Venice/Casarsa/Milan

After the events of Oktoberfest a much needed rest was required. Christian, Scotty, Eli, Nate, and I all trained it over to Venice to get some solid sleeping in my relatives apartment on the island of Lido. We all slept real real well. Thanks again Lorenzo. After a couple of days there Nate, Scotty, and Eli all trained back up to a border town in Austria called Innsbruck. Christian and I continued on in Italy.

Christian knew a friend named Max who lived in a small town called Casarsa. When people say they want to avoid the big cities and crowds and go to a lesser know city, this is exactly the kind of place they are talking about. The city was small with plenty of vinyards and very little going on. Max's parents are the owner of Il Punto hotel in Casarsa and gave us a room for the night. Very nice.

At night we piled into Max's car (head scraping the roof), which led us to a small freeway and out of nowhere a sharp left turn into a dirt road. We came upon this small barn looking building with a bar in front being occupied by old Italian men who looked like they had been frequenting this place for 30 years. Exiting the car we got a strong whiff of a cow farm (anyone that driven down the 5 to LA knows what I'm talking about). It wasnt pleasant. We walked in and were seated. No menu. We were given a couple of 2nd plate options. I wasnt 100% sure of what the lady was saying, so I followed Max's croatian buddy's lead. What came out the next two hours was one of the finest meals I've had. Red wine to start (and last for the duration of the meal). Then came fresh bread and a tray full of cold cuts of salami and multiple types of prosciutto. After this pasta bolognese which blew my mind. Then came the whole roasted chicken. Done! In between these meals the old guys from the bar were coming in and pulling us out to takes shots of some sort of digestivo (I wanna say grappa, but it didnt taste like absolute shit so I hestitate to call it such). It was one of the most delicious and authentic meals I've ever had.

The next day we had a final lunch with Max and his sister (with her 9 month old newborn) and his mother. I was reminded of the one of the best aspects of Italian culture which is to just sit around and talk. We sat around this very intimate table and had a lunch consisting of pasta and some salami for about two hours. There was no rush. Just sitting around and talking with genuine interest. In America people are always moving onto the next thing and trying to do it quickly. It just our culture and the way we function. It is what makes us one of the most productive countries with some of the best workers in the world. But it does come with a trade off and I am reminded of that when I come here.

After Casarsa Christian and I trained to our old stomping grounds. Upon walking out I noticed the (finally) finished the train station. Soon after I felt a solid pit in my stomach come on due to the realization that the people that made Milan so special and so fun would not be there with me. They werent a phone call or metro ride away (I did have Christian with me which made it better). Later in the day I found myself walking around a very populated bar scene called Navigli. Felt right back home and that I hadn't missed a beat. It was nice being back.

Christian left to return home not long after our arrival which left me alone with Rome in my sights

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Oktoberfest 2009

My first stop on this trip to Europe was in Munich for the 2009 Oktoberfest. I have been before, but this would be a little different as I was there on opening weekend. With me on opening day was Scott Murphy and Eli Kutler:

Scott and Eli, buddies from high school

We woke up at 5 AM on saturday the 19th in order to line up in front of the Hofbrau tent.


Scott getting ready, notice the calf warmers

We got there at 6 AM hoping to grab a table when the doors open up at 9. People were already lined up before us, but luckily there weren't too many and we managed to grab a pretty good table right in front of the live band. It is tradition that no one drinks anything until the mayor taps the first keg at noon so that gave us three hours to think about nothing but that first beer. Then finally it came.

The beer starts flowing and then the smiles start coming out. Next thing you know you're talking with all the polish, german, and irish people around you. What feels like two hours is actually just 15 minutes. The live band pumps out of the same songs every hour or so which never fails to get the crowd going and the "Prost!" (cheers) every 10 minutes keeps people focused on the task at hand: drinking beer. You are in your little spot and get to know the people around you so well that it amazes me to think this is happening in every inch of the tent (max capacity 7,000).

The next couple of days we were joined by Christian Labella and Nate Leitner. Needless to say by the end of it all we were nursing some pretty terrible hangovers, but it was well worth it.

One thing about this festival I want to point out is just how friendly everyone is. The video below is a short compilation I made of all the people I had never met (and many of whom I never did):

This is just the people I caught on tape (of which I have about 15 minutes total). It pretty cool. While it's easy to dismiss this as a result of stupefied drunk people think of this: How many parties have you been too where everyone is drinking and yet the majority of people are keeping to themselves and their friends? I'm sure you've been there before. That is not the case at Oktoberfest and is what I think makes the place so special. Nothing has been quite like it in my life and I think anyone you talk to that has been would say the same. Best party in the world, happiest place on earth, the smile factory, ect ect. These are all names that come out about Oktoberfest and for good reason: they're all true.

Bonus Pictures and Videos

Funny story about this thing. It spins in the middle of the tent. It was meant, I assume, for simple decoration, but as one would expect with drunken behavior it takes a whole new purpose. The area directly below this is known as the "Pig Pen". Anyone below it will randomly have their underwear checked. By that I mean someone will reach down your pants and feel for undies. If you are wearing some the people around will all give you the biggest wedgie you can possibly imagine until they rip off. When that happens, the remnants of what you were wearing get thrown up on the spinning dude playing the harp. Dont drink in the Pig Pen. Also, hanging off the top part of the harp is a bra.


I posted earlier a video of random people being happy. I cut out a lot of the people we were with doing the same thing. So I made a video of it and when it was done I realized the majority of the video was dominated by Eli, in fact Eli is almost the entire video smiling and giving thumbs up. Enjoy

I mentioned that the band would play a lot of songs to get people going. This one worked real well. Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen

Finally, a fitting picture to end this post:

Please please comment, criticize, share your stories, anything. Would love to hear from you all