The Weekend: Part One

Work on Saturday went very well. The day was very fast-paced, almost frantic because of a deadline we wanted to meet, but I like to work hard and I like to work fast. Weekends are not about work though; weekends are all about what happens after work, but a good day’s work is a good preface for a great weekend.

I had to ride my bike home in the rain, which was fun, but also cold and more challenging because I was dodging Chinese drivers and pedestrians while the roads were wet. I got to the hotel in good time, hopped in and out of the shower, ate some granola and read a book for an hour, then at 9:00, I caught a cab to Oktoberfest!

Oktoberfest is a German festival which has been around for a long time to commemorate I don’t know what, but like most German festivals it has evolved through the years to become a celebration of German culture and German beer. Lots of my co-workers were there, and we made the most of the evening.

Those of you who have tasted German house-brewed dark wheat beer should know that it is the best beer in the world. Dark beer is the only beer that I really like the taste of – others I just tolerate. In Germany, beer comes by the liter and is usually served room temperature with food. I had my liter with bratwurst, which was top grade. This is the best beer and sausage I’ve had since leaving Germany!

Anyways, the Germans at the Kipinski hotel delivered. The beer and sausage was at its finest, and there was also German folk dancing. I tore up the dance floor with one of the better looking beer maids. It’s pretty cool that speaking German comes in handy even in China!

When the Oktoberfest evening wound to a close, I and my buddies said Aufwiederzehn to Oktoberfest and the beer maids and went to Bar Blue to check out the late-night social scene (see pictures.) There, I struck up a random conversation with a Canadian pothead and his Chinese-Canadian girlfriend. You can meet all kinds in Beijing... and no, I did not partake of the narcautics My friends ditched me while I was talking with the Canadians, so I took a cab home relatively early (about 2:30 AM) and fell fast asleep. Not a bad end to a Saturday night out.