Friday 11 October 2013

Das Wunderbar!

Bitte ein Bier, A beer, please! At this time of year, I'm sure many of you can tell exactly what is on my to-do list Before I'm Pushing Daisies, a 'holiday' here in KW that needs no introduction: I want to go Octoberfesting.

Before I start talking about why I want to go to Octoberfest, how about a few fun-facts to get you in the spirit?


Prince Ludwig & his bride Princess Therese
1) According to German history, Oktoberfest is the result of an extended wedding party that followed the marriage of Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria and Princess Therese of Saxony-Hildburghausen on October 12, 1810. Talk about an amazing wedding reception!

2)In 2010, Oktoberfest celebrated its 200th anniversary. There were 24 years over that period when the festival did not happen due to war or cholera or other emergencies.

3)Oktoberfest is one of the most famous events in Germany and is the world’s largest fair, with more than 5 million people attending every year.



Hey Gentlemen...
She's Single!
4)The “Dirndl” is the name for the traditional dress worn by Bavarian women and commonly seen at Oktoberfest.  The dirndl consists of a bodice, blouse, full skirt and apron. The placement of the knot on the Dirndl apron is sometimes an indicator of the woman’s marital status. When this is so, a knot tied on the woman’s left side indicates she is single, a knot tied on the right means she is married, engaged or otherwise “taken”, and a knot tied at the back means the woman is widowed.

5)An Oktoberfest parade took place for the first time in 1810. Since 1850, this has become a yearly event and an important component of the Oktoberfest. 8,000 people—mostly from Bavaria—in traditional costumes walk from Maximilian Street, through the centre of Munich, to the Oktoberfest.

Now that you know a little more about Octoberfest, maybe I should tell you why it's important to me that I attend?

Well, I live in Kitchener, formerly known as Berlin. And although our version of Octoberfest wasn't started on account of a royal wedding, it's become a huge event every year since 1969. It has become the largest "Celebration of Gemuetlichkeit" (Bavarian festival) in North America with the greatest Thanksgiving Day Parade in Canada.

Living and growing up in KW, I've seen the parade, the keg tapping and Miss. Octoberfest events ever since I was young, but I've never been fully able to participate since I'm not legal drinking age. Next year I will be and I plan on attending!

Until then, I will have to settle for watching the parade with my family. Happy Thanksgiving weekend everyone, Cheers!

-RB

Picture &  Fun Facts Credits:
http://www.steamwhistle.ca/blog/2013/09/19/fun-oktoberfest-facts/
http://www.trachteria.de/designer-dirndl-1/melega-dirndl
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3 comments:

  1. Unknown15 October 2013 at 14:28

    I've never been to Octoberfest, but you make it seem so fun! I might just go next year. What would be your favourite part of the festival that you have experienced? I liked the use of the facts, I didn't know about 3/4 of that stuff so thanks for the extra info!

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    1. Unknown16 October 2013 at 11:29

      Favorite part has to be the parade - what can I say, I'm a sucker for a good float :) I've also actually BEEN in the parade before...but there's no proof cause I burned all the pictures of me in a dirndle ;) I like to know the history of an event, I think its important to know WHY you're celebrating just as much as it is to know HOW to celebrate it! Especially with the ties to the community I grew up in, which makes this celebration even more special to me

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  2. Unknown22 October 2013 at 20:36

    Very interesting history! I didn't know any of that. That's amazing that our Oktoberfest is the largest in North America. Would you ever consider going to the Oktoberfest in Germany?

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