As I write this blog post the thermometer outside my window is slowly creeping down towards five degrees Celsius, which equates to about forty-one degrees Fahrenheit. I finally get around to writing about how beautiful the weather has been the last few weeks and then on my walk home this morning I lost the feeling in my nose and ears. This next weekend the HIGH is supposed to be forty degrees.
I've jinxed myself.
But I'm going to look on the not-too-recent bright side of Munich and just be thankful I was able to experience fall in Germany at all, even if it was only for two weeks. Because for the last ten days or so I've been strolling down gorgeous tree-lined avenues that look like this:
♥
And like this.
And like all of these.
It's entirely possible that I've gone overboard on taking random pictures of the German countryside, but even if I have I feel my excuse is legitimate. Some times I just can't help myself.
I would also like to point out that the beautiful little house pictured above is not an uncommon sight in Munich. Even in the city center the buildings are surrounded by flowers in delightful little boxes underneath windows and beside doors. It's enough to make me want to be posh and drink tee outside of little café's every day for the rest of my life. I think I'm slowly being Bavarianized. Or Europeanized. Either one is fine.
Which actually brings me to my next point: Bavaria. And then Oktoberfest. The interesting thing about Bavaria, the state of which Munich is apart, is that so many of the things Americans think of as being 'German' are actually quite specific to the Bavarian region. Like Cuckoo Clocks. And Dirndls and Lederhosen. Giant pretzels? Bavarian. And of course there's the world's largest and greatest fair: Oktoberfest.
Now overall my experience with Oktoberfest was pretty incredible, and the festival itself lived up to my high expectations. But I have to say that my first impression was not so great.
Picture this:
It's six-thirty in the morning on the first day of Oktoberfest. I arrive at the festival with three of my friends, and it's pouring rain. Literally. It's hard to find a person walking around who doesn't look like a miserable, drowned rat. For three hours we stand, huddled together under umbrellas, trying not to poke the eyeballs out of the groups similarly huddled all around us, and periodically having torrents of rain dumped on top of our heads from the group of tall, German men standing next to us, whose umbrellas inevitably re-routed the rain falling on top of their heads into our bedraggled laps. Entshuldigung. Excuse me. Was that your head I just wacked with the side of my umbrella for the millionth time? My bad.
The highlight of our morning was cheering on the security personal as they personally escorted people trying to cut to the front to the back of the line. Which, in case any of you were wondering, for being so terrifically organized in most aspects of their lives the Germans are horrible at queuing in any sort of line. It's every man and woman for themselves. Add in the promise of obscene amounts of beer and revelry to that equation and things turn ugly REAL fast.
Despite this we eventually made it into the first tent of our Oktoberfest experience. Over the next two weeks we would experience several different ones and this first one, the Schützen-Festzelt tent, was unanimously our least favorite, but after standing in the rain for so long we would have been happy for a seat in the first aid tent. As long as they served beer.
Inside of the Schützen tent, about five hours into the festivities. It's difficult to tell from the picture, but the entire crowd is standing up on the benches of the tables.
Probably the coolest thing about going on the first day, and possibly the only reason I would ever go on the first day again, was getting to be a part of the opening festivities. Like the parade!
The not so great part was waiting in line for the restrooms for roughly, and I am not exagerrating in the least, forty-five minutes. Ten stalls for about three thousand women. It was not a pretty sight. Girls were literally crying because they had to pee so badly, squashed all together in a massive blob of estrogren and Dirndl's. Getting through the door was like being swept through on a wave of human bodies. I was clinging onto the door frame for support at one point.
Now you may be thinking, this doesn't sound like very much fun, and the truth is our first day was kind of a bust. We ended up sitting at an unmarked reserved table and consequently were kicked out of our seats thirty minutes before the festivities actually began. It was another several hours before we were able to find space big enough for the four of us, or even have our first Maß, but eventually, thanks to some awesome Austrians, we had a table to dance on and a bench to sit on while we ate our chicken. After that things got a lot better and each time we went back to Oktoberfest it was more and more fun. I met some really cool people from all over the world and got to wear my Dirndl six or seven times, which almost makes up for it's exorbitant price. And I was able to walk on my own two feet away from the fairgrounds every night, which is more then I can say for some people.
Oktoberfest, thank you for the 'time of my life' and the crazy stories, most of which are better told in person.
And now some pictures, which do a far better job capturing the festival then I ever could.
Welcome to DIE WIESN!! Oktoberfest, for all of those not in the know :)
Stop. It's Dirndl Time!
See the Hofbrau Maß in this photo Dad? You're looking at your souvenir :)
Augustiner Tent
Hofbrau kegs on their way to the tent.
We love giant, Bavarian pretzels.
And a video!!
| This was taken inside the Hofbrau tent and will give you an idea of how amazing the atmosphere was. P.S. This song was, by far, my favorite to dance to. |
So there you have, in a nutshell, my Oktoberfest experience.
Prosit!
Oktoberfest ist zu ende.
As of last Friday I am officially a legal alien. That's right, I now have my Visa, and have no immediate thought of being deported. As long as they don't find out about my bank heist. The whole process was actually quite intimidating. I went by myself to the Auslander office early on Friday morning to try and make an appointment. I had previously gone with my host mother the Monday before, but we didn't have all the necessary paperwork with us and she was unable to take a second day off from work, so yours truly was back four days later all on her own, surrounded by Germans about as happy with their jobs as the poor souls who work inside the DMV offices. I sat in the waiting room for about an hour before my number was called, and during that time one of the lady's dealing with people like me kept stalking in and out of her office in between appointments. She was crabby and looked as if she was taking no prisoners. Thanks to her I had an upset stomach all morning.
I'd already decided to try and conduct my interview entirely in German. To be an Au Pair in Germany requires at least a basic understanding of the language: they won't grant you a Visa unless you can credibly prove some comprehension. I didn't have any sort of certificate; I had an unofficial copy of my transcript which listed my single German class and I was afraid it wouldn't seem too believable if the first words out of my mouth were, "Mein Deutsch is nicht so gut. Bitte sprechen Sie Englisch?" Anyone can Google Translate and memorize that. I just knew though that if I was unlucky enough to have my number called by that woman she would make the process as difficult on me as possible. She'd talk a mile a minute and ask me half a dozen seemingly irrelevant questions. I sat in that waiting room for an hour, all alone, envisioning myself being shipped back to California with my tail between my legs because one grumpy lady was going to brand my German inadequate. Nobody can ever say that my imagination is inadequate because it took me to some pretty crazy places during the course of that hour. You can imagine my relief when my appointment ended up being with no doubt one of the friendliest employees in the entire office.
And, despite her speaking rather slowly and not questioning a single bit of my application, I understood most of what she was telling me and was able to correctly follow all of her instructions.
Sarah: 1
Deportation Committee: 0
This last weekend my friends and I were racking our brains trying to think of something relatively cheap and entertaining to do that didn't involve crazy amounts of money or any considerable time spent outside. We'd already been to the English-speaking cinema the last four weeks in a row and had pretty much exhausted that option. Although there's nothing more delicious then going to the movies on a rainy day.
Eventually we decided upon bowling, which turned out to be a lot of fun. It was all disco-lights and screaming children and even some bowling lessons for Siobhan. And I made friends with one of the waiters and got a plate full of free candy.
Giant, gummy dolphins and lizards. And mice!
No one does Haribo quite like the Germans.
This week is the last before my mini-holiday. My host family will be traveling through Halloween and the first few days of November and I'm planning on making a few day trips to places like the Austrian city of Salzburg and the Neuschwanstein Castle while they're gone. And I get to sleep in!
And now, some random thoughts and minor grievances that pop into my head whilst I go about my days :)
1. An iPod filled with music is the best way to pass the time while waiting for trains and buses.
2. Coffee is not nearly as disgusting as previously thought.
3. The same goes for sparkling water.
4. And liverwurst.
5. Fall is, by far, my favorite season.
6. Not being able to watch any television shows opens up a whole lot of free time in a person's schedule.
7. Nobody does Halloween quite as well as the U.S. of A.
8. Replacing all of the Eis shops with candied nuts for the winter season is lame. Doesn't anyone understand that the colder the weather, the more time you have to eat your ice-cream before it melts?
Rest in (Temporary) Peace Balla Benni's Eis Shop.
9. A hug and a smile from the boys can make my day instantly better.
10. Guys in Lederhosen = Happiness.
11. Schittgablerstrasse is an awesomely hilarious name for a bus stop. And yes it's pronounced exactly as it sounds.
Things I miss:
1. My family and friends.
2. Ice-cubes.
3. Free water in restaurants.
4. Macaroni and Cheese.
5. In'N'Out.
6. Halloween.
7. My dogs.
Anyone who can ship me any one of these items will be my best friend for life.
Seriously.
XO
Sarah
