Oktoberfest Celebrated Worldwide

"Are we drunk yet?"
Photo by Andreas Steinhoff
What's cold, frothy and disappears during October?

That's right! The answer is beer during Oktoberfest. The 2-week long German beer festival already began and is contributing to a lot of people around the world becoming rosy cheeked and bladder-control impaired.

Munich mayor Christian Ude declared "O'zapft is!" (Bavarian for "It's been tapped") last September 22 thus opening the 2007 Oktoberfest at the Theresienwiese grounds in Munich, Bavaria, Germany.

"Theresienwiese" means "Field of Therese". Now you might ask, who the heck is Therese and what has she to do with a mob in drunken stupor? Before you start imagining sweaty bodies entwined under the stars moaning the name of Therese, here's the real story behind Oktoberfest.

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In 1810, the Bavarian Crown Prince Ludwig (later King Ludwig I) tied the knot with the Princess Therese von Sachsen-Hildburghausen. The wedding party started October 12 and ended five days later on October 17 with a grand horse race right at Theresienwise or "d' Wiesn", the site of the modern-day Oktoberfest.

Imagine thousands of beer intoxicated well-wishers trying to pronounce the Princess' name. No wonder the party lasted that long!

Oktoberfest therefore is actually the wedding anniversary celebration of Bavarian royalties - and it's been celebrated for the past 197 years (this despite the many mistresses of King Ludwig). Not only that, the party has expanded all over the world with Oktoberfest and similar beer festivals commemorated in the USA, Canada, Brazil, Hong Kong, Australia, Argentina, Norway, Vietnam, and the Philippines.

The Oktoberfest mania have also invaded cyberspace with the World of Warcraft (WoW) Brewfest. The Orc Horde and the Human Alliance will set down their battle axes and war hammers and raise a toast to the mighty brew starting October 3. Watch the Brewfest Trailer at the World of Warcraft site.

An estimated 6 million people come to Munich for the annual Oktoberfest. The festivities will last until October 7, 2007 so you still have time to chug down your Maß.

For more info on Oktoberfest visit The Wiesn Website.