Celebrating Oktoberfest in Istanbul

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beer, Istanbul

Senin, 10 Oktober 2011

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Drinking Beck�s beer and eating a soft pretzel and chips was not a bad way to spend a Sunday.

Yesterday, despite the rain, Jason and I ventured out to Parkorman to check out Oktoberfest in Istanbul. This large park is located about a 10-minute walk from the Dar�ssafaka metro station. This first-time event was organized by KafePi, an Istanbul-based entertainment and gastronomy company.

We had no idea what was in store for us.

The crowd mainly consisted of young, 20-somethings Turks, dressed in black - the color of choice apparently in some form of clothing or shoes it seemed. Nary an Oktoberfest costume in sight except for some of the staff.

Jason and I found ourselves a corner spot next to the Beck�s beer station. Beck�s was the only German beer being sold, but at least it was better than the normal pint of Efes, Carlsberg and Turborg we generally have. Definitely not Munich!

At 4 p.m., a traditional German Oom-Pah band took the stage. The group played for nearly an hour and gave a good performance. I wish I could have sung along, but the only German words I know are ja, neun, bier, kuchen, Lebkuchen, Apfelstrudel, wienerschnitzel and wurst. Recognize the theme here?

I walked right up to the stage to take this photo.

Later, two friends joined us so we weren�t the only English-speaking foreigners here. I also noticed a few lone Germans at the event and heard a few other people speaking English out of a crowd of a few thousand people. I couldn't find any news references to how many people attended.

Oktoberfest in Istanbul was fun, but could have been a bit more organized as the lines for food and beer grew to be 30+ people deep as the afternoon waned!

Later back at our apartment, the four of us grabbed some d�r�m and attempted to play a few rounds of poker, which I don�t understand, especially after my mind is a bit fuzzy.

Lesson learned after Oktobfest:
Do not try supergluing anything once you�ve consumed a few beverages.

Because that superglue will stick to your fingers and be an awful, awful mess to sort out and may involve yelling at someone you love, Googling for help and ripping off some of your tender skin. Trust me on this!

At least this incident did not involve an ER visit.

Me just being silly at Oktoberfest.

Also: I updated my last recipe for the Espressolu Kek and provided U.S. cup measurements next to the gram amounts I had listed. Hope this helps! Happy baking!