Oktoberfest and Europe wrap up

Back in January of this year, my old friend Tim heard about my travel plans and asked if I wanted to attend Oktoberfest in Munich with him and some friends at the end of September.  After thinking long and hard about it (how do you think hard about something....that doesn't make any sense), I had my hostel booked and was going to attend one of the world's greatest festivals!  Fast forward 8 months and I arrive in Munich Germany, the heartland of Bavarian culture!  Now before I go on I should probably give some background on Oktoberfest and what my "plan" was for the 2.5 days I was there.  For the last 2 weeks in September and the first week in October, millions of tourists and locals gather in downtown Munich.  They don't come to see Munich's churches or museums, they come to drink beer and eat meat.  They come to chug pints and hug strangers.  They come to wear lederhosen and sing-along to German drinking songs.  They come....for Oktoberfest!  Other then Tim I shared a dorm room with 4 other awesome friends whom I've met over my half year of travels, you couldn't have picked a more suitable group of people for this fine occasion.  I arrived late in the evening on the first day, so we spent that night catching up and sharing a few pints at a local bar as well as checking out the madness that is Oktoberfest.  Because the festivities run all day, most of the attractions close around 11pm, so we didn't catch much the first night....but we made up for it over the next 48 hours....did we ever.  The festival grounds are predominately made up of giant beer tents holding thousands of people, meat based food vendors (the best obviously) and carnival type attractions.  If you're thinking this sounds like the greatest place on earth, you're absolutely correct.  For two days straight it was up at 10am to get a table in one of the giant tents by 11am.  Both days we checked out several tents but settled in the famous Hofbräuhaus.  The delicious German beer is served ice cold and comes in convenient 1L steins.  The beer wenches not only serve beer, but also traditional Germany food as well.  All you really have to do is stumble your way to the washrooms every so often and you're pretty much all set.   I left taking pictures up to my friends in fear of losing/breaking/trying to chug my own camera.  Now that I've prepped you with what to expect in this blog entry, I give you Shawn's adventures in Oktoberfest....(or SAIO for short).

Where the magic happens....the famous Hofbräuhaus

Sober team photo from right to left (Myself, Tim, Jessica, Chris, Kouka, Arielle) at 10:39am...

Annnnd it begins

91 years old this guy is....and he could yodel with the best of them!

I did chin-ups off this guy's beard....

Lil' more of this....

To show you the sheer size of the HB house....notice the sign indicating the sections in case you get lost!

Tess, Chris and I being goofballs

Took a few minutes out of the day for some bumper cars....drinking and driving has never been so much fun!

Blue steel....also you may notice the shirt I'm wearing is the third in this set of pictures.  Now obviously I didn't go home to change, so why did I wear 3 shirts in just 2 days of Oktoberfest? .....(scroll down)

BECAUSE A BEAR RIPPED MINE IN HALF, LOOK AT THE SIZE OF HIS HANDS COMPARED TO MINE.  haha it was actually all in good fun as I think I ripped his shirt first...also note the look of sheer horror of the guy between us.  We all had a good laugh about it after (except for the bear as bear's can't laugh).

A face only a mother could love....(mom it's ctrl+p to print if you want to hang it on the fridge)

 And with that I tip my hat to Oktoberfest and crossing something off my life list.  You know what, if you want to wake up with a smile tomorrow do something you've always wanted to do today.  Ya I know it's corny, but it's true believe me.

With the ending of Oktoberfest, I'm officially done the Europe part of my world tour.  From the rolling green hills of Ireland, to the historic streets of Berlin and the gorgeous waters of the Adriatic, I've had an absolutely blast seeing all these beautiful countries and meeting all you beautiful people.  For no reason at all I started a rolling list of some interesting stats ....hey sometimes I've got a lot of time on my hands ok? :)


Europe totals:
•         19 countries visited
•         47 cities
•         51 hostels
•         4 books read (Trojan Odyssey, Kite Runner, No Angel, The Slap)
Intercity transport:
•         Boats 6
•         Buses 17
•         Trains 15
•         Planes 9

Next up is the UAE, Dubai and Abu Dhabi!  I've got a few days to kill here in Nepal before heading to China, so the UAE entry should be up shortly!