Oktoberfest

Just this past weekend (Sept 17-20th), Marcella, Michael, Brian and I took a trip to Munich, Germany for the infamous Oktoberfest AKA beer drinking festival.


We took an overnight train on Friday night and arrived just in time for the opening day of Oktoberfest.



The best way I could describe it is that it's like a carnival...with beer. Lots and lots of beer. There are amusement park rides, a million food stands selling pretzels, sausages, heart cookies, etc and "tents" that serve beer and food. The tents are the main attractions.




These "tents" are actually buildings! Getting into a tent is a difficult task. As big as these buildings are, they fill up so quickly so it is hard to get seats. Many people even make reservations well ahead of Oktoberfest just so they can claim their own spot in the tent. Luckily we were able to squeeze our way into a few of them, like the Hippodrom.




In the tents you can order beer and/or food and socialize with the other Oktoberfest visitors. And the beer is served in giant 1 liter mugs (only in the tents can you get these huge helpings of beer)! Of course I ordered one. Personally, I dislike beer for the most part but this beer was probably the best beer I have ever had.


This is a hill. People used this hill to pass out/sleep on when there were too drunk. And no, I was not one of them.




We went on a ride! It was an Olympic themed rollar coaster with 5 rings. Yep, we went upside down 5 times. It was great.


Inside of one of the tents. Can you see how crowded it is?

We took some time outside to explore the City of Munich.



We went to City center.


And we took the metro to Dachau concentration camp,the first Nazi concentration camp opened in Germany.


Translated "Work will make you free."














Sleeping barracks.


It goes without saying that it was a little depressing to be there because of its history. But I'm so glad that we made the trip out. To be able to see some of the history we learned so much about in high school makes it feel much more real.


The Church of Reconciliation was built later after the war. The design had no right angles, a clear contradiction to the plan of the concentration camp itself (which was very rectilinear and right-angled itself). The architect of the church regarded the right angle as a sheer symbol of the Nazi murder system.








Inside, visitors could light a mini candle and light it using the main candle. These mini candles are placed next to a rose. RIP.

I think our trip to the concentration camp balanced our Oktoberfestivities pretty well. Because after all the ridiculousness and sillyness of Oktoberfest, it was good to step back and put life back into perspective again. Overall, it was a good weekend.

Føtex adventure & Unusual Sustainability

Wednesday, September 15th, my friend Julia and I went to a store called Føtex to get some grocery shopping done. It gets pretty monotonous to shop at Netto (the grocery store near my place) every week with my food stipend so it was a much needed little trip.

AND IT WAS SO MUCH BIGGER THAN A NETTO. Is it wrong to be so excited to grocery shop at a different store? Anyways, two of the many things I found amusing were the roll-able shopping baskets, and how the escalators were ramps (no steps)!

The next day, Thursday was my Sustainable by Design class. Every week, we visit a sustainable piece of architecture. And this particular Thursday we visited an especially interesting house. Some might call it weird and creepy but I found it to be SO strange that I kind of liked it.



There was a room used to store the creepiest puppets for a theater...


A fountain that circulated rainwater...




The floor was created from timber blocks...


And there was a legitimate composting toilet.


Not to mention the owner of the house was from this super sustainable, "natural-living" village. She gave off sort of a hippy/town vibe. She even died her hair red from natural dyes that her village had. She was so sweet and treated us all to tea and coffee after the tour.

"Do you not know that there comes a midnight hour when every one has to throw off his mask? Do you believe that life will always let itself be mocked? Do you think you can slip away a little before midnight in order to avoid this? Or are you not terrified by it? I have seen men in real life who so long deceived others that at last their true nature could not reveal itself;... In every man there is something which to a certain degree prevents him from becoming perfectly transparent to himself; and this may be the case in so high a degree, he may be so inexplicably woven into relationships of life which extend far beyond himself that he almost cannot reveal himself. But he who cannot reveal himself cannot love, and he who cannot love is the most unhappy man of all."

-Danish philosopher and theologian, Soren Kierkegaard

I LOVE a good quote now and then.

Western Denmark Tour

September 9th- 11th was the Western Denmark Tour.

Thursday:


Mushlm Bugt Feriecenter: a vacation center for the disabled. The towers are actually bathrooms and a different artist designed the inside of each tower.




Koldinghus: A Castle Restoration Project in Kolding.






Børnekulturhuset St. Nicolai: Also in Kolding was this culture house. It was basically this play room for kids. There were rooms of mirrors, ropes, and random painting rooms. Outside was this random stick structure with gloves dangling from it (creepy yet fascinating), and outdoor patios.


Then we arrived at a city called Aarhus. We visited the Aarhus Crematorium Chapel. Pictured is the chapel room with an amazing lighting effect. We also went into the crematorium where they burned bodies. It smelled funny and was just sort a disturbing room to be in in general.




We later checked into our hostel which just happened to be located next to a forest. No big deal. Some of my Cal Poly buddies and I took a night walk through the forest and just had a grand ol time being our silly selves.

Friday:



Lærkehaven: a sustainable housing project


Aarhus AA: Urban Waterway in Aarhus. Break for lunch.


ARoS: Art museum. I will forever and always love art museums.






For Friday night we stayed at in a small town called Ebeltoft. Our hostel was located near a harbor that we took scenic walks around before and after dinner. And no, those buildings pictured are not our hostel but are the housing near the harbor.

Saturday:

We started the day off at the Ebeltoft Glasmuseum (not pictured)which had some pretty impressive glass work.


We took a short stop at Ebeltoft Kirke, a church.


And then visited the Trapholt Museum of Art. This was probably my favorite museum I've been to in Denmark so far. Not only was the art inspiring but the architecture of the museum itself was pretty interesting. The spine of the museum was a path of thick (approx. one meter) wall that lined the main pathway of the museum. And so, as you followed the wall, you followed the path of the museum.






Just before we headed back to Copenhagen, our bus stopped at a viking (Danish ancestors) mound. Our teacher/tour guide provided us with a shot of shnappes and we all had a "cheers" followed up with some black licorice pipe candy (black licorice is a Danish favorite).

On a sort of random note, I just want to state that Danish people know how to make AWESOME BREAD. Each morning at the hostels, we had warm loaves of bread that we sliced ourselves and topped with our choice of meat, brie cheese, or marmalade. IT WAS DELICIOUS.