Diary Date - Oktoberfest, Beer in Bavaria and Best Visits

Beethoven

Dusseldorf

Germany on map of Europe.

Problem
Where it it and what else can I do there?

Answer
Munich, Upper Bavaria, Germany. 22 Sept - Oct 7 2018.

What else can you do in Munich, or Germany?

Munich
Heaven or hell, fact or fantasy, or some of each. I would be inclined on my next trip to do what I did on my last trip, to visit Neuschwanstein first and leave Dachau until last. However, I listed the places in alphabetical for concenience.

I looked up famous poeple who died i Dachau and found an instant travel connection. Maduro, for a second I wondered, where have I heard that name before and then it came to me. Madurodam, of course. Madurodam, theme park in The Netherlands, founded by his parents, who expanded the theme park and named it in honour of their son whose image is at the entrance.

Modern Munich and the aiprot have musch more in the way of museums adn food and drink. See my previous posts.

Dachau WWII Concentration Camp. (Children under 14 not admitted.)
Neuschwanstein Castle
This is the place you will remember from children's film and the Disney castle.

If you are running late on your holiday bookings, there's lastminute.com . If you miss the Oktoberfest event altogether, you might be in time to go to Munich for the Christmas Market.

Useful Websites
https://www.ranker.com/list/notable-people-who-died-in-dachau/reference

www.germany.travel.en
https://www.muenchen.de/int/en/tourism.html

lastminute.com
Tripadvisor
https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attraction_Products-g187309-Munich_Upper_Bavaria_Bavaria.html

Wikitravel
Wikivoyage

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer. See my previous posts on Munich.

The Symbols On A German Beer: for example, Lowenbrau at Oktoberfest

Problem
What's the local wine or beer? How do I remember it? What does the symbol mean? What does the name mean?

Answer
Germans Oktoberfest is the biggest beer festival in the world attracting 6 million people. (Now you know why you have to go early in the day to get a seat
The local, made in Munich, beer is called Löwenbrau. (To insert the two dots above the vowel o when typing, hold down the o until a pop up appears. Then you will see that the number two appears under the dots. Pres the key for two (with the fourth finger of your left hand) and, as if by magic the vowel appears on the screen complete with the correct dots.

Löwenbräu (/ˈlɜːrvənbrɔɪ/; German pronunciation: [ˈløːvn̩bʁɔʏ]) is a brewery in Munich owned by Anheuser-Busch InBev. Its name means "lion's brew" in German. 

Their symbol is a golden lion with a red tongue - maybe hanging out because it is thirsty. The golden lion is contrasted with a blue background surrounded by a gold circle frame. I presume is intended to convey the maker's belief or the customer's reassurance that the beer is of the best quality.

More information from
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oktoberfest

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. Please share links to your favourite posts.

Oktoberfest Is Over But there's Beer in Belgium and Britain, Book Oktoberfest in Germany Next Year and Christmas Markets

The flag of Germany.

Problem
I thought the German Oktoberfest started on the 1st of October and ended on the last day of October. Alas no. We have missed the Oktoberfest but there's still time to plan trips to the German Christmas Markets.

Answer
Oktoberfest started in September and it ends today, October 3rd 2017! It is the biggest beer festival in the world, attracting 6 million people, and I wasn't one of them. This year I have missed it. The good news is that now we know it starts in September, we can plan next year more carefully.

Oktoberfest in Munich in German iin 2018 will be held from September 22nd to October 7th. At least that's a bit more of October than in 2017.

So why the misleading name? According to their website, the original Oktoberfest was a week in Oktober to celebrate a royal marriage. In later years so that people could enjoy warmer weather, the festival was moved forward to start in September and end in Oktober. So why don't they call it the September fest? Oktoberfest has a good ring, doesn't it?

Plan to arrive on day one to see the morning parade of the horse-drawn carriages and bands.
If you are going there, entry to the tents is free. You just go in and sit down and order beer from the girls wearing the local Bavarian dirndl outfits. But at weekends the tents are often full by 11 am and once a tent is full nobody else is admitted. So arrive early.

Story
GERMAN BEER
I associate Germany with wine, especially Riesling, Black Tower, Liebfraumilch (wine so delightful it was called milk of the dear lady meaning the Madonna).
In many German cities you can find local food and wines in the Rathauskeller, nothing to do with rats. It's the German word for Town hall, usually a historic building, with at least one or two dishes at reasonable prices.

When we drove through Germany, it was always our first stop, if we had no other place in mind.

Meanwhile, various places in the UK are having their own little Oktoberfest German beer festivals.

Belgian Beer
Other great places for beer are Belgium.

UK Breweries
England has a septemberfest in Donington Park, I read about it on septemberfest.co.uk. If you want to see wenches in Medieval peasant costume, go to a Medieval Banquet. If it's beer you're after, and regional beer in the UK keep an eye on CAMRA, the Campaign For Real Ale.
Various breweries in the UK  are open to visitors and some are famous for the Shire horses which used to pull the delivery carts.

Travel Tips
Top German cities to visit
Berlin (the wall)
The Romantic Road (Rothenburg).

CHRISTMAS MARKETS
GERMANY
Rothenburg is a lovely backdrop for its Christmas market. Other cities for Christmas markets include Berlin and Nuremberg.

Nuremberg is associated in the minds of the British and many people with the Nuremberg Trials after the end of WWII. But the city has an old city, Durer's House museum, the expected historical museum and the Germanisches National Museum with stunning photogenic pillars outside covered in sayings in all languages about human right. (See Tripadvisor.) When I visited I did not understand the words in other languages. However, nowadays with Google Translate on your phone, this should be a problem you can solve more easily.

OTHER CHRISTMAS MARKETS
Austria: Vienna and Salzburg
Belgium, Brussels and Bruges
Bulgaria: Sofia
Canada: Toronto, Quebec, Vancouver
Czech Republic: Prague castle
Denmark: Copenhagen
England: London - Hyde Park, Bankside; Manchester
France: Rheims in Champagne region; Strasbourg in the Alsace
Ireland: Dublin's Twelve Days of Christmas
Latvia: Riga
Poland: Warsaw and Krakow
Scotland: Edinburgh; Glasgow
Switzerland: Zurich
USA: Baltimore, Chicago, Denver, Philadelphia, New York, Washington DC and many more.
Wales: Cardiff

GERMAN WEBSITES
Plenty of time to learn some German on
www.Duolingo.com
Oktoberfest in Germany in 2018 is Sept 22 2018 until October 7th.
https://www.oktoberfest.de/en/article/Oktoberfest+2017/About+the+Oktoberfest/Dates+and+General+FAQs
More Information From
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oktoberfest
https://www.oktoberfest.de/en/article/Oktoberfest+2017/About+the+Oktoberfest/Dates+and+General+FAQs
https://www.christmasmarkets.com
https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/germany
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/festival-travel-checklist

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. Please share links to your favourite posts.
Twitter: @AnnaTheAuthor