It's August and that means it's time for the 14th International Berliner Bierfestival. Which means a mile long stretch through the middle of Berlin known as the Bier Mile, with beer booths from hundreds of breweries from around the world, bratwurst stands about every 100 meters, the occasionally donut stand, pretzel stand and american ice-cream stand, too. There was even a Slurpy stand somewhere in there. Then there were the bands, dozens of them, mostly rock bands, usually playing tunes from American bands like Lynyrd Skynyrd, Springsteen or Guns and Roses with absolutely perfect English. Along the way there was the occasional polka band in a tent or something odd like a Japanese guy in a jacket and tie belting out tunes Karaoke style. Periodically, drunken groups of guys drifted through, all dressed alike or faces painted or wearing crazy hats. We succumbed to the aroma of grilling bratwursts more than once as we sampled various beers along the way. They just taste better and better after every beer! Good thing they were mostly lighter pilsners and not strong IPAs or most people would never make a quarter mile, let alone the full mile. Also, thanks to the small 'pro' 200ml mugs, you could do a lot of sampling without getting totally besoffen, unlike the large 500ml bottles that Germans usually drink from. The rain was on and off all day, but that didn't stop anyone from enjoying themselves, and after 3 or 4 beers, I don't think anyone noticed anymore. For the first day of a 3 day event, everything was just getting started and I'm guessing that by Sunday there will be a lot of head and belly aches.
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