Oktoberfest!

Was AMAZING. That was our vocabulary word of the day...everything was just simply amazing, no better way to put it!

We left later than we thought on Friday afternoon, and after 9 of us climbed into the van (very clown-like indeed) we headed in the direction we thought we should be going. Until the freeways switched on us! It's so much easier to blame the freeways rather than our own lack of direction, and either way we ended up in Gouda. And we didn't even stop for cheese! Such a blatant crime. 

Anywho, back on the road and in traffic, and about 10.5 hours later, we finally arrived at Hannah's house in Munich. Longest drive EVER, I will tell you. Her parents were actually up and welcomed us into their beautiful home, and instead of going out as planned, we watched McCain and Obama duke it out on CNN until we fell asleep. (Coma-inducing!)

Saturday we had a leisurely brunch at the house, then took the train into the city to see some sights. Sadly, we just missed the Glockenspiel  that rings at 5, but the atmosphere in the city was amazing nonetheless because of the festival, and Jena bought a pretty dirnd to wear as our "Heidi." (Think: St. Pauli Girl) We had dinner at a cute Italian restaurant with GINORMOUS pizzas, and got started preparing for the next day with a few beers at a Mexican place down the street. We headed back to Hannah's around 12, for the big day was rapidly approaching! Jena and Jesper got a little too drunk, so the next morning  was a bit of a killer.

We all woke up around 630, got ready and left the house by 815. Impressive for 7 people! Met up with Nina at the train station, then....stepped out into the most amazing carnival I've ever been to! We got in line at the Hippodrome tent, which opened at 10, waited for 30 minutes and then got a prime location at a table meant for 8 in the center of it all. Our waiter, Florian,  (who had a twin named Patrick who was not so nice...) accidentally brought us 9 beers, and then forgot to charge me for mine, so it was starting off nicely! Then he brought my food and forgot to ask for money again. I think I only paid for one beer all day! They were liter size, and 8.30 Euro, so I was a happy camper. 

Our tables ended up being in a reserved area for some reason, so around 3 we were kicked out to wander the insanity. There was food (pretzels and wurst!) everywhere, along with games and fun houses and roller coasters. We sat at a beer garden outside, I made friends with a Canadian girl and her bro, and 2 Aussie girls, and we all had an amazing time. No complaints! It was a long day though, and when we got back to Hannah's at 11:30, I pretty much passed out as fast as I could. The next day I didn't fare so well, but took my motion sickness meds (which are remarkably wonderful, I must admit!) and fell asleep in the car for the journey home. 

All in all, the German countryside is gorgeous, I experienced a little bit of their food and culture, finally saw the sky lit up with stars, and bonded with the people I know think of as close friends. 

We have a week long break in 2 weeks, and I'm considering the possibility of going to Madrid to see Leah, if I can find something reasonably priced. Wish me luck!