Oktoberfest 2009 day 13: Weinzelt, good and bad

After a couple nice visits last year, I was really looking forward to our evening reservation at the Weinzelt this year. Overall it was a fabulously fun Oktoberfest night, but my esteem for this tent has dropped considerably. I'll have to be on the lookout for a new favorite.

The main reason I love the Weinzelt is because almost all of the tables are booths, meaning there is a nice barrier between you and the asses of the drunk, sweaty, squirmy guys sitting at the table behind you. This little detail increases my enjoyment of a long session at Oktoberfest considerably. Another nice touch is that the Weinzelt stays open an hour later than the other tents.



The Weinzelt, per its name, serves a decent selection of wines instead of Oktoberfest beer. You can get weißbier at the Weinzelt, but not all night long (I forget at what time they actually stopped serving it). The food at the Weinzelt is top-notch, but comes with a similarly high price tag (evening reservations are around €80 per person). While I very much enjoyed my dinner, fine food seems kind of out of place at Oktoberfest. There's so much else going on around you that it's hardly possible to give your meal the attention and appreciation it deserves.



The worst part of the evening was getting into the tent: only one door was open, and there was a giant crowd of angry, drunk, reservation-holding people all shoving to get into it while asshole security guards looked on and offered no assistance. It was a horrendous experience, even by Oktoberfest standards. And from what I've heard from other people, this is pretty much standard practice at the Weinzelt on popular evenings. If you can't be bothered to allow customers into your tent in a way which does not squish the air out of their lungs, I'm not sure I can be bothered to fork over money for an evening reservation at your tent again. No matter how cute your flashing pink bunny ears, nor how awesome you Oktoberfest band's renditions of Lady Gaga songs.



We'll see which parts I remember most when next year's Oktoberfest comes around.

Oktoberfest 2009 day 12: tent hopping

A new set of visitors, a new introductory tour of the Wiesn. We went around noon on Wednesday and poked our heads into several of the tents. Most of them were pretty quiet, and all of them had free tables. Only the Hofbräu tent was full of rowdy drunks at this hour.

We decided to lunch at the Augustiner tent. The service was pretty bad but the food was decent (including my veggie ravioli). The tent's most striking feature was its forest green canvas roof.


Fake lederhosen at the beery-go-round. You can't buy Oktoberfest beer unless you're in a tent or on its patio, but there are a few places around the wiesn where you can get wießbier. One of those places is this slowly rotating platform (actually there are a couple of these).


I get the feeling that this ride would not meet US safety standards.


This sign struck me as an interesting example of Denglish, advertising a little temporary cafe outside of the Oktoberfest grounds. Wiesn is the place where Oktoberfest is held; Treff is a German word meaning 'get-together'. Obviously the After part is supposed to be understood as the English meaning of the word, and the sign is trying to say 'hey, here's a place where you can hang out with your friends after Oktoberfest'. At least I hope that's what they're going for, since the alternative would mean using the German meaning of After, which is, ehem, anus.

And on that note, we're off to the last day of Oktoberfest. Ein Prosit!

Oktoberfest 2009 day 6: Bavarian Heaven

Thanks to its charming decorations and lively atmosphere, the Hacker tent (Himmel der Bayern) makes it onto lots of people's list of favorite Oktoberfest tents. The walls are painted up into a fairytale-like Bavarian town, and the ceiling is a blue sky with fluffy white clouds. Today (a Thursday) we decided to go for lunch, and had no trouble scoring a prime table at around 11:30am.

The tent finished filling up pretty quickly, and there was constant competition for the extra seats at our table. We were joined by an adorable old Bavarian man for part of the day; he was thrilled to death by all the attention the bedirndled foreigners were giving him. I think we made his week.



It's actually quite easy to get a lot of attention in Bavarian Heaven: just stand up on your table and chug a liter of beer (or better yet, have your friends hold the table in the air while you stand on it, like the guy in the photo below). The whole tent will cheer you on, and celebrate your inebriated victory. But be warned: if you fail to finish they will boo mightily, and never forgive you.



We had lunch (merely so-so food) and a couple rounds of beer in the tent. Around 5:00pm we got kicked off of our table due to an evening reservation, but by that point we were ready to move on anyway. It was time for some rides.

A short guide to Munich's public transportation system

[Note: if you're not planning on using Munich's public transportation system anytime soon, I recommend skipping this post. Instead go look at some funny t-shirts from Gatlinburg.]



Even Germans are bewildered when they first encounter Munich's public transportation system in all its glory. The various zones, trams, S-bahns, rings, U-bahns, and Streifenkarten are enough to leave anyone's head spinning when trying to purchase a ticket on the fly. That's why I put together this post containing the information I think would be most helpful to tourists and other visitors to Munich. Basically, I'm tired of repeating myself to visitors.

First for the good news: MVV (the company that runs Munich's public transportation) has a relatively useful English website, which includes route maps, ticket prices, and a recently-improved Journey Planner. You can input your origin and destination (in the form of addresses or stops) and receive one or more suggested routes (along with PDF maps and fare information).
There's also an independent iPhone app which shows local transport as well as Deutsche Bahn trains.

The other good news is that Munich's transportation system is rather comprehensive and integrated. You can take buses, trams, U-bahns (subways), and S-bahns (urban rail) all on the same ticket. The travel part is relatively easy. But choosing that ticket? Not always so easy.

Munich's transportation network consists of four zones, which are further subdivided into four rings (or circles) each, for a total of 16 rings. The zones are denoted by the various background colors in the map above. Travel is on the honor system most of the time: it is up to you to buy and validate the right ticket for your needs. Chances are no one will look at your ticket, but if you are checked and found to be without a valid ticket, you will pay a €40 fine.

Tickets can be purchased from machines in all S-bahn and U-bahn stations, as well as at some tram and bus stops. At major stops, such as the airport and the main train station, you can also buy your ticket from a real live person (assuming you can find the MVV counter). Most trams and buses have ticket machines on board, as well, although the ticket selection is more limited. Tickets purchased on board a bus or tram are usually valid immediately; most other tickets must be validated with a stamp. To validate (activate) a ticket, stamp it in one of the machines (usually blue boxes) that can be found as you enter the S-bahn or U-bahn system or on a bus or tram. Passes (day and 3-day) must be stamped only once, on your first trip using the ticket. Be sure to carry your ticket in a place where you can find it.

As a tourist, chances are you'll be staying within the Innenraum (center zone - white) for all of your travel needs, with the exception of trips to and from the airport and/or Dachau. Personally I prefer to get passes that are good for the whole day (or longer), so I don't have to spend time buying individual tickets or thinking about how many rides I plan to take in a given day. Even if I end up overspending by a couple euros, to me it's worth it to just buy one ticket and be free to roam all day.

There are dozens of ticket options, but as a tourist or short-term visitor to Munich, you are likely to find the most useful tickets are the ones listed below. Note that the word 'Partner' in a ticket name means the ticket is good for up to 5 people traveling together; these tickets can be great deals. Note also that in Munich, a day ticket (Tageskarte) is only valid until 6am the following day, rather than for 24 hours.

Getting around central Munich:

• Innenraum (white zone) day pass - €5
• Innenraum day Partner ticket - €9
• Innenraum 3-day pass - € 12.30
• Innenraum 3-day Partner pass - € 21
• Single ride - € 2.30
• Single ride Kurzstrecke (very short ride) - € 1.20

Between Munich airport and anywhere in the city center (follow the signs that show an S in a green circle after you get out of luggage claim):

• Day pass (good for airport ride and any other trips you take that day) - €10
• Partner day pass - €18
• Single ride - €9.20

Between Munich city center and Dachau:

• Day pass (Munich XXL - white and green zones) - € 6.70
• Partner day pass (Munich XXL) - € 11.80
• Single ride - € 4.60

(Prices quoted are current as of August 2009, more or less. For the latest price info, see MVV's website.)

If you'll be staying for more than three or four days, it may be worth looking into weekly or monthly tickets. These get a little more complicated because they are valid for specific rings rather than specific zones. See this MVV page for more info.

One last note: many ticket machines have green buttons towards the bottom with wording that screams something like "Hey dumb tourist, buy these tickets!" Those tickets are combination passes good for public transport and discounts off of various sights. They are more expensive than regular tickets, so if you're tempted, do some calculations in advance to determine whether they make financial sense for you.

Expat bloggers to descend on Munich. Wanna come?

I keep forgetting to post about this, but the event is fast approaching. On the weekend of September 4th - 6th, expat bloggers from all around Germany will be coming to Munich to hang out, chat, drink, eat, walk around, and chat some more. I am all kinds of excited to get to see some of my favorite out-of-town bloggers (such as TQE and the Regensbloggers) again, as well as to meet some others (such as Snooker and Mausi and Heidelbergerin) for the first time.

New folks are more than welcome, so if you're a blogger in Germany (or somewhere nearby) and would like to attend, go sign up on the Expat Bloggers in Germany Website to learn all the dirty little details.

Scenes from Munich: little old lady fight

The other day I was walking home when I stopped at a crosswalk to wait for the light to change. Also waiting was a little old German lady. Not waiting was a small group of German teenage boys, who were wantonly crossing the street without proper permission from the little green man.

The little old lady was having none of this blatant disrespect for lit sign authority, and she started yelling up a storm at the boys. The boys, in turn, had a few half-hearted responses for her, but they really didn't seem to mind her yelling as they went along their merry way. As rouge teenage street-crossing hellions, they were probably used to such treatment by society.

I thought I was just witnessing yet another typical grumpy old German tantrum, when suddenly things got a little more interesting. Up rode another little old lady on her bicycle, and starts yelling at, to my substantial surprise, little old lady #1. I didn't quite catch everything she said, but the gist of it was, 'Ah, leave the kids alone you miserable old hag.' Little old lady #1 stopped yelling at the teenage boys in order to yell back at little old lady #2, and the intersection air was filled with angry, angry German.

At some point in all this the light changed, and, not wanting to stand around lest I get caught in the cross-fire, I crossed the street and continued on my path. Moments later, having finished berating little old lady #1, little old lady #2 pulled up next to me on her bike. 'I've known her for years, and she's always been like that,' she said to me with a wink and a smile. 'She's grumpy and lonely and nobody likes her.' And with that, my new favorite little old German lady stood up on her pedals and rode away.

Air Berlin: a bafflingly good airline

I've flown Air Berlin several times now, and I have to admit the airline confuses me. Its prices are often excellent, especially if you book during a sale (offerings such as 2-for-1 tickets can often be found on their website). The website is functional, allowing smooth and easy purchases and online check-in. On board, passengers are treated to free drinks, snacks, and magazines, even on very short flights. No luggage charges. Seating is assigned (you can choose your preferred seat when you check in online), and no one has ever hassled me about the size or weight of my carry-on. Basically, it's everything the full-service airlines used to be, before they all turned into fee-grubbing customer-hating cesspools.



So what's the catch?

So far I haven't been able to find one. I've even called their customer-service hotline, only to find it staffed with competent, friendly people who demonstrated problem-solving skills. Sure, there are a couple small, nit-picky things I could mention (a small fee for using a credit card on the website, for example), but given the state of most other airlines these days, they hardly seem to matter.

Air Berlin flies from a ton of German cities to destinations all over Europe, plus a few farther-flung places (such as New York and Phuket).

What's your experience with Air Berlin? Are any other airlines (low-cost or otherwise) worthy of praise these days?

Notes from a wet Munich summer

Summer in Munich has gotten off to a rather rainy start. Some people are complaining about this. Not me!



Luckily our balcony garden doesn't seem to mind the rain. We've been enjoying a steady stream of fresh strawberries, peas, and zucchini flowers. Yum.



This weekend 18,000 orange-shirt-clad people ran through the city in the Munich Stadlauf. We went to cheer on some friends. My nose was very happy that it wasn't hotter out.



This week Munich is offering up the perfect rainy-weather activity, Filmfest München. There are so many interesting-sounding movies on the schedule that I'm having trouble figuring out what all to see.

Rain or not, I'm enjoying being home in Munich for a while. Which reminds me, I still have several spring trips to blog about...

A Rainy Day in Bad Tölz

Munich has been awfully rainy this week. What to do? Grab some friends and hop on a train somewhere, of course. Bad Tölz is an adorable little town about an hour from Munich. Despite the rain we had a lovely day. We...


...wandered the streets and imagined how cute they would be if the sun were out.


...went shopping for hats (among other things).


...found the world's sexiest potholder.


...consumed Kaffee und Kuchen, little old lady style.


...saw the cutest train station in the world.


...and ran off to join the "Wu Wutang Clean". I hope there's no scrubbing involved in the initiation ceremony.

Oh yeah, and some of us even appeared on Bavarian television. Quite the exciting day.

Museum Brandhorst: Munich's newest stop for contemporary art

I still live in Munich, I swear. Never mind the fact that I've neglected to write a single post about this city in the last two months.

This weekend we decided to check out Munich's new museum, the Museum Brandhorst. I've been marveling over the building's stripey exterior for months now. The colorful ceramic bars are certainly... different. The interior is quite lovely and houses the collection well.



Cy Twombly is the star of the Brandhorst collection. I've never been a particular fan of his paintings, but I really liked the Lepanto series (which ocupies the museum's central gallery). Plus it reminded me of my favorite iphone game, Trace.



My personal favorites in the exhibit were the large figurative paintings by Eric Fischl. I've always had a preference for paintings, but the museum has plenty of art made out of giant cardboard boxes, neon lights, and human hair, if that's your thing.



Museum Brandhorst is in the same area as Munich's three Pinakotheken, and can be visited along with them on a €12 day pass. Like the Pinakotheken, Museum Branhorst only costs €1 on Sundays, but that price attracts a lot of folks. If you like to get audioguides, the total price difference (a couple euros) isn't worth the Sunday crowd.

Regensburg: dults and other diversions

This weekend we hopped on a train up to Regensburg to party with the Regensbloggers. Their housewarming party conveniently coincided with the Regensburger Dult, an adorable little city fair complete with beer tents, disturbing rides, carnies, and strange shopping opportunities. I was surprised to see that it was bigger than the Auer Dult, and almost as big as Munich's Frühlingsfest. The youth of Regensburg were out en masse, many of them wearing the most colorful tract I've ever seen.

A highlight of the weekend was finally getting to meet That Queer Expatriate live and in person. We had a fabulous time chasing a belederhosened emo boy around the dult together (see his blog for pics) and shopping for gingerbread hearts.

Naturally we were overcome with a feeling of deep patriotism upon seeing this ride:


Back at the party, we learned how to make awesome capa capra copu caipirinhas while marveling over the fact that in Germany, bags of ice come with instructions.

Looking for a gift for that loved one with swine flu?

"Gute Besserung" = "get well soon"

Springtime on the Wies'n

Look familiar?



Ah, springtime in Munich. On the heels of the Starkbierfest comes the Frühlingsfest, or spring festival, which takes place on the Theresienwiese, Munich's famous Oktoberfest fairgrounds. With just two one-story beer tents, Frühlingsfest is much smaller than Oktoberfest, but the general idea is the same: carnival rides, carnival food, and drunken crowds in beer tents dancing on benches and singing along to Ein Stern and Country Roads.

A local friend of ours poo-pooed the idea of going to the Frühlingsfest, claiming it was a festival for the redneck set. Between the fight I saw in the ladies' restroom and the fact that the band played Achy Breaky Heart, I can't really disagree with him. But I still had fun. Plus it was easy to find a seat!



Classy how there are topless women decorating the rides, no?




I promise my next post about Munich will not involve beer. Surely there's something else going on in this city...

Scavengers in the Biergarten

In case you were wondering what summer in Munich is like, it's simple: all biergarten all the time.



These photos are from the biergarten at Seehaus, in the middle of the English Garden. This beer garden distinguishes itself from the millions of others in that 1) it's on a lake and 2) it has a wider selection of food than most other beer gardens. Not that this matters to those who bring their own food along, something you are allowed to do in all of Munich's beer gardens as long as you purchase beverages there. Just make sure to sit in the self-serve beer garden area, rather in the fancier restaurant area that most beer gardens have (usually denoted by tablecloths, silverware, or other fancy stuff on the tables).



Biergartens are great for people-watching, from the drunken bachelor parties collecting tags from panties to the older Germans with their pimped-out picnic tables (complete with fancy table cloths, cutting boards, and centerpieces). The bums walking around scavenging for leftover food and beer make you think Munich might not be such a bad place to be homeless (but just in the summer). As the crowds thin out at night, the ducks come to compete with the bums for the leftover pretzels.



Beer gardens tend open around 11 am and close much earlier than their attached restaurants, usually between 9 and 11 pm.

Scenes from an early spring weekend in Bavaria

While Germany was busy swooning over our new president, we were out enjoying Germany.



We squeezed in one last sledding trip with the Rendenii (which is where we spotted this guy);



rang in the beginning of asparagus season in a beer garden on the lake;




and then got the balcony garden started.

Starkbierfest Munich: when regular beer isn't strong enough

Finally we've made it to that time of year again - time for a beer festival in Munich. Starkbierfest is a lot like Oktoberfest, with a few key differences:

• Different beer (duh). Starkbier is very strong and so sweet it's practically undrinkable.
  
• No smoking! Smokers have to go outside. Your throat will still hurt from shouting your conversations all night.
  
• Starkbierfest takes place in the banquet halls of the breweries around town, rather than in tents at the Wies'n.
  
• Um... Starkbierfest is a wee bit smaller than Oktoberfest. And possibly a little less famous.

Other than that, Munich's two big beer annual beer festivals are pretty similar. Lots of dirndls and lederhosen, beer by the Maβ (liter), drunk people dancing on long wooden benches, and a band playing 'Country Roads', 'Cowboy und Indianer', 'Walking on Sunshine', and 'Skandal' over and over and over again. That's just the way they party here in Munich.

In comparison to last year, a couple indicators let us know that the Global Financial Crisis of Doom has hit Munich's Starkbierfest, too. For example, even at the steep toilet price of 35 cents, customers are only allowed one squirt of hand soap each. Use it wisely.

As if that weren't bad enough, the security budget obviously shrank, as well. Instead of real security guards, they could only afford the fashion police. At least they did a pretty good job of controlling the dirndl and lederhosen faux pas (when not directing traffic around fresh piles of sawdust on the floor).



Luckily all this didn't seem to influence the level of drunken revelry, which was substantial, as always.