Oktoberfest. I love my life.

About a month and a half ago, two of my friends studying here for the semester (Holly and Kara) called me last minute to tell me that there was one seat left on a flight that they were taking to Munich for Oktoberfest, and I told them to book it. I don’t know what it is about me and flying…but I think in the past if it’s been up to me to book a flight, it just never materializes. For me, booking a flight is like making an appointment to get your wisdom teeth taken out…why would anyone want to do that? I have a perfectly good Volvo in my garage at home that I love to drive, and a million trains to choose from when traveling on this side of the Atlantic. I realize that this is highly impractical and in reality not nearly as safe, but there’s just something inside of me that would rather run into something on the ground instead of falling 30,000 feet out of the sky. Nothing about that sounds appealing to me…even with a parachute. So, long story short, I am so glad that Holly and Kara just booked the ticket for me, because not only would I have cringed at the thought of booking a flight on RyanAir myself but I also haven’t been very good about taking time away from work, which our 7am Friday morning departure was going to force me to do.

Finally, the week of our trip arrived, and we were all really looking forward to a weekend away. Kara and I were also really looking forward to seeing Holly in her traditional ‘dirndl’ all weekend (now I want my own!). We spent the night in a hostel in Pisa, and after a loud night and about 20 minutes of sleep, we headed to the Pisa airport around 5:00am. Not surprisingly, we found ourselves in a check-in line full of American college students all ready for a weekend in Germany. Now, normally before I fly, it is nearly impossible to have a real conversation with me….I want to stand in line, walk to the counter, get my tickets, eat something fattening, get to my chair, fasten my seatbelt, and stare at the seat in front of me until we take off and get into the air. My friends and family could share more than a few stories about my ‘flying freak-outs’, but this could possibly have been the best I have ever felt on a flight. Lately, with all of the long international flights I’ve been on, I’ve been learning to actually look out the window and just enjoy the ride. I have no idea how or when this happened, but it is a huge accomplishment for me. Before I knew it, we were flying over the Alps and looking down over the most beautiful green rolling hills…I didn’t really have an idea of what Germany would look like (besides the buildings), and it was truly breathtaking from the plane as we landed. We flew into Memmigen, a little farming town about 2 hours outside of Munich, and I’m so glad that we did because he had the time to take the train and see the scenery. It didn’t hurt that fall was in full swing and the trees were all bright shades of yellow and red. While we were waiting for the train, we stopped into our first little Germany bakery to get a snack, a coffee, and at 9am, our first beer of the weekend. The earliest I have ever had a drink is probably the bloody mary I needed at 10am at the Texas state fair before the OU/TX game last year….and it was not very enjoyable. This, however, was a lot of fun…even if it was just to hold the pretty blue can and take pictures. It may also have had something to do with the fact that for about 2 hours after a flight I am the happiest person in the world, and just thrilled to be alive. I really do have a problem. Granted, most days I am just thankful to be experiencing everything that I’ve been able to do this year while I’ve been abroad.

It was about a two hour train ride into Munich, and it was thoroughly enjoyable to watch more and more people get on at every stop with their traditional dresses and men in knee high socks…all ready to have a good time. We sat next to a nice Germany man who explained some of the history of Oktoberfest to us-I decided that he looked like Billy from Hocus Pocus (the dead zombie from the cemetery….I didn’t tell him as I realize being called a zombie is not flattering but on our train ride home, I also met a boy who looked just like the blonde bully from the same movie..I have no explanation..maybe it was the beer). When we finally arrived, we brought our bags to our hostel, brushed our hair, and turned right back around to explore Munich. It was the perfect fall day, and I loved everything about the city. We were out for most of the afternoon, and on our way home to get ready for the night we stopped by the Hofbrauhaus to take a few pictures and warm up for the real event later on. It reminded me of a warm ski lodge (except enormous), with huge mugs of beer, the best looking comfort food you’ve ever seen, and people dressed casually or in traditional German costumes just enjoying one another’s company. I made sure to pick up a few mugs to bring home (I have no idea how I ended up fitting three into the kindergarten-sized BACKPACK I brought with me for the weekend…but it happened), and we all went back to the hostel to clean up for the night.

Everyone had told us that it would be almost impossible to get inside of one of the many beer tents (as they are reserved months and months ahead of time), but on our 2nd attempt, we met two great guys who had been working inside who pulled a few strings with security. Christian is officially my favorite person from Oktoberfest….he brought us right inside, got us 3 huge mugs of beer, and let us sit with a table of his friends. It could not have been a better night-we realized later that we had found the locals tent, which made it that much better. Everyone was so welcoming and fun. There was a traditional German band playing, tables and tables and tables full of people standing on the benches singing at the top of their lungs, dancing, and stopping every .2 seconds to say ‘Prost!!!’ and take a drink. We only drank one beer that night and it was more than enough. The tents close around 11pm, and after a night of no sleep, traveling, exploring Munich and experiencing Oktoberfest, that was late enough for everyone. We went back to the hostel, talked about how awesome our night was, and fell right to sleep.

We woke up to dark skies and pouring rain, but that wasn’t about to stop us! Holly put her dirndl right back on and Kara and I layered up to go back to the tents around 10. We stopped at a little coffee shop for some breakfast, and it was AMAZING. German pastries need to win some award…because they are the best. After all things apple and sweet and a cup of coffee…Kara was on a mission for a little more sugar for her drink and on her way, stopped abruptly to look to her left as the woman behind the bar was pulling a fresh batch of chocolate croissants from the oven. “Are those hot…….can I have one???”….the second round of breakfast was well worth it…even for the new profile picture alone, Kara!

We made our way over to the tents, but knew it would be more difficult to get inside today considering we were later than most and it had been cold and rainy. After a few unsuccessful attempts (German security guards are scary)…we first found a smaller tent serving only mixed drinks and desserts. We figured we’d stop in to warm up and then move on. It was like walking into a gingerbread house-it’s amazing to think that they build these incredible ‘tents’ (houses with real walls and a roof) only for a few weeks, and then tear them down. Nothing looks make-shift about them! After having a drink, we wanted to give getting into a more tradition and bigger tent one more shot. We found a younger, warmer looking security guard, and after getting the feeling like we were not going to make it in…I sunk to the level of pulling out a CD and signing it for him (after having him spell his own name because I had no idea how to pronounce it). Naturally, he made me sing first to make sure we weren’t lying…but it worked!! In we went and had beers in our hands within 5 minutes. Longer details aside, we mingled, met tons of friendly people, and had another awesome day. At about 5pm, after a beer and a half, we waved goodbye to Oktoberfest, enjoyed more German food, and went back to the hostel to pick up our things to head back to Memmigen for the night so we could catch our flight in the morning. The weekend went by so quickly, but was absolutely one of the best things I have ever done (and I don’t even love beer!). I will absolutely be picking up a Lowenbrau the next time I am home…I can add it to the list of beer I actually enjoy.

I wish we were able to stay in Memmigen for one extra night, as the town was so quaint. This trip made me realize just how close I am to all of these amazing places (it was only an hour flight), and that I need to try to keep taking advantage of it while I can over these next few months. It is difficult to leave for just two days with work, but I’m thinking over Thanksgiving I’m going to head to Brussels to visit one of my very best long-lost friends from Minnesota (she is coming here at the end of October!) and then spend a night in London before coming back to Italy. It is also a little difficult to keep planning weekend trips when I really want to spend time with the amazing friends that I’ve made here in Italy while I am still able to see them. I can’t believe sometimes that I will be home in less than three months. This has been such an incredible experience, and I have been thankful for every minute of it. Alright…I think I could have written a book about Oktoberfest…hope that this gives you all an idea and sparks an interest to go someday! When you do, take me with you…just book the flight first : ) Prost!!!!