Oktoberfest

I never expected I'd be singing along to the Dirty Dancing soundtrack from a giant beer tent in Germany, but earlier this year that's exactly what happened. Hours after arriving from the U.S., our group pushed through the crowds and past the carnival rides toward the huge white Hofbrauhaus beer tent. We were met with giant beer steins, roasted chickens, sausages and thousands of drunken Australians, New Zealanders, Europeans and Kansans, many of them wearing traditional lederhosen and drindls. It was the Oktoberfest we had conjured up in our minds, with one tiny little difference - the music. We had failed to realize that American 80s music was such an integral part of the Oktoberfest soundtrack. We did, however, realize how lucky we were to have made it into this particular tent. The famous Hofbrauhaus brewery tent is the biggest at Oktoberfest. Each year, it serves more than 500,000 liters of beer, 35,000 chickens and 8,500 sausages during the 16 days its open. Reserve a spot or arrive early in the day, though. This is one party that fills up fast.

Endless night in Munich during Oktoberfest - Loud music, delicious food, people in customs and carnivals... The funny thing is that most of the carnival rides and games are either involved with heights and twist, or a lot of the focus - and people at the Oktoberfest are hardly sober!

Oktoberfest. What can I say? From the pretzels and cheese we had at our highly coveted table in the Hofbrauhaus hall, to giant mugs of beer, to the eighties music the oompa band jammed to, to the lederhosen and to the crazy midnight turns on whirling carnival rides, Oktoberfest is exactly what you'd imagine. We arrived almost directly from our nine hour flight so the jetlag and sleep deprivation added another level to the insanity, but everyone had a great time. As our first time actually meeting each other, the Oktoberfest atmosphere was perfect for breaking the ice. And I don't even drink.

Tip 1: Arrive Early! If you don't have a table reservation, get there early!!!! I remember my first Oktoberfest when I had no idea how it worked and leisurely showed up at 3pm. Thankfully, we were a party of two so it was easy to cram into the outdoor tables. Keep your group to four people maximum in order to be able to get into the tents. Although the environment is a lot of fun all around, the best experiences take place inside a tent: sharing beers with perfect strangers, and singing songs in German you never knew existed.

Research your tents! The Oktoberfest website gives you a great guide of the tents and what they have to offer. Some of my favorite tents are the Wildstuben, Hacker, and Weinzelt. I love the rustic details and the traditional cuisine at Wildstuben. The Hacker is the traditional large tent that is perfect to stand up on the tables and party! The Wienzelt is a non-traditional tent as is serves wine. It has a great bar with lots of Sekt (German sparkling wine). I'm sad that one of my favorite tents, the Hippodrom will not be at the Wiesn this year but I am sure there is an equally fantastic tent to replace.

The Carnival at Oktoberfest has a lot of variety to suit different audience. This guy in skull mask at Shocker is hilarious! He's holding a fishing rod with a huge spider at the end, and use it to "surprise" people walking by from the second floor. Occasionally, there will be a competition of dance moves between the "skull" and the audience. So much fun to watch than the actual ride!