There was a lot of speculation in April: Would Mayor Dieter Reiter allow the Wiesn to take place this year? Or would he cancel the world’s largest folk festival again in times of the corona pandemic? The mayor then staged his appearance quite exciting and almost state-supporting. All alone, Reiter appeared in front of the cameras in the large town hall, weighed the arguments for and against the Oktoberfest for a long time. Spoke about the war in Ukraine, about the development of the corona numbers, and teased Prime Minister Markus Söder. Many thought: He’ll cancel again soon. But after eight minutes it was clear that there would be an Oktoberfest in 2022. And that it will be a normal Wiesn – as long as you can call this 17-day state of emergency normal. Normal, that means in this case: without 2G, 3G or any other corona rules.
Now it’s only a week until it says: “Ozapft is'”. In an interview, I spoke to Mayor Reiter (SZ Plus) about whether he had doubts about his decision in the meantime, what fears he has with regard to a possible corona wave after the festival, and why he believes that people urgently need again. He also reveals why he wears a mask when shopping, but not in the beer tent, what he intends to do with the tapping – and why this year it is particularly cheap for Americans to travel to Munich for the Oktoberfest and consume it.
Speaking of consumption: my colleague Franz Kotteder attended the traditional Oktoberfest beer tasting on Thursday evening. And he asked Justin Leone, the star sommelier who is usually responsible for wine, to describe and classify the various brewery products for the SZ. You can read here which beer Leone describes as “incredibly lean and, in a positive sense, more bitter” than the other beers.
So back to City Hall. When Mayor Reiter announced in April that the Oktoberfest was taking place, he finally said that he hoped the experts would be right. And that a visit to the Wiesn this fall will only cause regret for one reason: because three headache pills are needed the next day.
THE DAY IN MUNICH
500 meters towards the future Munich begins building a cycle expressway that will connect the city center with Garching and Oberschleißheim. The costs for this are considerable – the resistance to the project was great for a long time.
Tickets and tickets for everyone With the Munich Pass, people on low incomes get discounts and even free tickets. Because not even a quarter of those entitled use the offer, the city starts an information campaign.
Chlorine oxide escapes during maintenance work – fire brigade evacuates Freisinger swimming pool A large contingent of rescue workers rushed to the scene on Friday morning. A technician can quickly neutralize the lung-damaging gas. Because he inhaled it briefly, he is treated by the emergency services.
“Hard to describe the emotions” Munich takes part in the death of Queen Elizabeth II. People lay flowers and candles in front of the British Consulate General. The monarch had visited Munich almost 60 years ago.
84-year-old dies after an accident with an e-bike The senior had suffered serious head injuries in the collision with a pickup truck.
Burglar hiding in trunk The 25-year-old then flees to a toilet, where a police dog tracks him down.
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