Oktoberfest Wiki stats from 2007

Here are some Oktoberfest stats from Wikipedia...thought you all might find these interesting...I know that I did... (that is A LOT of beer consumed!!!)

Area: 103.79 acres (0.42 km²)
Seats in the festival halls: ca. 100,000
Visitors: 6.2 million
Beer: appr. 6,940,600 litres (126,900 litres non-alcoholic)
Wine: 79,624 litres
Sparkling wine: 32,047 litres
Coffee, tea: 222,725 litres
Water, lemonade: 909,765 ½ litres
Chicken: 521,872 units
Pork sausages: 142,253 pairs
Fish: 38,650 kg
Pork knuckles: 58,446 units
Oxen: 104 units
Expenditure of electricity: 2.8 million kWh (as much as 14% of Munich's daily need or as much as a four person family will need in 52 years and 4 months)
Expenditure of gas: about 205,000 m³
Expenditure of water: about 90,000 m³ (as much as 27% of Munich's daily need )
Waste: 678 t (2004)
Toilets: about 980 seated, more than 878 metres of urinals and 17 for disabled persons.
Telephones: 83, also for international credit cards.
Lost property: about 4000 items, among them 260 pairs of glasses, 200 mobile phones, wedding rings, and even crutches.


The lost property part just cracks me up! I wonder why those wedding rings weren't on fingers, hmmmm?

Trachtenumzug

I learned a new word yesterday: Trachtenumzug. It means "costume parade". This is held on the second day of Oktoberfest. Friends and I went to the city center yesterday to watch 60+ regional groups/bands/breweries march in their traditional costumes. The people were so beautifully dressed and proud of their villages' heritage...it was incredible. Lots of oom-pa-pas, lederhosen and dirndls, and that was just in the audience! Have not ever seen anything quite like it in the states for certain-some of these towns had banners proclaiming that there home was 500+ years old. WOW.

Here are a few pictures of the carriages from the breweries: Some were moved by horse power:

One was moved by oxen-these were absolutely huge animals-check out the big keg they are pulling! You just don't get to see this stuff growing up outside of Detroit or living in Atlanta! There was one that was being pulled by a team of goats!

And then for some reason these people were pulling giant dumplings:

The parade lasted for hours and was wonderful. The route starts in the city center and winds it's way down to the Wiesen (meadow) where the Oktoberfest celebration is held. It is a long route and I know that they earned the beers waiting for them at the end point!

Here is the hunting club with their dogs:

I captured this little girl having a twirl:

These people had a great view from the windows of one of the office buildings along the parade route. Check out all of the lederhosen and dirdnls here and also in the backround of the pictures above!

These were people standing next to us...you didn't really think that I would leave you without some real people did you?

The parade was full of color: from the dresses to the flowers and hops that decorated the carriages, beer barrels, horses and the ladies' bosoms. My camera couldn't keep up with all of the colors! It was beautiful day and I was honored to see the pride that everyone had in their hometowns.

Let the beer flow....Oktoberfest begins today!

Oktoberfest 2009 officially begins today at noon, with the Mayor tapping the first keg and proclaiming it so. I must say, the city has been in a state of anticipation in these weeks leading up to the fest: dirndl and lederhosen shops popping up everywhere, heart-shaped gingerbread cookies** appearing in the stalls at the Viktualienmarkt, flag poles being erected in the middle of the pedestrian through-ways to channel foot traffic. Last night until early this morning, there were rowdy revelers in the streets in my neighborhood and this morning I counted 4 pairs of lederhosen being sported about while Bailey and I took Bailey our walk to the park and then to the neighborhood bakery. There is just something inexplicably beguiling to me about a man clad in those traditional short leather pants and a crisp white shirt....

Don't judge...

The city is decked out in sky blue and white, the colors of the Bavarian flag...and everyone is joining in including this Wurst shop:

this beverage store:

and this apothecary:

Mother Nature has stopped the rain for the onset of the fest, the chestnut trees in the biergartens are dropping their leaves and spiny fruit, and the city is ready. Time to bring it! This is our first fall here and so our first Fest. Our tickets are for the last day, 10/4, but I will post pictures from the weeks to come as our city is visited by the world.

**with regard to the cookies...apparently you buy one for your sweetie and they wear it around their neck at the Fest...they have sayings on them like...."Wiesn Prinz" or "Gruss aus Munchen" or terms of endearment like the one my friend C got from her hub that said "My little Mouse" or something funny to that effect...my question though, is wouldn't you, after a mass of beer or two want to eat it? Are they edible? And, are they any good?! Hmmmm...

This was so weird...

The other day I hopped on the UBahn train on my way to class and realized that I was the only one in the car...so weird. I rode for a stop during pretty busy morning traffic as if the train was all mine. It was a very odd feeling-being alone in the car, not sitting on a seat made warm by being previously enjoyed, not standing shoulder to shoulder next to someone and knowing whether or not they had bathed or had had their first beer of the day, not knowing what the kid next to me is listening to through his earphones, not too hot/cold. Just alone. Sort of nice, and reminded me of that scene in "Risky Business", but with out the Rebecca de Mornay and Tom Cruise business...I am certain, that with the onset of Oktoberfest in a few short days that this won't happen again for a while...

Traditional Costumes

Ok, so this photo was taken while walking home from Deutschkurs. I was trying to get the pic and not call any attention to myself and admittedly, it will not win any awards. BUT-do look at the traditional dress on both gentlemen: the lederhosen (translates directly to leather pants) and calf socks on the man on the left-don't their ankles get cold? Also the hat and vest. I have it on good authority that the finest lederhosen is made of deerskin, is often passed down in families for generations and should be snug when first purchased...and one more bit of trivia: the plume on the traditional hats is made from the beard of a mountain goat. The man on the right has on a very Bavarian styled jacket-made from some sort of loden colored tweedy goodness and you will notice that he is toting his own stein to wherever these gents were off to on a Friday afternoon to enjoy some of Munich's finest brew. In Munich, you see people in traditional costumes on any given day of the week, but especially on Fridays. The women sport their dirndl, the men their lederhosen and head out. And, they are not on their way to work at some theme restaurant. Seeing the people of Munich in their traditional costumes is one of my favorite things about living here!

(I promise better pictures to support in upcoming posts...)

I just couldn't help myself...

So in the US, Homer is all about the donuts, right? Well here in Deutschland, he is all about the Schwein (pig...pork....swine...you get the idea). I just thought this was funny and knew that a few peeps would appreciate seeing a cross-cultural Simpson's reference! Woo hoo!

Angry Weeks?

I came across this BK billboard in the train station this week....what the heck? It translates into "ANGRY WEEKS.....The Fiery Weeks of Summer.....Angry Whopper and Angry Chicken...only for a short time ". Well thank goodness for that-I guess that we should be happy that those "Angry Weeks" are followed by the "Happy Weeks" or "Drunken Weeks" of Oktoberfest!

Hotel Atlanta

Whaa? For a minute there I thought that I was back home.......

ps: this hotel is on Sendlinger Strasse just before the Tor...

Karlstor

This is another of the old city gates that I mentioned in the post below. This one is Karlstor. On one side of the gate is a large square called Karlsplatz-located there is a lovely fountain where you can see kids of all ages running through and pushing one another into the stream...the spray is visible through the arches in this picture and reminds me a little of the ones that are in Destin and Spanish Fort-although on a much more grand scale. (And thankfully, no fat diapers from the water here...) This gate is what remains from 1791, when the city's fortifications were blown up, and the square and gate were named after the ruler-Karl Theodor. There are both UBahn and SBahn stops here, and when you are riding the train or looking at a map you will notice that the stop is called Karlsplatz/Stacchus...Stacchus refers to an inn which has stood here since 1759 on the edge of the square. On the other side of the gate the street is closed off (as of the 1970's) and is a long pedestrian walk which links to Marienplatz, in which lies the geographical center of the city.