The Oktoberfest celebration took place as our work harvesting grapes in Burgundy finished up. So with a pocket full of money and a week to blow Mark and I boarded our train to Munich. We learned from our trip to Spain that the best trips involve buying lots of cheap bread and wine to make the train ride go better. If memory serves me correctly we both consumed around 2 liters of cheap wine by the time we arrived at the train station. We met up with Simone and Daniela, who we originally met at the Valencia train station on the way back from La Tomatina. They were willing to set us up with a place to stay and take us out for our first night. Things were moving pretty fast and my feeble drunken mind had difficulty storing events with any degree of clarity. I know the last liter of our wine was soon gone and I remember drinking at least one or two liters of beer in the Lowenbrau tent that first night. The tent was packed with at least 10,000 people and there was no place to sit. A kickass German folk band was playing lots of music you could sing along to like "American Pie" and "Hang on Sloopy." Many people were standing on their seats singing, while a few were already unconscious at their table. The beer tents close fairly early in the evening. Many people begin partying at noon or earlier so by 10:00 P.M. they can't stand anyway.
Finally we decided to collect our luggage and board a train to Augsburg where we were staying. We stopped at a Burger King outside the station for some grub. Legend has it I saw a Bert and Ernie ballcap behind the counter. They had all sorts of Sesame Street stuff for kids to buy with their meals. I announced that there was no way in hell I would leave the restaurant without that Bert and Ernie hat. The girls insisted that it was too expensive and wouldn't fit me anyway. I would not be denied! I got the hat and Mark picked up a red backpack with Ernie's head on the top. Don't remember the meal at all, but by God the hat was mine. Mark and I were nearly catatonic at this point, but somehow our hosts convinced us to go with them to a club. We went to the Rockfabrik club for some whiskey and dancing. This place kicked more ass than should be allowed by law. They played awesome music and had some of the coolest art and lighting I have ever seen.

Above: Mark and I enjoy a liter of beer inside the Lowenbrau tent.
Right: Mark with a statue outside the infamous Burger King.
Below: Having a beer with some chick I don't even remember.

Our next day was spent going from one beer tent to another. Finding a place to sit required negotiation skills or friends who had already reserved a spot. We fell in with a group of Americans who had been in Munich for several days. Just sitting at a table with a beer provides enough entertainment. All around us were people kissing, telling bullshit stories, and trying to act like they really weren't that drunk. Someone suggested we go to the Shottenheimer tent where the younger crowd hangs out. We left our tent carrying mugs of beer ( you are not allowed to take mugs with you) and went to Shottenheimers. There was a huge line, but Mark quickly rallied people to rush the doors (also not allowed). We made it safely inside still holding our old beer and found a group of women to talk to. I hit it off with a girl named Stephanie who was also a big Nick Cave fan. We later rode some carnival rides and took a train back to Augsburg to crash.
The final day we returned to the beer tents and met up with a group from Cincinnati. We ate dinner at a traditional German restaurant called the Schniderhaus.