Oktoberfest, a magical place where alcoholics gather to celebrate God’s golden drinkable delicacy. A popular US movie is “Beerfest,” a spinoff of Oktoberfest festivities. This movie’s basis was about the only idea/thought process I had in my mind going into the weekend. Even regarding Munich, I knew little besides faint memories from my high school history class. Oktoberfest was the main reason we went to Munich but gladly I was able more of the city on Sunday.
We arrived late in the afternoon on Friday. Upon arrival, the first thing we did was buy lederhosen. They were a must for the festival. You have to follow suit when your abroad, can’t be sticking out like American tourists. I hate to say it but it is almost too obvious to spot out Americans. @Anyone coming abroad, you HAVE to make sure your style is on point. Why? It is part of the culture and comes on it can’t hurt to put just a little effort into your outfit. Sweats are comfy but don’t look like you just rolled out of bed when your standing outside a Louie V store next to the Trevi Fountain. I digress. Friday night was just a prep day for Oktoberfest, which meant go to a beer garden and start drinking. After this study abroad I have really come to love beer gardens… and beer.
It was 6am on a Saturday. I had a completely empty stomach that was about to be overflowing with beer. This shouldn’t be something you look forward to at the crack of dawn but I couldn’t wait. It was me, Eric, Shane, and Willy that were in line together, while the girls tried entering on the other side. We waited in line for two hours before the opened the gates. I am not exaggerating when I say people sprinted through those gates, throwing shoulders just to be the first ones at a tent. To the average person observing, it could have passed as stampede darting into safety from a zombie apocalypse. Luckily we headed to the second biggest tent, Lowerbraun. The most popular was HB, but we just wanted to find a tent with a seat because if you don’t have a seat you can’t order a beer.
The people started flowing in and before we knew it about an hour passed and the place was packed with easily a 1000 people. The service was quick and easy. Ten euros for a liter-sized stent that was so heavy it could knock a man out with one swing, guaranteeing the glass wouldn’t even break. One beer became two which became four which became an amazing time. You start to venture off and meet new people so I made my way to the table behind us. I ended up meeting three, in their late 20s, girls from Canada, as well as a few duke graduates. The grads lived in Chicago, Seatle, and Michigan but all agreed to come out to Oktoberfest for a “killer weekend,” according to Mark from Seattle. I am surprised I remembered his name. Actually, it could have been Matt. The hours from 11AM to 3PM are a tad hazy.
After getting the energy to get up and go outside instead of to pee, I gathered the crew and we headed out. When you left the tent I swore the gates of heaven opened up. I was blinded by the sun and the plethora of drunk people ranging in age from 18 to 60-year-olds. This place was literally a drunken Disney. They had amusement rides and even rollercoasters! This festival made for my best day yet. I kept saying that but somehow it keeps getting better, I am going to need a new bucket list by the end of this study abroad. After plowing down some McDonald’s we headed back to the hotel to sleep off the soon to be a hangover. I woke up to Willy watching TV. We talked for a little and then 5 minutes into geeking about our day, a camel auction show came on. That is what I think it was anyway. It was just people yelling at another person dragging along a camel in a circle. I have so many questions for both the network channels of Europe and the producer of that show.
Sunday started off with a much-needed buffet that consisted of meat, yogurt pretzels, salmon, eggs, and Nutella waffles. We had some time before our train came so we were able to venture off into the city center and actually see Munich, not just the massive tents in a park. We walked around Marienplatz, new and old town, and Karlsplatz. Near old town was a “fifth ave” like street that had all designerwear and luxury stores. I saw my first Bugatti in person in one of their dealerships. Million dollar car owing companies really know how to market. After eating incredible Italian food at Eataly, it was time to head back to Prague.
The train ride started off great. We had our own room, plenty of snacks, it was going to be a solid ride. About four hours in, a supposed hour away from home, the train stops. The conductor came up to us and said, “we are here, you have to get off.” We looked at him dumbfounded. To our understanding, at one of the prior stops, the train split in half. It had the front half going to Prague and the back half going to East Guam Germany in Hoobenbrauf (stereotyped the name, had no idea how to pronounce). There was no way of knowing because the announcements were in German. We were left there clueless.
Once we got the aggression out, we figured out a plan. The most cost-efficient option was to wait an hour for a two-hour train to Nuremberg, then wait almost three hours till 1AM for a five-hour bus ride back to Prague, which ended up being an hour late. Once we got back a little before 6AM we had an hour to sleep before getting up at 7AM for an 8eight hour class. Then that night my throat practically closed on me and the next day I found out I had strep. Long story short, it made for a horrible Monday.
Tom's Travels 
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