Beer, beer, beer at Oktoberfest!

After yesterday’s enthralling yet exhausting trip to Europa Park, any hopes I had of a relaxing day were dashed as Oktoberfest was on the menu. The world-famous Bavarian tradition was in town, and was not to be missed.

Set in Theresienwiese in the center of Munich, Oktoberfest is a homage to the Bavarian tradition of beer and celebration, with hearty German meals on offer that are traditionally washed down with Oktoberfest beer supplied in always-packed beer tents. Both men and women dress up in traditional Bavarian dress, with the men donning lederhosen and the women sporting dirndi.

Not exactly lederhosen (Bavarian traditional attire for men) but an example of the garb seen adorning the fellas at Oktoberfest

Traditional Bavarian hat (Tirolerhüte) with tufts of chamois hair (gamsbart)

But Oktoberfest isn’t just about alcohol – it’s also host to a large variety of rides, games and Bavarian food (nuts, sausages, sweets, drinks and lollies) that make it otherwise a family-friendly event. It was a unique experience simply wandering the packed grounds (I went on October 2nd, which was a public holiday in Munich) and seeing everything in action. The ride I went on had five upside down loops, yet another scary and exciting memory for the archives!

Sweeeeeeets

We all scream for ice cream!

Traditional German gingerbread is on offer at Oktoberfest – it’s a couple gift for a guy to buy and give to his special lady. Apparently it’s not meant to be eaten but hung up in the house.

No day is complete without a sky high drop!

After seeing the sights on the ground, it was time to move into one of the tents to try out the local brew. That’s where part of the challenge lies in Oktoberfest – tents are in high demand, with a limited number of seats available for the food and drink on offer. Companies (who frequently use Oktoberfest as a team building/celebration activity) and large groups have been known to reserve tables at Oktoberfest more than 6 months in advance to secure a spot. Luckily, with our group of two, we found a seat in one of the tents within 15 minutes.

Joining two groups of locals at our table, we promptly ordered a 1L each of the beer. I looked on in avid interest at the groups of German folk indulging in German food and drink as German music and drinking songs pulsated around us. I even spotted a man dance for five minutes on top of a table!

Being not much of a drinker, it took me a good while to finish off the 1L beer. Beer still isn’t really my thing but it was worth it for the Oktoberfest experience, even though I didn’t understand much of what was said or the music playing from the stage.

The infamous Oktoberfest 1L beer

Attraction details – Oktoberfest

Directions: Oktoberfest be easily reached by U-Bahn, S-Bahn and bus as it takes place within the centre of Munich. For detailed transport information, consult the Deutsche Bahn website.

Admission: Admission is free, so you only pay for the rides, food and beer you consume. Note that the infamous Oktoberfest beer is only available in 1L quantities and is charged at 10 euros each. A bit steep for a beer, but you’re paying for the brand and the atmosphere as well as the beer.

Rating: 4/5 – a great experience for any first-time traveler to Munich. I only downgraded it slightly as I don’t really buy into the heavy drinking culture promoted by Oktoberfest.

Traveler tips:

• Oktoberfest beer is stronger than normal beer, so keep this in mind to pace yourself as you drink. Plenty of inebriated people can be spotted leaving Oktoberfest, having misjudged their capacity for grog.
• Eat your food and take the rides you want to before you consume any beer to avoid unexpected surprises later
• If you want to get a table without a reservation, be prepared to wait. The smaller your group, the greater your chance of getting a table. In any case, arrive early to secure a spot.
• If you aren’t a fan the full strength beer, you can order a radler which is beer mixed with lemonade and is slightly cheaper too.

Have you been to Oktoberfest? What was your experience like?

 

Europe sized fun at Europa Park

For my first day in Munich, a friend suggested we take advantage of the extensive regional train network and journey to Europa Park, a massive theme park that, like its name suggests, is designed according to the different countries of the European Union.

Having arrived at Munich Hauptbahnhof (HBF – Munich Central Station) from Paris two hours later than I intended (after sitting in the wrong position on the 9:30pm train arriving into Munich, which landed me in Strasbourg), I was told that in order to reach Europa Park by its 9am opening time we had to get to the train station at around 3am! As I had only arrived at my friend’s place at around 12:30am and needed time to unpack and have something to eat, I was understandably exhausted and not looking forward to the prospect of even more travel. To throw a spanner into the works, we had missed our bus to the Munich HBF from where our train would depart, forcing us to take a cab instead. Despite the crazy ride, my friend assured me it was worth it, so off we went with no sleep to one of the largest amusement parks in Europe…

The journey there was very disjointed, involving five changes of trains and seven trains in total (Munich to Stuttgart HBF, Stuttgart HBF to Karlsruhe HBF, Karlsruhe HBF to Ringsheim on the way there; Ringsheim to Offenburg, Offenburg to Karlsruhe HBF, Karlsruhe HBF to Sturttgart HBF and Stuttgart HBF to Munchen HBF on the return leg). Added to that, there was another bus we needed to take from Ringsheim to the Europa Park itself. The hop on-hop off journey gave me little opportunity to sleep continuously, leaving me feeling ready to collapse. So much drama before I’d even set foot inside the Park! The kick in the face came when I found out Europa Park is actually 30km away from Strasbourg…meaning I’d basically traveled from Strasbourg to Munich three times in one day, and could have traveled directly to the Park without going all the way to Munich and back.

Forgive the pun, but I was in for one hell of a ride at Europa Park! Traveling through the different countries of the theme park, I was treated to over eight hours of fun through jaw-drop inducing rollercoasters, water rides, shoot-em-ups, cart rides, train rides and any other ride you can think of! The multicultural design of the park lends itself to a multitude of European food options, with Greek, Italian, French, German, Finnish and various others available. The park was also decorated in a fun, bright and engaging manner, with Halloween being the theme during our visit in the first week of October.

The ‘France’ region of Europa Park

The Halloween theme in action at Europa Park

Clogs of Europe!

My favourite rides were ‘Blue Fire’ and ‘Silver Star’, both of which were thrilling, unbelievably high and fast rollercoasters that made me laugh, scream and smile seemingly all at once. I even went on the Silver Star twice at my friend’s bequest!

Attraction details – Europa Park

Directions: Europa Park can be reached by regional train. Consult the Deutsche Bahn website for detailed train and transport information.

Admission: All inclusive admission (entry and access to rides) for adults during the summer season is normally 42.50 euros, but as my friend is a journalist, he was able to obtain a complementary press pass for two. This made it exceptional value for me combined with my rail pass, which provided all day transport to Europa Park and back. Compared to other theme parks such as Tivoli which charge both an exorbitant entry fee and a fee per ride, Europa Park hits the sweet spot of being both affordable and interesting to a broad range of audience groups, with its Europe theme and plentiful options for food and rides.

Rating: 5/5. My friend was right – Europa Park is seriously the real deal. A must-do if you are in the vicinity.

Traveler’s tips:

• Pack some food and drink to avoid the overpriced food options at the Park.
• Get there at opening time to maximise your experience. Also try and go on a weekday to avoid the rush on weekends or public holidays.
• If you’re not the biggest fan of rides, consider taking an extreme ride followed by a gentle ride and then repeating this until you have done all the rides you are interested in
• Upon entering the Park, proceed to the middle or back of the Park to avoid the often congested lines at the front areas. There are signs clearly indicating the expected wait time for each ride.
• As you get more tired throughout the day, consider taking the provided intra-Park train service. The train departs from a central location and stops at several key ‘countries’ in the Park.

What has your experience been at Europa Park? What are your favourite theme parks inside and outside Europe?

Traveler tips and truths: Paris

Continuing on from my prior traveler tips and truths post on Helsinki, this is a mixture of insights and advice that came to me after staying for 6 days in Paris. There are quite a few things here (I’m a bit of a pedantic for detail), of which some I hope are useful. Enjoy!

Traveler truths:

• Paris is for people watching: As discussed in the list of ‘must-dos’, Paris may very well give you a great new hobby.

An interesting tourist ‘attraction’ at the Ile-St-Louis

• People are very stylish: Paris is well-known for its cutting edge fashion so the bar is set high on the street. The standard of dress is higher and more adventurous compared to the dominant laidback Australian attire, with a preference towards more formal or elegant types of clothing. This isn’t just limited to the young people – I saw some seriously cool-looking grandpas and dads walking around which made me feel inadequate and scruffy by comparison! I dress mainly for comfort while traveling so I don’t tend to bring any great threads (not that I have many at all), which did make me feel slightly out of place amongst such well-groomed and well-dressed folk.
• Parisians generally don’t wear shorts, even in warm weather: I was a little shocked to see, despite it being 20-25C for the majority of my stay in Paris, that people generally didn’t wear anything other than jeans, chinos or dress/suit pants. Upon asking a Parisian about it, I was told that shorts are generally regarded as an impolite form of dress that is not suitable for work or a meeting, and is generally only worn on vacation or by tourists. I was even told that it is almost taboo to show your legs, which I definitely found strange. It did make me self-conscious enough to wear jeans on a few occasions where I would have opted normally for shorts, but I quickly switched back after sweating it out unnecessarily. Fashion over comfort for the Parisians it seems!
• Parisians can be as rude as you’ve heard: On many occasions, I was surprised by how rude people, even those paid to provide customer service, were to me. The metro and tourist attractions proved to be a hotspot for the short-fused, annoyed and exasperated worker, which encourage me to limit my interaction with them to a bare minimum as a defence mechanism. There were many kind people in the museums and other places I visited though so it’s a bit of a mixed bag, but be prepared for some snark with your service.
• Baguettes are the coffees of Paris: Seriously, people eat baguettes for breakfast, lunch and as a snack too. They are obsessed with bread, putting things in bread, eating things with bread – you get the picture. Bakeries are on every corner, fueling this never-ending lifestyle.
• The French are a romantic people – I have never ever seen so much public affection before. People of both genders kissing each other on the cheek in greeting, couples canoodling and kissing in parks and on the street – Parisians are openly emotional and outspoken with their feelings. It can be off putting at first, but you learn to just embrace it and look away in time.
• Parisians like their wide open spaces – It is a favourite past time of the French to lay in parks for hours over a picnic lunch. More food, more people-watching. You get the picture.
  

  Parisians enjoying the Jardin des Plantes (Botanical Gardens)

• Paris is undeniably rich with culture and history – Another no brainer. The sheer volume of churches, monuments, museums and sculptures on display is a testament to the rich history of Paris. You even feel it walking down the street – the cobblestones and the street signs lend the city an old-fashioned, nostalgic and very romantic feeling.
  

  Arc de Triumph at the top of the Champs De’Lysees

• Aside from people–watching, smoking is another favoured hobby: This is quite a sad inclusion on the list but it is so evident it is impossible to disregard it. Smoke is everywhere in Paris because so many people smoke. It is so easy to passive smoke in Paris every time you walk down the street, pass a bistro or walk through a park with what felt like 1 in 3 people – of all ages – smoking. It seems to be a cool thing to do in Parisian society, and what’s sadder, is that I even saw cyclists and people who were ostensibly healthy, lighting up with gusto. Smoking always makes me feel sick, and after visiting Paris, that feeling hasn’t changed.
• Paris is expensive – You can’t be surprised by this. For me, coming from Australia, mostly everything is more expensive in Paris. Only a few things, like food from vending machines and baguettes (probably due to oversupply) are roughly in proportion with their Australian counterparts. There are cheaper places you can find to eat, but you get what you pay for. I did resort to doing some grocery shopping on my first day to soften the blow, which turned out to be a great way to save money as I managed to avoid paying for food except for 1 day of deliberate French sampling.

Traveler tips

• Buy metro pass in advance – The metro is so good in Paris it’s ridiculous not to use it. With the Paris Visite metro pass, you can get 1,3 or 5 day unlimited travel on the Paris metro, bus and RER in selected zones (chosen at purchase) so you can have peace of mind. This is literally the first thing you should get in Paris if you are going to be going around the city a lot and it is great value if you take into account the price of individual tickets. There is the weekly pass (valid from Monday to Sunday, sold on the Thursday for the following week) and the Paris Navigo pass (needs a photo taken and is generally for Paris residents) available but they both have their drawbacks and aren’t always suitable for tourists.
• Try to use service stations instead of ticket machines if you’re unsure – The ticket machines are actually very good and do have English options but if you are uncertain of anything or want to avoid being harassed by the occasional scam artist or shady character, ask for your tickets directly at the train station. Just be prepared for some staff to either not know English, be rude to you, or both.
• Avoid beggars, gypsies, scammers, and con artists: Like any big city, Paris has its share of less-than-desirable characters. There are beggars (often Romanian) in the street next to ATMs, in train stations, performance artists on the trains playing for money (and some are actually not bad and deserve the coin they get), gypsies around the Eiffel Tower asking you if you speak English who try to get you to do a survey; people selling rip-off goods at big tourist locations; and others trying to sell souvenirs and water to tourists.
• Take care of your belongings to protect against pickpockets – The metro, with its mass of people and limited space to move, is an ideal place for you to be robbed of your valuables at an unsuspecting moment. Take care of your belongings and make sure you don’t leave yourself vulnerable to being pick pocketed. I used a money bag around my waist under my clothes to be extra careful of my things, keeping my passport, wallet and room key inside. What do you know? I didn’t lose a thing. To put this into context, on the day I arrived, a friend’s friend had their passport stolen along with their money bag at a major train station. The passport was thrown into the trash, and the money bag emptied of all cash. I was also hassled at the train station by some shady characters right after I’d touched down in Paris.
• Try to take the metro in off-peak times: 9-10am and 5-7pm are typically the busiest hours for the metro so if you can, try to avoid taking it at these times to save yourself unwanted touching, sweat and jostling. It gets quite warm in the metro with everyone sucking up the oxygen so try to stay cool and calm and you should be fine.
• Get lost sometimes – Sometimes getting lost is the only way you can learn how to get around. There is a perverse satisfaction from getting lost and then having that ‘Eureka!’ moment when everything all clicks into place. The metro is well connected so you can always take the metro from wherever you do end up if you find yourself really lost.
• Take your time with the metro – if you miss your train, there is another one usually within 2-5 minutes so unless you’re in an absolute hurry, there’s no need to dash unless you like running! I admit I did run around a little but only because I was trying to fit everything in and wasted time getting lost more than a few times.
• Learn some basic French – French people, while sophisticated, do not always speak the best English and some, even at service outlets, speak no English at all! So do yourself a favour and bust out your phrasebooks to develop some basic competency. You will find your experience everywhere – in restaurants, in the metro, in shops – easier and all the more pleasant for it.
• 18e/month unlimited movie subscription – Parisians love their cinema, and really respect the work of the director. After all, they did first conceive of the auteur, and play host to the world’s most prestigious film festival in Cannes every year. Small rather than large multiplexes are dotted around the city, playing independent, foreign language and auteur cinema to the masses. I nearly fell in love with Paris right then and there. It is a great place to catch up on the latest gem by your favourite unknown director. I found out too late that there is an 18 euro per month subscription that gives you the privilege of unlimited movies! Considering a single movie costs around 7 or 8 euros, this is great value.
• Check out some free music concerts – Paris is a great place to get in touch with your musical self and with the many churches, cultural venues and parks on offer, there is almost a chance to hear some great music everywhere you go. The metro is also occasionally accompanied by budding artists trying to eke out a living impressing the daily commuters. Check out this website for a listing.
• Ask for help if you need it, even if you feel uncomfortable (Or Learn How to Read Your Train Tickets) – Being in Paris made me uncomfortable asking for help as I didn’t know much French. Having never taken a high speed train before, I was a little unsure if I was in the right seat however upon finding my seat number on the wall, I was sure I had done the right thing. My complacency ended up costing me as I mistakenly got into the wrong part of the train (correct seat number, but wrong coach number) to Munich, finding myself temporarily stranded in Strasbourg and costing myself two hours. Luckily I was still able to make it to my destination with a simple transfer at no additional fare, but I had to find a Wi-Fi source to alert a friend who would have been waiting at the station for an extra two hours on top of getting the new train. All stress one does not need while traveling. I later found out the coach numbers are indicated on the outside of the train, but it just goes to show you, that it never pays to ask for help if you’re unsure.
• Choose the ‘formule’ fixed menus for breakfast or lunch to save – In Paris, you can often find a ‘formule’ menu on offer which is a fixed price menu (either entrée + main + dessert, entrée + main or main + dessert) of set items that is often cheaper than ordering a la carte. I ordered one which would normally have costed 20 euros but was only charged 16 euros for it. So do your wallet a favour and go for the set menu, that is, if you don’t mind sacrificing some choice in the process.
  

Lunch formule (set meal of the day): Beef gazpachio with pomme frites (french fries), salad and dressing

Andy’s traveler rating – Paris

People: 3.5/5
Liveability: 4/5
Attractions & Culture: 5/5
Nature: 4.5/5
Cost of living: 3/5
Weather: 5/5
Public transport: 5/5

Overall: 30/35