dachau were primarily political prisoners, which constituted anyone who resisted the absolute suppression of freedom that the regime was imposing on the population after Hitler's election as Chancellor in January 1933.

The camp was a slave labor camp and not a death camp like Auschwitz in Poland where many millions of Jews were systematically put to death beginning in 1942. The barracks (no longer there) were supposed to house around 6,000 people but ended up holding 30,000 people. Most deaths occurred through starvation, exhaustion and disease. Gas chambers were built, but reportedly never put to use. The majority of the deaths the occured in the prison were 'put down' to suicide. The camp is huge and we spent 4 hours touring the museum, the grounds, and crematorium. It was an eery, depressing experience, especially standing under the gas 'showers'.

The remainder of our time was spent sightseeing in Munich. The highlight of the city would have to be the Hobrauhaus which is a state government owned brewery. Spent the day there drinking and eating Weiner Schitzel and pretzels.

Bang! One of the best weekends so far.

You guys must be getting sick of my adventures, so why not drop me a line and tell me a little of what is going on back home?


R.I.P Shadow (1996-2006)

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Photos

Hofbrauhaus
The counterpart to the famous Hofbräuhaus, this 'tent' is especially popular with Americans, Australians and New Zealanders.

Regret
Ha Ha Ha - It was an early day for Beth. I think Schona was looking for the strecher. Get her out of here!

Prost!
What better way to celebrate your birthday than with an endless supply of beer at Oktoberfest with your mates.

Du Bist Huebsch
My Bavarian friends didn't speak much English, nor did i speak German, but we still managed to communicate (drunkenly).

Oktoberfest Grounds
The 'fest' comes to life at night time - not that i can remember much of it... (Ps - I didn't take this photo but i think it gives an accurate impression of what it is like)

Neuschwanstein Castle
Neuschwanstein served as the inspiration for the Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland

Marienbrücke
Mary's Bridge provides a spectacular view of both castles.

Entrance to Dachau
All prisoners walked through this gate, marked with the sentence "Arbeit Macht Frei" (Work will set you free)

Dachau
Although Dachau was not the first Nazi prisoner camp, it was the first concentration-style camp after which all subsequent concentration camps were modelled.

Crematorium
Prisoners were hanged from the rafters. The ovens cremated the dead.

Comments

[Billy Z]

Cracker of an update
Nick sure writes a great trip report! I think we can put his talents to good use when he gets back to OZ.