Oktoberfest in Sweden

There is only one true Oktoberfest, in Munich obviously. Even though I have lived in that city I have never been to it as I dislike crowds. I am a big fan of the idea though. Lederhosen, beer wenches, pretzels, biergartens, and of course, beer.

A Friday night in September saw me attend an Oktoberfest in Linköping. Sadly it had no relation to its namesake. It was held inside a British pub, The Horse and Hound. Though some of the guests spoke German(a normal occurance in Linköping due to Erasmus students), no German outfits were to found. On the plus side, I was able to get a Maß of HB. Actually four of them by closing time. A Maß is the one liter glass mug of beer. The stein you are thinking of is a traditional ceramic mug, usually with a lid.

No "traditional" German music was to be heard, thankfully. There were also no community tables. Each group of people had their own individual tables and stayed within that group. All in all it had no relation to Oktoberfest. In future I will have to suspend my dislike of drunk people and attend the real thing, but for now a stein of German beer in a British pub surrounded by Swedes will have to do. Oompah!