Oktoberfest 2011

As per my promise of a few blogs ago....I can say that I have officially survived Oktoberfest.  So...while I had a great time...I must say that the rumors about what Oktoberfest is (drunken fest with idiots running rampant - just in case you didn't hear the same rumors as me) well, anyhow...all those rumors are absolutely true. 

Yep...true.

But...its also a great big party with people who belt out songs and laugh a lot and cheer each other on and meet new friends from all over the world.  So, like I said...I had a great time.

First...the outfit.  Yep...John and I wore our traditional Dirndle and Lederhosen and felt quite Bavarian that day.

Second...I think I may have said this already, but Oktoberfest is all about the beer and the boobs.  I think you'll find the photos reflect this for the most part. 

We walked around the fest and I had to take some photos just to show how many people and how crowded and how HUGE this place is...

 

And our friends, Christina and Matt...who wore their dirndle and lederhosen too!

And then the party itself.  We ended up trying to get into the Lowenbrau fest tent, but that was a big joke...We were squashed together trying to get to the door...we waited for about 1/2 hour before deciding it just wasn't worth it.

This is the photo John took of me waiting in the squashed line...he said he had to take it from above because it was so crowded...

...squashed or not that didn't stop John and Matt from getting a hostess to serve them their first beer of the night...

I was starving so we all got sandwiches...mine was less than satisfactory.  I was disappointed...ended up eating the salami and cheese and dumping the rest.  Oh well...they never did say Oktoberfest was for the food.  :)

We ended up going to the Paulaner tent and ran into friends of John's that he works with.  They scootched over and we spent the next 5 hours hanging out there.

...and making friends with the Brits...

and the belgians...

...and some Germans until someone said the word Nazi and then security came and started throwing people out.  Yeah.  Fun.

Then there was a girl at the Belgian table that lifted her beer stein and hit herself in the nose and gave herself a bloody nose.  That was actually quite funny.

Overall...it was an experience I won't soon forget....plus I got to wear my dirndle and that totally made it all worth it.  :)

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Just keep swimming...

Bella and I decided we were going SWIMMING!  So, we asked our neighbor and her daughter to join us and headed out to the Weiden Schwimmbad to spend a few hours in the pool. 

Here is what I LOVE about German swimming pools.

1.  Kids don't pay until they are 6 years old.

2.  There are always multiple pools (lap pool, kids pool, non-swimmer pool, wave pool, lazy river pool, pools with waterfalls, hottubs, etc.)

3. They have fun slides...like the enclosed tube slides as well as regular slides.

4.  They are just the right temperature.

5.  They have chairs deckside that you can lounge in and even tan under sunlights if you want.

6.  They are always connected to a spa.

Its like a bigAmerican waterpark only its not crowded beyond belief because just about every good sized town has one.  I love it so much that I think the USA should adopt the German schwimmbad plan.

Anywho...we took a few photos from our fun few hours at the pool that I can't resist posting...The other two in the photos are our neighbor, Kim and her daughter Alyssa. 

Alyssa just turned 4 and her and Bella have become good friends...In fact they regularly call each other "best friends" (which I love because these two girls are so cute together!)

    

Awww...Bella's first "best friend."

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