Peter, Catriona and I attended the Paulaner Oktoberfest last night, to check out the beer, food and entertainment on offer. And report back to you people of course. The Oktoberfest is taking place near CHQ in the Docklands, there’s one big beerhall style tent and lots of food stalls outside. The event is free (although there were some signs indicating that a cover charge of €10 applies after 10pm) and runs from the 8th to the 18th of October.
I should be honest from the outset and say that Oktoberfest is not for everyone. And I am one of the people that it’s not for. You have to really like German music, which was being played at an ear-bleeding volume for most of the time we were there. Our hungover friend Snackbox arrived with us, but couldn’t take the noise and bailed after about six minutes. The food is also very German. The sauerkraut and mustardy sauce were tasty, but I found the bright pink, spongy, floppy frankfurter style meat a little disturbing.
Of course I should also point out that non-Germanophiles like myself were in the minority, and there was actually a great buzz around the place, with lots of very happy beer drinkers singing along to the godawful German music. The food stands seemed reasonably priced, with plenty of food available for around the €5 mark. Lots of the staff are German and some of them performed those German dances that involve much hopping. This brought back happy memories for me of a family holiday in Austria, when my then 11-year old brother was forced to take part in an Austrian dance demonstration. I then teased him about it until he cried. What a magical day that was.
Are you going to Oktoberfest? Are you a fan of German culture or is it nicht gut for you?