Octoberfest, 9/15/13

OCTOBERFEST!  We’re not actually that big on Octoberfest.  October is the busiest time of the year for a marching band, with contests and games filling the weekend.  In the past, to hear someone say “hey, let’s go to Octoberfest”, only made me mad they so much free time.  Lived in New Mexico for 25 years.  Never had a chance to attend the Albq. Balloon Fiesta.  It was always in October.  The weather was always great for golf in October.  Never had the time to play.    Now I’m attending an “Octoberfest” in September in Beijing, China.  Weird!

We meet Deb and Graham (Australian), Robin (USA, been at BISS for 1 year, and Israel 25 years before that), and Jeremy (Brit) at the subway station at noon.  It’s a short ride, 7 stops, with one quick transition to a 2nd train line.  We come out of the ground at the north end of the Olympic Park area.  The view is great.  There is a gorgeous park to the north, and some dramatic views of the Olympic area to the south.  We start looking for the Octoberfest area.  None of the promotional materials ever really said where it was, except that it was in the Olympic Park area (and that’s a huge area).

We follow some signs and find the site fairly easily.  It’s only 12:30, so not many people around.  It’s 10y each to enter ($1.80).  We walk in and wander in and out of 4 or 5 huge tents.  Each tent has hundreds of big tables and benches, with a big stage in the middle.  There is a band playing in one, so we make it our home.  There is a menu with food and drinks, so we order a bratwurst and pretzels.  The bratwurst is good, but it’s weird to be eating it with chopsticks.  The wait staff are all dressed in German “beer garden” attire.  It’s an unusual sight.

Brat with chopsticks

Brats with chopsticks? Seated next to Robin.

Olympic Observation Tower

One of the tents and the Olympic Observation Tower in the background

Tent

We move outside to sit on an outdoor balcony overlooking the walkway for the event.  The weather is gorgeous.  We can see everyone as they move through the area.  It’s a great place to watch people and talk amongst the group.  Jeremy is teaching at the BSB (British School of Beijing), another International School.  We listen to his stories about school and living.  He’s lived in several countries, including Kuala Lumpur.  Man, these international teachers have been everywhere.  There are some really unusual living conditions for these schools.

Judy and I leave around 3:30.  There’s debate about touring the Olympic Park area, but we decide to save it for another day.  Home and naptime are calling.  We stop off at the grocery store in the mall when we get back to Taiyangong Station.  As we’re leaving, we pass a hair salon we’ve noticed before.  It’s always crowded and some of the staff have really crazy hair.  Check out the picture below.  You may have to zoom in to really see the unusual styles.  When we get home, we sack out for a little while.  As we come out of our snooze, schoolwork and planning are on the agenda, and keep us occupied until bedtime.

Hair salon wierd hair

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