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It's safe to say we were absolutely shattered when we finally arrived in Munich and to our dismay we didn't have any luggage either. So as said earlier, after a $85AUD cab ride we arrived at our hotel and met up with Leah's friend Jess, who we share a room with for the night. Once settled in our room we decided to go for walk to the Hofbrau Haus. This, and all our trips into town included a tram ride and then a train ride which took on average 25mins where we arrive is Marienplatz, one of the main sqaures. We quickly checked it out, noticed there's still some scaffolding around the cookcu clock, nothing new there and moved on to do a little shopping as both Leah and I only had the one set of clothes, which included nothing much suitable for Oktoberfest. So Leah and I made the brash decision to buy some Dirndl and Lederhosen specially for the event. After spending some time in the specialty shop and convincing an enlglish guy that he also needs to buy some, it was time to hit the Hofbrau Haus. When we arrived we legged it to the upstairs beer hall and found a seat. Within 10mins we each had a stein of Beer and a big plate of pork knukle in front of us. =D Good Times! After a couple of photo's and some song and cheers, we thought we may-as-well go down to the actual festival. So back on the train again and after a short ride we happen to come upon the one the only Oktoberfest!
The best way we found to explain it to those that haven't been, is that it's like the Ekka, cept there's 4 times the people, with massive big tents full of people, mostly drunk, yet not afraid to have a chat even though you or them have no idea what each other are saying due to everyone speaking in their native tongue. Yet the whole event is all run in good spirit, did I forget to mention they have a sideshow alley that's twice the size of the one at the Ekka! Gotta love that combination, beer and fair rides =D
After walking into a couple of tents and finding mostly all of them full, unable to find ourselves a seat at a table, which means you're unable to order a beer we decided it would be probably best if we head back into town and head to the Lowenbrau Haus instead for some beer and food. After a nice dinner and a couple of beers, we headed back to our hotel to finally get some rest for the night (it was only 34 hours since Leah and I had last slept.)
After a good nights sleep, we were woken in the morning by Jess who needed to pack her bags as she was leaving for the UK. We said our goodbye's and then contacted my brother Tim using skype as we don't have a mobile number that works in Germany, we had previously planned to meet up with him at Oktoberfest to help celebrate his birthday. Since it was 11am and he was already there at Oktoberfest with a couple of his mates our phone conversation was brief due to noise and beer drinking. I then told him that Leah and I wanted to do a little shopping (maybe even pick up a sim card for our phone) before we got in to Oktoberfest, so I said we'd be about 3 hours or so before we'd get in there. We jumped on the tram and train and headed into town, wasn't until we reached town that I remembered that it was Sunday.....No shops open on Sundays in Munich.... So without further ado, we headed home after wasting an hour or so in travel and got dressed in our Lederhosen and Dirndl, we then contacted Tim again letting him know we were leaving and would hope to arrive in 30mins, he said "Meet us in the Pauliner Tent, we're at table 58 look for the green signs with the table numbers." so without a way of further contacting Tim we decided we'd head in to Oktoberfest to try and find him.
Once we arrived in Oktoberfest the place was packed! Since its the last weekend that the festival is on, everyman and his dog decided it was time to go. So Leah and I walked through the grounds keeping an eye out for the Pauliner Tent and came across it next to the Hofbrau Tent. For those that haven't been to Oktoberfest every Tent consists of a Beer Hall, a beer garden around it and then security around the garden. As the beer tent was full they weren't letting people in, yet there was a massive group of of people wanting to get in, so we joined it hoping that we'd soon somehow be let in. An hour later and feeling rather peckish we're still waiting outside beer garden, watching people inside have a heap of fun with their mates and drinking beer, eating pork knuckle, every now and then people leaving he garden but the security guards still weren't letting anyone in, a lot of fun I can assure you!!!! After another 30mins of waiting around the security guards decided it was time to let some people in, one at a time, so all the pushing and shoving began, after finally be let in to the Beer Garden we then attempted to gain access to the beer hall. Again after checking all the available entrances we join the shortest line and wait another 45mins before security deems it ok for us to enter the beer hall. So glad we were inside we are really looking forward to having a drink and something to eat, so we start looking fo the table number 58. After walking around the super crowded beer hall, full of people dancing and singing and having a merry time, we come across table 58 only to realise there's 6 of them. We looked up and down each table full of people and not being able to find my brother or a spare seat anywhere we decide to leave the tent disappointed.
Super annoyed that we had now been at Oktoberfest for 3 hours and have been unable to find a drink. I somehow convince Leah that there must be another Pauliner Tent and that we should go for walk to see if we can find it, as when were in the Pauliner tent we didn't see the green table signs Tim had told us about. So off we went in search of another Pauliner Tent, after 15mins of walking down one of the packed avenues of tents, we finally come across the second Pauliner Tent. It's a little smaller then the other Pauliner Tent but still the size of a football pitch. As the place is still packed to the rafters, we join the group of people out the front, being a slightly smaller group Leah and I hope that we might be let in sooner than the 2 hours it took us at the last one. After about 45mins to our relief we gain access to the Beer Garden and then head on to the entrance to the Beer Hall. There's only around 8 people wanting access to the Beer Hall so things were looking promising, until the security guard turned around and told us something in German, then half the people left with a puzzled look of dismay. By the looks of the people he said it was closed. Another bloke that was with his partner stood there in disbeif/protest. Not wanting to give up myself I asked the gentleman if he spoke english and if he could tell us what the security guard said....he said "The tent is closed and they're not letting anyone in." After having to wait sssooo long to get this far and thinking to myself this had to be the right tent, I asked the bloke if he could ask the security guard if there was anyway in at all? If we can't get in here, where can we get in? So my really nice interpreter friend asked the security guard something, got an answer and then turned to me and said "follow me." Not knowing what the conversation was between the two, or if we should follow him or not, as the direction he started heading was outside the beer garden we had just got in. We quickly decided to follow him outside the beer garden and around the back of the Beer Tent, to our surprise there was some sort of back door entrance to the Tent. There was no line and lady and a couple of security guards standing there, our guide said something to the lady and the lady let him and his partner in the tent! Just as they walked in he then he said in english to the lady, "these people are with me" pointing to Leah and I and the lady ushered us in the door too! We were absolutely flabergasted! We've got no idea what the guy said to lady (what the secret password was) but as soon as we walked though the door, we walked straight into the Beer Hall. We couldn't thank the guy enough, we said our goodbye's and headed in our own directions.
It was now 4 and a half hours since Leah and I had arrived at Oktoberfest and we were still yet to eat or drink anything, we were really tired and if we couldn't find Tim would be super angry. So we set off through the beer hall and things were looking good, there were little green signs with table numbers, there were less people around so we could actually walk freely through the hall and the band was playing some good music. We finally arrived at table 58, well 1 of 4 table 58's so we walked past them all and to our utter defeat we didn't see Tim. Since it was 6 -7 hours since I spoke to him last we both thought he must of left so I turned to Leah and said well least we made it too the right tent.... Now feeling sssooo depressed that we'd wasted a whole day wondering around Oktoberfest and not being able to enjoy it I said we'd just check table 48 incase I got the number wrong, it had been so long since I'd eaten or had something to drink I think I was almost delerious, so as we walked back past the 4 table 58's I look up and who was there......TIM!!! I yelled! Not getting any immediate response as the music was really loud and he was busy dancing, I stood there in shock as I couldn't believe he was standing there on the bench dancing with his mates! He finally looks down and see's us, Tim was ssooo happy and surprised to see us he came down off the bench and gave us both a big hug, he was so happy tears of joy were streaming down his face. We both just couldn't believe that we had finally found each other. Tim said that he'd been looking for us, going out for walk and talking all the security guards and checking to see if we were out there. It was a very happy moment! Lucky for us there was just enough room for Leah and I to fit on the end of the table.
That first beer was one of the best beers I've ever had in my life! It was like Leah and I had travelled whole world just to drink that beer! We joined in the festivities and enjoyed half a chicken and a few more beers, danced on the tables, and learnt a new drinking song. Ein Prosit! Ein Prosit! der Gemutlichkeit! Ein Prosit! Ein Prosit! der Gemutlichkeit! It didn't matter what you were doing or where you were in the beer hall, as soon as they started playing the music to this song everyone, and I mean everyone raised their glasses and joined in singing and dancing to it. It's a merry sight to see and fairly much the essence of Oktoberfest! We'd been having so much fun before we knew it, it was really late, after still feeling really jet lagged it was time for us all to leave. Yet after a quick head count Zap (one of my brothers mates) was nowhere to be seen. Seeing he didn't have mobile to contact either we looked around everywhere for him, through the tent and outside it. After having a good look and eating some more food outside we parted ways as we would meet up at Tim's house the next day.
The next day was Monday and Leah and I had a few things we needed to accomplish. First was pick up our car, next was to drive to the airport to pick up our bags as they were due in around 12ish that day from the airport. So I left Leah at our hotel incase I took too long to get back she could still check out of our hotel, so I went to pick up our car from the hauptbahnhof. After making it in, I went to Hertz and picked up the keys and a sat nav, due to us having no idea where to drive or what half the signs say. So I walk over to the parking lot and pick up our Ford Focus, its a nice, new, little car, perfect for the small German streets, has some guts but isn't overstated. I go to plug in the sat nav to the cigarette power and nothing it didn't light up, no sounds nothing. After knowing the direction of our hotel and some of streets due to our tram riding and a little walking I set off without the sat nav working as it was getting close to our check out time and I thought I'd be able to find our hotel using a little map and sort out the sat nav when I get there. So after heading in the correct direction and even finding our street, I still wasn't able to get to our hotel as the road was divided and I couldn't turn left (that's correct as they drive on the right side in Germany) across traffic going the otherway as there was a concret wall in the way. So I thought I'd take the next street off to the right so I could turn around and get back to our street......Damn! Wrong decision! It ended up being an on road for the Autobarn out of Munich and towards the Airport/Alliance Stadium. So after driving out to Alliance Stadium (Home of Bayern Munich, it was the next exit I could take) and turning around, I finally made it back to our hotel without the sat nav.
Just in time too as we had about 10mins left to check out of our room. So I ran up grabbed Leah and our carry on luggage so we could check out. We packed everything in the car and then sat in the front trying to figure out how to get the sat nav working. After about 10mins of frustration, we again decided to go it without the map and just follow the signs to the airport as we had to pick up our bags and while we were there sort out the sat nav. After driving out to the airport, thank goodness for my earlier excursion as I knew where we needed to be heading, we were able to pick up our bags and change into some clean clothes. I then left Leah with the car incase we had to move on from our parking spot and headed out to the car rentals to see if they knew how to make the sat nav work or if there was some sort of switch we needed to turn the cigarette lighter on. After talking to the lovely lady behind the counter, she said there's no switch or anything it must be broken, I give the people upstairs in the carpark a call and you can change your car over for free. Relieved with the news (as we had no idea how we'd make it to Tim and Dani's place) we drove our car up to the carpark (level 3) to drop it off and then head upstairs to level 6 to pick up our new car. Again the people on level 3 were really nice but the person that served us on level 6....I almost decked the guy....After walking past a heap of spare cars (including Ford Focuses, VW Golfs and a few small Audi's) we head into the office at level 6 and the guy behind the counter was so rude and impolite, as if I'd done something wrong. For some reason all the cars in our category including the cars we just walked past (which were the same as the one I just parked downstairs) were all taken and they didn't have any left. So the p****offered us some smaller Nissan Micro or a Hyundai as a down grade. By this point I wasn't to happy, we'd been stuffed around so much lately, with delayed planes, no bags and now a car that the cigarette lighter didn't work so my patience was wearing a little thin. We had also wasted an hour or so of our time (not to mention the drive out airport as well) to sort it all out and the best this guy could do was downgrade us....he didn't even offer a refund for difference. I was so fuming! I told him what we'd been through and said look we have hired a car for 10 days, I'd like you to sort it out. So after much reluctance he gave us a Ford Galaxy, apparently an upgrade from our Ford Focus. The Ford Galaxy is a soccer mum's car, not exactly an upgrade other than of size, which wasn't exactly what I was after as the Focus was much better suited for the German roads. Anyway we piled our bags in, plugged in the sat nav and headed on our way, it was going to be a 4 hour drive to Überlingen. Apart from some traffic near the end of our trip it was fairly much uneventful, except for the fact I broke the 200kph mark for the first time while driving the Autobarn (Leah was asleep at the time mind you, otherwise I would have never been able to do it!). =D
We arrived late afternoon to the house in which Tim and Dani were house sitting, in which we weren't the only guests as some of Tim's mates were there for his Birthday celebrations too. Zap, Derdy, Wade and AM, Tim and Dani and us. Lucky they were house sitting at the time as we wouldn't have all had a bed to sleep on if we were staying at Tim and Dani's.
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