Oktoberfest!

If you know me, then you know how excited I was for the start of Oktoberfest. Not for the drinking, necessarily (who wants to pay 9 euro for a beer?) but for the opening ceremony, during which the mayor of Munich taps the first keg of beer. I mean, could you imagine any American politician kicking off any sort of giant alcoholic party? I was so ready to get there early (gotta get there around 9 in the morning to see the opening at noon).

But last night I felt sick, went to bed at 8, and slept until 11. I went to my friend's room and watched the ceremony on TV.

It was actually better, I think. The beer hall looked so crowded and from everything I've heard, it takes the waitresses an hour or more to get everyone who orders beers at opening what they want.

So we went to scope it out a bit later. Basically, Oktoberfest is like your typical county fair, except huge and filled with beer halls. But it has all the county fair offerings: rides, funhouses, overpriced food, etc. And the beer hall/tent openings were pretty inconspicuous. If it weren't for the occasional person moaning on the ground, I wouldn't have known the difference.

Oh, except that about half the fair-goers were wearing Lederhosen and Dirndls. I had no idea they were so popular-- I gotta get me an outfit like that.