When I found out we were moving to Germany, I knew I had to get to Oktoberfest. Brev had basketball games and no time off, so sadly he couldn’t join me. However, I was able to meet up in Munich with a friend I met last year in Belgium. We had so much fun! And yes, we did wear the traditional German dirndls.
To make the weekend even better, some of my family friends were also visiting Munich and we were able to join them at their table at Oktoberfest. (Thanks Noreen!).
Oktoberfest Fun Facts:
- Oktoberfest began in 1810 to celebrate the marriage of the crown prince of Bavaria to Princess Therese von Sachsen-Hildburghausen.
- At the start of Oktoberfest, the mayor of Munich taps the first keg at the Schottenhamel Festhalle tent. No beer can be served until this official keg is tapped, and gunshots are then fired to signal to the other tents that they can begin serving beer.
- Like a fair back home, Oktoberfest has tons of rides, concessions, and games. But what makes it different is the many festival “tents” that each house their own band, beer, and long wooden tables. In total, these festival tents host about 120,000 people to drink beer and sing.
- Each tent has its own vibe, from international to traditional or relaxed to standing on the benches and rowdy. We were in the Pschorr Bräurosl tent and had a blast! The tents are owned by one of the big six breweries themselves or by private owners.
- These six Munich breweries are the only ones allowed to serve their beer at Oktoberfest: Hofbräu, Augustiner, Hacker-Pschorr, Löwenbräu, Paulaner and Spaten.
- The official Oktoberfest steins hold one liter of beer, which is basically three cans. They also weigh a whopping 5 pounds, which makes it even more impressive that the servers in the tents would hold many, many beers at a time!
If you get the opportunity to go to Oktoberfest, take it!
The Jo Show 