A Friar in Florence: Munich, Germany (Oktoberfest!)

Hallo meine freunde! (Hello my friends!) This post is going to detail my trip to Germany, where I celebrated Oktoberfest in the capitol, Munich! This is the second time that I have visited Munich, but I must say this experience was MUCH different from my last. I went to Munich with my family 7 years ago, and we did actually visit the Hofbrauhaus, but the main difference was it was the middle of summer, and I was 13 and not drinking any beer. Our trip was full of historical touring and sightseeing, and we were very immersed in the culture. This trip was a look into a different kind of German culture, which was admittedly a little more fun (who knew a college kid would love a country that's culture was beer and pretzels?!). Shocking, I know 😉

We arrived in Germany, and I immediately remembered the U bahn and S bahn system from when I came with my parents. The platforms were clean, the trains ran like clockwork, and the maps were easy to understand. Germany doesn't mess around when it comes to public transportation, and that was a huge relief! In Italy, things are pretty disorganized, and no schedule is accurate, so this was a welcome change. There was a stand at the main train station right after the airport that was selling dirndls and lederhosen, and I saw one that I really liked and bought it there. Oktoberfest was already going on, so when we were riding the subway we were surrounded by people dressed up and looking like they’d enjoyed a few beers already that day. This got my friends and I tremendously excited to arrive the next morning! That night, we went to Marienplatz, where the Glockenspiel is, and found a traditional German pub for dinner. This is where I indulged in my first German beer, and I knew I was in for a good weekend the moment I had my first sip. After a satisfying dinner, I went back to my Airbnb, where I was unfortunately staying by myself for the night until my friend arrived from France the next morning. I rented a bedroom in three-person apartment for the weekend, where the price was reasonable and the woman I rented it from had outstanding reviews. Her profile picture was of a cute young brunette with a golden retriever, so I figured she would be sweet and harmless. When I spoke with her about the booking, she had good English, and I figured everything was going to work out fine. I'm hoping you are picking up on the fact that I am including these seemingly pointless background details for a reason. I have written enough blogs about things not going according to plan that you should realize this is one of those times by now. I made it to the airbnb fine, but when I tried to ring the buzzer to be let in, no one answered. After ringing the buzzer multiple times and having no response, I decided to text the Airbnb lady to let her know that I was here, and needed to be let in. She did not answer, so I went back and checked the email she sent me with contact information, and I realized she gave me a phone number I could call. A woman picked up when I dialed, and let me know her husband was on his way down to let me in. I ended up sitting on this doorstep for twenty minutes after this phone call, and called two more times, and when the woman finally answered she angrily told me her husband was coming. Either this apartment building was 1,000 floors and the man decided to take the stairs, or they clearly just did not care to let me in. Either way, the door was eventually opened by the opposite of what I was expecting. I didn’t have a particular picture in mind of what this guy was going to look like, but when I picture the adorable golden retriever lady (who I assumed was the woman I spoke to on the phone minutes earlier), it is safe to say I did not picture her with who greeted (more or less grunted to be more accurate) me at the door. It was a man in his mid-forties with long greasy hair and an unshaven face. He led me up to the room, which, was not 1,000 floors up, only 3, to be clear. The woman that was there when we got inside was still not the woman I had made the booking with, and I was starting to wonder if I had been tricked. I put my bags down in my room, and immediately called my dad. I explained the situation to him, and he asked if I felt unsafe, which I did not. I was more just surprised, but these people did not seem dangerous whatsoever. I finished the phone call by saying, “I’m going to go take a shower, if I don’t call you back in 15 minutes presume I’m dead”. Obviously, this isn’t particularly funny to a father whose 20-year-old daughter is on another continent staying in a stranger’s home by herself, but I couldn’t help myself. Luckily my dad has a good sense of humor, and he knew that if I truly felt something was wrong in my gut I would not have stayed there.

I showered, (and didn’t get abducted/murdered… yippee!) and went right to bed, since I knew how early my day needed to start in the morning.

Everyone got up around 6 o’clock in the morning to get dressed in our dirndls, do our hair, and so on and so forth. It wasn’t too difficult to get up so bright and early, because we were all so excited to start the day! After getting off the subway at the Oktoberfest stop, we were immediately surrounded by masses of college students dressed in dirndls and lederhosen. People start lining up hours before the gates actually open, because it is critical to get a table inside the Hofbrauhaus tent. I waited in line with my PC friends, and had an unexpected reunion with my friend Phil, who literally flew from Providence to Germany just to go to Oktoberfest for the weekend. Shoutout to you Phil, best surprise ever, and you’re a champion for making the trip over. Okay, moving on. As we are all waiting in line, people are super excited and large group chants are going on, and the whole atmosphere is very lively. Once the clock finally hits 9 the gates are opened, and it is like the opening scene of the Hunger Games. Or any scene from The Purge. Everyone is running and pushing and there is some mild trampling going on, but it doesn’t even matter because your adrenaline is flowing and all you can think about is how nice it will be to have a table to rest your massive beer stein on. My friends and I were running with our arms linked so as not to lose each other, and we rounded the corner into the Hofbrauhaus tent. Girls were already laying spread-eagled on tables to claim them for their friends, and people were standing on top of benches to try and scout out if their fallen comrades were coming. I am not painting this picture of madness to be dramatic, this is exactly what was going on. The people who work the event were filming the whole thing, so I’m sure I am now featured somewhere on YouTube in a video titled, “Girls Gone Wild: American College Students at Oktoberfest”. Or you know, something along those lines, but probably catchier. You get my point!

My friends and I were able to snag a standing table, and the waitress immediately took our orders for beers. While we waited for her to return we bought massive pretzels to share, because reality hit that it was 9 a.m. and we were about to start drinking copious amounts of beer for the next 5-6 hours, so getting some breakfast in was critical. The waitress came back with the beers, and they were truly massive. These steins require two hands, (or maybe I am weak, you might have to consult someone of average strength on this one), but either way, I’m telling you, they were HUGE! Good news though, they were also delicious, and it wasn’t long before we were all ordering another round. The entire hall is lively, with a Bavarian band playing local German folk music on the main stage. Every so often the whole hall erupts in cheers and pounding on the table, because some brave soul stands up on a table and decides to chug the entire stein. This can result in being kicked out of the hall, but hey, no guts no glory! There were some really petite girls that I watched absolutely crush the stein, and it was one of the most impressive things I’ve seen in my life. I think I loved Oktoberfest so much because it’s about eating food, drinking beer, and people watching. Another trend I noticed during the people watching was that a lot of men grew some impressive beards for this occasion. I’m talking yearlong commitment beards. It was very fitting for the setting though, and made them look all the more authentic. Moving through the tables and socializing with my friends was really cool, because every table had people from different parts of the world. I met people from all over Europe, all different states in the U.S., and even some people from South America. All in all, this was one of the coolest days of my life so far, and a memory I will never forget. I think everyone should add Oktoberfest to their bucket list, because it is truly a one of a kind experience!