There were alot of rides and even a roller coaster! We didn't want to get too close...not like we could with the amount of people around, but dodging the vomit around park benches and the corners...we couldn't imagine what might be underneath the rides.
There were so many people (and children) dressed in traditional lederhosen and dirndl (the dress).

The traditional seasonal specialty is the Wies'n Maerzen beer. It is the dark, heavily malted and potent brew that gets its name from centuries ago when religious custom prohibited brewing from April through September. The beer was brewed in March (Maerz) to beat the deadline and was given a heavy character to be good to drink properly in October. The beer mug is called a "mass" and is a liter.

Isabelle developed an irrational fear of this gigantic, beer drinking lion who periodically would say in a low grumbling voice..."Loewenbraeu" and tip his beer back...okay, it may be a bit intimidating to a toddler but she did want to take a closer look. She apparently is a little traumatized as she still is talking about how..."the lion scared me".
This tent was really neat inside. It was loud and smoking inside the tents with serious security guards all over the perimeter. They open at 11 am on the weekdays and earlier on the weekends. A worker told us that people line up around 7 am on the weekend to enter the tents to get a seat. It was standing room only by the time we got there...around 3 pm, but it was fun to take a look!
There were also beer gardens outside all of the tents.

The Paulanerbrau Tent
A look inside...check out the band!

Allie with her Oktoberfest "cookie". "Spatzl" is a Bavarian pet name for 'loved one'. I don't think that these are necessarily edible...although Isabelle decimated hers...picking off and eating all of the hard sugar frosting. I took a taste and it was pretty disgusting...kind of like gingerbread mixed with black licorice. People wear them around their necks and are very popular. I saved a few back...and I bet in 20 years they will probably taste and look the same! There are different sayings to choose from. Isabelle picked hers out and it simply said "Oktoberfest".

Celebrating Iowa Hawkeye homecoming in Germany. We still love our Hawks, even though they are having another pathetic season. There is always the next Saturday to look forward to.