I survived my solo travels to Munich and Oktoberfest adventures. In classic fashion, upon arriving in Munich, I learned that it was German Unity Day — a big, bank holiday that commemorates when East and West Germany united. Due to the holiday, almost every store and restaurant was closed, so my dreams of shopping that morning were quickly squashed. This new information led me to head straight to my hotel and pray for an early check-in. My wishes were granted, and I almost immediately passed out in my hotel room around 11am. Even though Oktoberfest starts at 9am, I couldn’t bring myself to go just yet, feeling tired, jet lagged, and not prepared to drink for an entire day.
When I woke up at 1:30pm, I felt like I could’ve slept the whole day, but I thought to myself: You’re in Munich during Oktoberfest, get your booty up and seize the day! I quickly got myself together and headed to the lobby for caffeine. According to the internet, it’s best if you can wear traditional attire AKA “tracht” like liederhosen for men and drindl for women, and I was very interested in procuring some. However, due to the bank holiday, this was not an option for me to purchase, so I rolled out in my leather jacket, jeans, and sneakers. I met a nice taxi driver named Ashty from the airport trip earlier who gave me his contact info and helped drive me around. We set forth for the fest.
When I arrived, I honestly thought oh my God. SO MANY PEOPLE. I later learned it was easily over 400,000, and over 6 million attend in total. It was so crowded that you had to have a reservation to get into all of the big tents. I thought surely this wasn’t the case, so I wandered around aimlessly (takes about an hour to walk the entire grounds) and popped into a few of the smaller tents. I met a few folks, ate a pretzel, and pondered my next move. I was having fun, but I didn’t feel like I’d had the full experience that I’d had in mind. I was debating heading back to the hotel or fully sending it. What do we think I went with?
I chose the tent that I thought looked the most enticing — it was bright blue in color, blasting music, and also had a nice beer garden area outside. I ducked a rope and encountered a security guard; we had a very confusing interaction when neither of us spoke the other’s language; he grunted and ultimately stepped aside to let me through. Still unclear if he gave up or if he could sense my touristy desperation to get inside, but regardless, I was in. When I walked inside, it was a total rager. Band blasting (Country Roads, for example), people standing on tables, totally packed. Standing room only, and they were really ushering people to stay at their tables – major crowd control. I squeezed through the crowds and tried to spot a table that looked like it had room, but no dice. I stood against the wall and enjoyed it for a while before ultimately deciding to head outside to the beer garden area. Equally crowded and lively but slightly quieter, I felt hope when I found out this was the non-reservation area. I locked eyes with a woman who looked to be in her 40s and was at a table with all men. There was a spot beside her, so I approached. When I asked to sit down, they said yes, and they were shocked I was alone. Truly. We talked about this for at least 15 minutes. It turned out to be a group of “Bavarians” as they call themselves (Jasmine and Alex), plus a few Italians they’d met that same day (Martino, Michael, and others). These people turned out to be perfect. We drank beer and laughed until almost 10pm. I definitely did not expect to be here for about 5 hours. I also didn’t expect it to be cash only, so they paid for all my beer. I felt bad, but they didn’t seem to mind. At other tables and in the bathroom line, I also met folks from Bali, Croatia, Australia, and more. Literally people from all over the world, which was a very cool experience. People were absolutely hammered, by the way, grown men falling down and being carried out or tossed by security guards. Some of the best people watching I’ve had in a while. Anyways, time flew by, and Oktoberfest ends around 11pm, so it started to thin out as people stumbled home or went to another bar. I called an uber and had to walk a mile to get to it due to the crowds, but made it back to my hotel before 11pm. Ashty had promised to take me to the airport at 6am the next day, and he delivered.
This was definitely a “seek discomfort” experience. I was surprised by how unnatural I first felt trying to approach strangers in this particular environment. Being alone, American, and a tourist not dressed in the right garb made me feel like the odd man out, but once I put myself out there, I had an incredible time. These experiences are so important for personal growth and remembering what it means to be human. Prost!!!
Leave a Reply