Munich Oct 1-4 2009

So I mentioned in an earlier post that I had the opportunity to catch a ride up to Munich (for free!) last weekend. I jumped on that and then it turned out that a friend of a friend lives there and offered up her place for us for the weekend. Even better!

In Munich, I not only attended Oktoberfest, but I also visited the Dachau concentration camp. It's only about a 45 minute trip from Munich and was well worth the commute. It was a somber experience and I learned a lot.

But... the rest of the weekend was F-U-N. I tried Thai food for the very first time with my friends. We tried the restaurant YUM, which was incredible. I am excited about trying more Thai food in the future in San Francisco. There aren't many Thai/Vietnamese restaurants here in Firenze.

This is the well-known spot of the Isar River in Munich where surfers show off their moves. There were about a hundred people watching these guys!

I joined a bicicyle tour with Mike's Bike Tours, too! It was a great way to see the city and learn about the history of this magnificent city.

This is a shot from downtown Munich. I love the colors.

This is the famous Marianplatz, the town hall that's in the main square of Munich.

Last but not least, OKTOBERFEST. I'm glad I went but I don't know how people go to the festival every.single.day. Don't get me wrong- it's great. There are tons of bands, rides, everyone is dressed up. I just don't know how people can drink that much! These people wake up and go to the festival and just drink all day.

They had some cool rides though. This guy was secured in with straps and had to swing himself around until he was upside down and would continue to turn 360 degrees. Kind of cool.

Oh and the food was GREAT. There's me with my beer, but since I'm SUCH the lightweight I got half beer and half Sprite. :) Those are potatoes in the back and they were flavored with lemon. This was a great meal but I was sick afterwards from eating all that meat!

This is what the inside of the beer halls look like. This band in particular was really entertaining! All of the Germans knew the words and would sing in unision to the old folk songs. It was so fun to watch!

Um I'm kind of embarrassed to say that I had this sausage in addition to the OTHER sausage..all in the same day. Hey, what can I say? I like German sausage and that was ALL there was to eat! But my stomach was in painful knots afterwards and I paid for it.

I took a few photos of people in the typical Bavarian dress. This guy was the most unique with his costume-with-a-twist. Maybe he was going for an Australian-down under-pilot-Bavarian look?

These women were my favorite. They look so happy! ALL the German women wear these dresses (called "dirndls" for women and "lederhosen" for men) during the festival. According to our friend who lives in Munich, Germans will also wear their dirndls and lederhosens all throughout the year, not only for Oktoberfest.
What's also really cool is that even chains like H&M and Zara sell affordable Bavarian outfits during Oktoberfest!

Even children dress up. This family was adorable.

As you can see, people of all ages enjoy the festivities of Oktoberfest. This man loved that I was taking a photo of him and smiled afterwards.

Yet another shot of the lederhosen.


All in all, it was a great weekend! I wish C could have enjoyed it with me but he had to work all weekend. Plus, he's already been to Oktoberfest twice, lucky guy. :)