Flippin' Serbia: Oktoberfest

Last weekend we flew to Munich to fulfill one of the big-ticket items on our travel bucket list - Attend Oktoberfest-which did not disappoint whatsoever. The best way to describe it is, as I said at one point during the trip [and this is a direct quote], "Oktoberfest is the definition of 'my scene'" or like one of our friends said, "imagine that your favorite team just won the Superbow, and all of you are on the same team". That is the essence and vibe of Oktoberfest. There is no sulking, negativity, pushing or shoving. Zillions of people occupy the same space but camaraderie reigns. Besides drinking liters of beer and kilos of sausages, we managed to visit most of the big tents and gardens and go on the rides. Contrary to most people's suggestions, we didn't make reservations in any of the tents because there were only four of us and you had to prepay for at least 8 in order to have a guaranteed seat. Instead, we scouted around looking for tables with empty seats. Overall, we were pretty lucky; we got to seat at 3 different beer gardens and one day we had 'breakfast' inside a tent. The whole experience was phenomenal. Like all things German, Oktoberfest was incredibly well planned, efficient, and executed seamlessly. Take a seat, order, pay up, clink, sing, repeat. Everywhere you looked were heaps of good food and monstrous beers, people wearing the traditional dress of dirndl and lederhosen no matter their age. Little kids and grandparents sat at the table and cheered and clinked mugs with the rest of them. If there is a way to promote world peace, this seems like a great way to start.

The highlights include: