Euro Trip Part 4 - Munich (part 1)

Monday began and we left early for Munich! I was so excited to go to Oktoberfest and couldn't wait! On the way we stopped to do a little tour of Josh's grandpa's path through Germany during the war. The old castle we stopped at was fenced off but we were able to venture around and see the grounds and town near it. Such beautiful views!

I'm definitely framing this one!

Another framer - love the German streets!

After stopping for the history detour we continued onto our hotel. The hotel was gorgeous and close to the subway line - another hotel win for the trip.

Once our bags were dropped off we decided to head downtown in search of food! We were all starving and were eager to get out and explore for the evening. So off we went - we took the subway to Marienplatz. Here we shopped a bit and snagged our souvenirs before dinner. Rob and I got a magnet & shot glass (of course - as these are the two things I collect everywhere) and also an original German beer stein made in Munich.

We also got an authentic German dinner with our first 1L beers of the trip - Katie and Josh needed the experience!

potato salad!

Brats with sauerkraut - a favorite!

After dinner we headed to the Hofbräuhaus - because when in Rome, right?
We couldn't leave without enjoying some time there during our Oktoberfest extravangaza trip;
it just didn't seem right!

It looked very pretty at night - it was darker out when we left.

With it being a Monday things were beginning to close early so our walking around didn't last long. We did manage to see a protest though, Europeans peacefully sharing their opinions on the refugees, and, also, these two expensive gems.

On the way back to our hotel, after taking the subway and getting off at our stop, we walked past a little bar near our hotel and decided to stop in. It was nothing crazy - a small hole in the wall - but we had fun. Joked with the bartender, had some beers, watched a bit of soccer, and then left to call it a night. It was a nice way to wrap up our first day in Munich.

The next morning we were up early for Oktoberfest. The festival starts early and if you plan to get into a tent you best arrive when it opens. I'm so happy we went early because we were able to get into several tents throughout the day.

yay festival time!

Tent #1

Katie's potato salad - her newest addiction
to substitute for nachos :)

Then a bit of air in between tents? The guys snagged some awesome hats - lil German cowboy lookin fellas :)

Enough shopping - time for tent #2!

bacon, cheese, pretzel bread? yes please!

This is the same tent hosted by the company where we had
dinner the night before -Augustiner.

Now for more outside exploring - it was starting to get a lot busier now. The tents were filling up fast! The guys played some games (the shooting kind of course) and won flowers. Josh also won a panda bear. Rob decorated his hat with his flower - he was so proud.

beer horses!

I swear, I love German festivals. I could live in this country forever.

ride time!! Rob, Josh, and I went :)

Katie held all the things - she looked like an
adorable little homeless lady.

After walking, snacking, and the ride we wanted to find another tent but instead stopped at an outdoor beirgarten (beer stop #3). They even served their beer on a merry-go-round at this one!

panda!!

Josh and panda bear time

There were barrel tables around the merry-go-round
where we stood and enjoyed our beers.

 Then, since we were cold, it was time for an inside tent; off we went to beer stop #4!

check out this meat and cheese platter!
love the wood serving dish too

This tent was serious - even had (what we're sure were)
barf pots under the ends of the tables!

our tent #4 menu

and said statue on the menu above - we saw it
in person outside

Tent #5!

check out this dish washing team though - busy busy!

SO MANY STEINS!

 In this tent things got real - lots of standing on the benches and singing loudly. It was lots of fun!

see that potato salad in the corner - katie got more.
ADDICTION.

my stud.

so many people!

Tent #6. This was a cocktail and dessert tent.

This tent is where things got confusing... Katie and I went to the bar to get drinks and Rob and Josh left to hit the bathroom. Or so we thought. Then Rob came back and Josh did not. He wasn't answering his phone, he wasn't in the bathroom, and we couldn't find him. With him being lost we didn't want to stray from the tent too much since that's where he saw us last so, instead we went outside to the front to stand and look for him more. Let start off by saying Oktoberfest is not the place to lose someone. Me was mad.

But somehow we magically found him. He was super drunk. Our remedy - water and food (both of which are everywhere). He rejected. We went on to find another tent to sit outside and chill and let him get food and wear his buzz down, or so we hoped.

At this next tent (that's right we're at tent #7 now ladies and gents) the inside was at capacity and we got a table outside. We shared it with a group of Israeli guys and they were awesome! Some of them were Israeli soldiers and one was a teacher who recently taught in Boston. But, with Josh not feeling well (and looking sick) we couldn't stay. We left there soon after and Josh decided to go back to the hotel. He hopped on the subway and headed back and we stuck around a bit longer, especially since it was only about 5pm. I definitely didn't want to leave that early. We even managed to get some spaetzle! & I was super happy because I LOVE spaetzle :)

spaetzle!

Our last tent (#8) we officially went to was a fish tent. The food looked amazing and I even tried a bite of salmon. For those who know me know I'm not a huge fish fan BUT it was delicious!

Rob and I didn't get fish but shared this plate for dinner while we were here.

After our time here we went to see if any other tents had space. We went to the Paulaner one and, to no surprise, it was SO full! There were people everywhere and there was no possible way to get a table.

From the pictures you can tell - SO MANY PEOPLE! With that being said, after our brief walk around the tent, we decided to nix tents for the rest of night and ride the Ferris Wheel. It was huge and I'm happy we did it! A great view of the festival too.

We had a great time and let that be the end to our Oktoberfest day. I was very happy we stayed out a bit longer and experienced as much as we could. It ended up being a perfect day in my book! 

On the way back to the hotel we may have missed our stop and gotten a bit mixed up - whoops - But, in the end, it was fine as we made it back in one piece!

The next morning we were set to check out and go to Dachau and Neuschwanstein. I've put those two trips on a part 2 blog about Munich as we took lots of photos.