We'd arranged to meet "bug control" and "dead weight" at breakfast to head over to the Oktoberfest grounds. Even though we'd slept in -they were still there so we made our way over at around 10am. We'd been told that you needed to be over there really ear
ly if you wanted to get a seat... this definitely isn't the case. The first tent we went into was pretty full -but it looked as though there speeches or something formal happening. The second tent we went into was the Paulaner tent -
which was to become our home for the next 11 hours. We had our choice of seats, so understandably took up some prime real estate right near the band area. Back home the rule is usually that it's not appropriate to have a drink until midday - but by our calculations it was 10pm back home (11am Munich time) so it was fine for us to order a round! Beer in Germany is great and the purity rule and the open market mean that all of the big brands are very good quality. This has to be the case, because when you're drinking from steins you need the last half of the litre to taste good, even when it's not as cold as the first. Everyone - give a collective shudder
when you imagine what the dregs of a DB stein would taste like! The first hour is pretty quiet, with numbers slowly gathering as people come in for a half chicken and a beer. One huge group of grey hairs comes in and dominates one of the outer seating areas... but it isn't until 12 that things really change. Right on midday the ompa band strikes their first note and the mood goes from breakfast bar to festival. We join in with Ein Prosit the traditional German beer drinking song where you do cheers or prost with everyone (looking them in the eyes of co
urse, otherwise we are cursed with 7 years bad sex) and then take a swig of our steins. Shona even manages to make her way through three Radlers (half beer and half lemonade) throughout the day! As the hall fills up we start to appreciate that our location really IS prime real estate, some punters even shouting us a beer if we just let them sit at our table long enough for them to order one for themselves. Throughout the night our beer wenches were Rosie and Anne Marie, although sadly for Mike they definitely were not the sexy young ladies that you see on the postcards around town. They were about 50 years old, nice enough and did a good job, although you had to speak up or else the 'applestruddle' would get confused for some weird looking apple soft drink! We met some Americans, some Canadians and Shona got hit on by some French people. However the best fun was with the Germans, whether it was talking with Marcus and his friend (who left a little early, buying a candy apple for his girlfriend on the way out) or the two German couples who took their place. In fact they were more fun in their dirndls and leiderhosien teaching us the actions to the German songs. There was the one with the lasso, cowboy and the Indian (Shona's favourite) or the one where we spring, spring, spring (we are actually springing on our seats that we are now standing on) followed by the swim, swim, swim to where the chorus starts and you make up the words to be "And so we sing along - la la la la la". A couple of times the ompa band also sing English songs. The traditional YMCA made a couple of appearances, but strangely so did la bamba, I will survive, and most surprisingly Alice, where the Germans knew the interlude of Alice, Alice, who the F*** is Alice. We had a great time and at 10pm called it a night as we didn't feel the need to drink another stein or radler and we were well toasted and very happy. Luckily our roommates hadn't gone to sleep so Shona was able to pack the bags for the 6:30am start the next morning, while Mike slept!
ly if you wanted to get a seat... this definitely isn't the case. The first tent we went into was pretty full -but it looked as though there speeches or something formal happening. The second tent we went into was the Paulaner tent -
which was to become our home for the next 11 hours. We had our choice of seats, so understandably took up some prime real estate right near the band area. Back home the rule is usually that it's not appropriate to have a drink until midday - but by our calculations it was 10pm back home (11am Munich time) so it was fine for us to order a round! Beer in Germany is great and the purity rule and the open market mean that all of the big brands are very good quality. This has to be the case, because when you're drinking from steins you need the last half of the litre to taste good, even when it's not as cold as the first. Everyone - give a collective shudder 
when you imagine what the dregs of a DB stein would taste like! The first hour is pretty quiet, with numbers slowly gathering as people come in for a half chicken and a beer. One huge group of grey hairs comes in and dominates one of the outer seating areas... but it isn't until 12 that things really change. Right on midday the ompa band strikes their first note and the mood goes from breakfast bar to festival. We join in with Ein Prosit the traditional German beer drinking song where you do cheers or prost with everyone (looking them in the eyes of co
urse, otherwise we are cursed with 7 years bad sex) and then take a swig of our steins. Shona even manages to make her way through three Radlers (half beer and half lemonade) throughout the day! As the hall fills up we start to appreciate that our location really IS prime real estate, some punters even shouting us a beer if we just let them sit at our table long enough for them to order one for themselves. Throughout the night our beer wenches were Rosie and Anne Marie, although sadly for Mike they definitely were not the sexy young ladies that you see on the postcards around town. They were about 50 years old, nice enough and did a good job, although you had to speak up or else the 'applestruddle' would get confused for some weird looking apple soft drink! We met some Americans, some Canadians and Shona got hit on by some French people. However the best fun was with the Germans, whether it was talking with Marcus and his friend (who left a little early, buying a candy apple for his girlfriend on the way out) or the two German couples who took their place. In fact they were more fun in their dirndls and leiderhosien teaching us the actions to the German songs. There was the one with the lasso, cowboy and the Indian (Shona's favourite) or the one where we spring, spring, spring (we are actually springing on our seats that we are now standing on) followed by the swim, swim, swim to where the chorus starts and you make up the words to be "And so we sing along - la la la la la". A couple of times the ompa band also sing English songs. The traditional YMCA made a couple of appearances, but strangely so did la bamba, I will survive, and most surprisingly Alice, where the Germans knew the interlude of Alice, Alice, who the F*** is Alice. We had a great time and at 10pm called it a night as we didn't feel the need to drink another stein or radler and we were well toasted and very happy. Luckily our roommates hadn't gone to sleep so Shona was able to pack the bags for the 6:30am start the next morning, while Mike slept!
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LOVE the video - looks like quite the party!
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