Oktoberfest - Argentina Style

Last Friday, a friend and I hopped on a ten-hour overnight bus ride to Cordoba - the 2nd largest city in Argentina to celebrate Oktoberfest with another friend, Pablo. With more than 50,000 attendees last year, it is the 3rd largest Oktoberfest in the world behind Germany and Brazil. We arrived in the city of Cordoba in the morning, did a quick tour of the city (described in one of the posts above), and hopped on another two hour bus ride before arriving in Villa General Belgrano, where the actual Oktoberfest takes place.

This is a quaint town that was occupied by the Germans in the mid-20th century and its architecture reflects it. The buildings are all traditional German style and its residents have German features. After paying admission into the event, we (Kelo, Pablo and I) purchased steins and a shoulder strap to hold them in. From there, you had a selection of about 15 vendors selling their own brand of beer, including Duff (think Homer Simpson). After finishing a few liters, we ventured into the village streets and were treated to a torrential downpour lasting 1/2 hour. Once the rain subsided, we decided it was time for more beer and headed back into the festival.

I desperately wanted to try a Duff beer, so Kelo and Pablo told me they would meet me at that tent after they got their own liters. Literally two minutes later, another thunderstorm happened and we were separated for over 30 minutes. The few areas where there was cover were taken so I stood in the pouring rain for about 10 minutes before an Argentine woman dragged me in to a small little shelter where she and her friends were staying. Before long, the sky had cleared again and I had made a dozen or so new friends, most of whom live in Buenos Aires. Because I was wearing a German soccer jersey and have 'blond' hair and blue eyes, many of them assumed I was German so I was asked a lot for group photos - I can only imagine how many times my mug will appear on many Argentine Facebook pages.

The rain aside, Oktoberfest was an incredibly fun event - as Argentines say - "buena onda." You would think that, with all the alcohol consumed, there would be fistfights or confrontations, yet there was not one incident. If you banged into someone or someone banged into you, you apologize (and in some cases I actually got hugged) - and everyone just wanted to have a great time, which they did.