Oktoberfest 2005
If you like beer and enjoy the odd giant pretzel now and again then Oktoberfest in Munich has got to be a stop on your trip around Europe! Imagine dozens of tents (which look more like proper buildings than tents) packed to the rafters with thousands of drunken, singing, dancing fools wolfing down half chickens and guzzling litres steins of beer and you pretty much have Oktoberfest.

People arrive in droves from all over the world at some point during the festival’s three weeks of activities with the first weekend being the biggest and busiest. I had heard from everyone I’d spoken to that in order to get a table and even get into some of the more popular tents, you’d have to be there to line up at 9am for the noon opening. Due to extreme hangover I wasn’t able to heed my own advice, arriving at about 11am to find the Hofbrauhuas completely packed and not letting anymore people in. There were plenty of tables outside but as it was raining and freezing, it wasn’t looking like a good option.

My friend and I had a couple mates inside and were pretty desperate to get in but decided to wander around a bit looking for a different tent and to try our luck later. The grounds were packed and the street had the opening day parade moving through it, making things even squishier. We bumped into a couple of my flatmates and decided to wait in line for another tent with them before giving up completely and deciding to brave the rain at our original tent. I’d noticed earlier that small lines were being formed at the side doors of the Hofbrauhaus and thought I’d poke my head in and ask what our chances were of getting in if we lined up there. I knocked on the door and the security guide told us to come on in. It was a great stroke of luck and we were ready to toast our entrance into the tent.

At noon the first keg of the day was tapped, the band started playing, and the beer ladies started making their rounds, usually with 8-10 steins in hand at a time. Litre steins cost 7 euro but we were all just paying 10 and leaving a nice tip. There’s such a mad rush at the beginning that everyone just wants their beer and nobody seems to care much about change. I imagine these women make some serious money doing this over the course of the three week festival.

The Hofbrauhaus is well known as being the chosen tent for Aussies and Kiwis and has a reputation for chaos. It is the location of the infamous ‘Pig Pen’ which is a part of the tent where anything goes including some serious bra and undies tearing off sessions. From our table on the side we would see the occasional bra chucked up into the air followed by thunderous applause and then a round of songs from the band. If you’re brave enough to enter the pen make sure you’re flying free or you will face the consequences.

We didn’t have seats for the first couple of hours but eventually squeezed onto a table as people left and moved around the place. We had heard that you won’t be served if you’re not sitting but we got around this by having people who were sitting order our drinks for us. It was a bit of a pain in the ass having to constantly dodge the waitresses and pretzel ladies, but worth the wait once we claimed a seat and could enjoy our beer. After awhile most of my time was spent standing on the seat anyways, singing and dancing along to a very small variety of German tunes.

Inevitably after drinking litre after litre of beer, my mind turned towards going to the loo. This was a lot more difficult than I would have thought There was more security around the toilet area than in the rest of the tent! Walls of security guards had been erected directing people and keeping them in line. The line soon turned into a mob and pushing, shoving, and chaos erupted with desperate people jumping the queue. I survived the melee and tried to slow my drinking pace in an effort to have to go back to that scary area as few times as possible.

More dancing, more drinking, lots of spills, a few smashed steins and it was time to head off. This is all a blur but I think several rides on over priced roller coasters were involved as well as a long stint of being lost on the subway. Eventually made it back to the hostel and soon after it was time to get up and do it all again… but not quite as hard this time as I had to catch a train back to Salzburg at 6pm.

Salzburg is only an hour away and a great place to fly in and out of or even to stay if you can’t find an overpriced bed in Munich. I stupidly booked my ticket in advance and paid about 50 euro because I was afraid the trains would be packed. Trains run so often between the two cities though that this is very unlikely, and they even put on some good deals if you buy your ticket on your day of travel. I was hosed!

If you love your beer and love a great party then you can’t miss Oktoberfest. If you hate beer and love a great party then you still can’t miss it. It was the hugest party I’ve been to in my life and loads of fun. If my liver can stand it I will be back next year for sure.

By: Kirsty
September 20th, 2005