‘It’s tapped!’: Thousands head to Munich’s Oktoberfest

The beer is flowing again at Munich’s fabled Oktoberfest. Mayor Dieter Reiter inserted the tap into the first keg Saturday with two blows of his hammer and the cry of “O'zapft is!” — “It’s tapped!" Some 6 million visitors are expected in Munich for the 182nd Oktoberfest, which runs through Oct. 4. Tens of thousands are traveling to the feast via Munich’s main train station, which has also seen floods of refugees in recent weeks. On Saturday, however, only a few dozen asylum-seekers had arrived from Germany’s southern border and were quickly ushered away by police. In contrast, hundreds of Oktoberfest revelers — many dressed in traditional Bavarian lederhosen and dirndl dresses — walked from the train station to nearby Theresienwiese, site of the festivities.

Life in Munich will go on, and it has gone on for several weeks, despite the massive influx of refugees.

Linda Benedickt, a 43-year-old writer from Munich

Marc Reig, who had come from Sallent, Spain, to celebrate with friends at the Oktoberfest, showed compassion for the asylum-seekers. "Today and tomorrow we are celebrating, but we aren’t forgetting the refugees,” said Reig, a 25-year-old physicist dressed in Bavarian lederhosen. He and his friends plan to bring Lego toys to refugee children once they are done partying.

Oktoberfest Entertainment