Ein Bier Bitte

Oktoberfest
Ah, the celebration of beer! We learned the most important phrase, "Ein bier bitte" or "One beer please." Oktoberfest started in 1810 when royalty got married and the entire town of Munich celebrated for a week. The marriage didn't last but the party did. Prince Ludwig was a horn dog. He actually allowed women into the bars, a previously male-only territory, not because he was concerned about women's rights but because he wanted to pick up women. He then commemorated his exploits by having the royal artist paint portraits of his extramarital conquests. At any rate, a smashing good party has been occurring annually for 200 years in a park named after the princess bride, Theresa. We followed a steady stream of lederhosen and dirndls (the traditional Bavarian dress) to the park. We were met by a carnival drunk and on steroids. Huge beer tents with everyone dancing on the tables, a ferris wheel, roller coaster, amusement park rides, tons of people, music, pretzels the size of my head, massive 1 liter mugs of beer, waitresses carrying 6 of them at a time, half meter bratwurst, toasted and sugared nuts, the unfocused gaze of intoxication on the faces of staggering people... Oktoberfest is a sight to behold. It is also best appreciated with some alcohol on board. Melissa and I actually split beers in order to experience as many of the beer tents (and beers) as possible and still remember it. However, a liter of beer is easily split and we were having quite a nice time. The beer was delicious and went down oh so smoothly. We met people from America, Holland, Brazil, New Zealand, Australia, India, Nepal and of course, Germany. We met some German 20-somethings who then convinced us to go on some rides with them. They also introduced us to the Devil's Wheel, a spinning platform that people try to stay on. If one manages to survive the circumferential force of the turn table a giant ball is lowered from the ceiling and ropes thrown at you to either knock or pull you off the wheel. An interesting traditional game, clearly created and best enjoyed under the influence of alcohol.

Munich
Munich started as a humble village near a monastery. People would simply say that they lived by the monks and Munchen evolved from that. It is the capital of Bavaria and is very proud of its brewing history. It has a great town center and Marianplatz is quite nice. It is a musical city and very supportive of the arts. Simply walking the streets is a cultural experience and a variety of music from the street musicians fills the ears. The Nazi party also rose to fame in Munich and the city played a pivotal roll during the 1930s and 40s. In order to more fully appreciate the Bavarian culture, Melissa and I tried on dirndles, the traditional dress that women wear. In the section of the store devoted to traditional dress you can also find impressive push up bras guaranteed to make even the most flat-chested quite busty. In the mornings we would grab coffee, a delicious pastry and find a park to enjoy the day in. We went to the English Gardens where you can also find the Chinese Tower (not really sure on that one). We sat down underneath some trees and settled in to read our books. It was a beautiful day and many had a similar idea. However, we were decidedly out of place as we were the only ones wearing clothes.

We had a great time in Munich but were glad to leave after a couple of days. Oktoberfest is an absolutely insane party, best appreciated in small doses. I would also like to go back to Munich at some time when it isn't Oktoberfest. They say over 6 million people visit the festival a year. 6.5 million liters of beer are sold during the 2 week festival. I feel that that fact alone may color my impression of the city and it would definitely be interesting to go again.

Things You Don't Expect To Do When You Wake Up in the Morning
Munich Edition
1. Witness a half meter long hot dog
2. Spin on a giant wheel with a bunch of drunk Germans
3. Consider lederhosen an expected sight
4. Plunge 13 stories with random drunk Germans (a carnival ride :))
5. Eat a pretzel the size of my head
6. Assist a very drunk Indian to the train and then place him on the appropriate train to reach his hostel. 
7. Have my water stolen by a drunk Kiwi
8. Soak in the rays in a nude park.
9. Rub Juilet's boob (Munich has a statue of Juliet from her sister city, Verona. Apparently if you rub the right breast, you will have good luck in love and I need all the help I can get)