I have been in Germany for almost a week and have been having lots of fun. Oktoberfest is in full swing, and being the 200 year celebration and conveniently having Georg's sister living in Bavaria...we had to make the 8-hour trek to consume vast amounts of beer and Weisswurst (white sausage, typical of Bavaria). Beer was served in 1L mugs,which, for those that know me, is a lot of beer!! Almost everyone is wearing traditional dress: Lederhosen for the men, and Dirndls for the women. I wore a Dirndl that belonged to Georg's oma, which was probably from 50 years ago, but is beautifully hand-made with flowers sewn on the bodice and the hem.
For comparison, Oktoberfest is similar to the Red River Ex, with rides, amusements, and food stands, but there are marching bands and many humongous beer garden tents that house over 3000 people. The beer garden tents were filled with people, tables and benches, stale beer and a live traditional band. There was lots of shouting (Prost!!), singing, kissing random strangers (not me), and table dancing (which got us in trouble). Sooo much fun...
A Mass family friend, Georg's sister (Doris), me and Georg.
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Lederhosen!
Georg and I finally got around to buying motorcycle clothes yesterday and managed to sneak in a long ride throughout the region. I got a first-class tour of the numerous small towns and countryside in the area...many flower greenhouses, dairies, horses and potato fields (no irrigation). Georg was a real romantic and took me to look at farm machinery (typical farmboy date, right Mom and Maria??) too. We also went shopping at Ikea for shelving for the bathroom and chest of drawers for the bedroom. I forgot how expensive it is to furnish a home. :)
Our gear.
That's it for now...this weekend should provide some good stories. I celebrate my birthday tomorrow and on Saturday Georg's aunt and uncle are having their 25th wedding anniversary party, Oktoberfest style.
auf Weidersein.
