German-American Volksfest

Last weekend Nick and I attended the German-American Volksfest that was held on our local Army base. The Volksfest was a three day festival that was open to German nationals and Americans as an opportunity to celebrate the two cultures. We decided to go on Saturday and it happened to be a very busy day. We took a shuttle bus from post to the campground because traffic was horrendous. We were NOT going to deal with traffic jams. 

This was the first Volksfest I've been to but let me describe the atmosphere: Think huge American fair meets lots of beer drinking and German food. That pretty much sums up what it was like. There were people walking around in Lederhosen and Dirndls (traditional Bavarian clothing) and also a stage where Germans were line dancing to Bad Touch by Bloodhound Gang. That was quite an interesting sight but fun nonetheless. I saw a few Germans who were dressed up like cowboys. I found that pretty funny...I wonder if that's what Germans think of when they think of Americans? 

Nick was set on finding a German drink called a radler. A radler is essentially German beer mixed with Sprite, or lemon-lime soda. I know what you're thinking...that sounds gross. But to tell you the truth, it's pretty darn good. We continued on and found some delicious German flatbread food that I cannot remember the name of and played a carnival game involving ping pong balls and beer steins. Later on, Nick and his friend set out to find a blooming onion while I went off in the other direction, determined to find some funnel cake. It was so crowded and I had no idea where I was going but I followed my nose and found a vendor selling something similar to funnel cake called a Lángo. A lángo is a traditional Hungarian dish that is flatbread, deep fried and topped with powdered sugar. It can also contain toppings such as garlic, cheese and sour cream. Extremely unhealthy but super tasty. I wish I took a picture but I'll insert a google image of it so you can get the idea.

LÁNGO (image from http://goldstreamstationmarket.ca )

The cell phone service was very poor at the fest so I got a little lost on my way back to find Nick since I wasn't able to call him and find out where he was. Eventually we were reunited and he enjoyed another beer with his buddies before deciding we should head back home. The whole day was hot and sunny yet while we were waiting for the shuttle bus, the sky got dark, opened up and a huge downpour of rain showered us all. Not fun, especially since none of us had jackets. The bus finally came after about 15 minutes of standing in the cold, pouring rain and we were finally on our way back home.

The Volksfest was a fun experience. It was really crowded and hot but that was to be expected when going on Saturday in the middle of the day. And Nick and I are even contemplating buying our own lederhosen and dirndls for future festivals!