Arthur's Column

6 January 1997

Visit the DFM home page (not that it matters …)!

It is now a year since I wrote my last column. There is not much I can say in my defence – I have been busy (pathetic excuse)! Pictured on the left is my son Anton who was featured here only days after he was born. As you can see he has gotten bigger (no surprise there!). He is great fun, and we are enjoying having him immensely. That picture is of him observing the InterLotto draw a few weeks ago.

Skiing is usually good this time of year in Europe, and this year is no exception. We had about 1.5m of snow 4 weeks ago, and this established an excellent base. The cover is getting a bit hard now, but I think most of the resorts got some snow over the past few days so it should still be good. I hope to bring you more from the slopes in the next edition.

Munich Beerfest has come and gone twice since I wrote to say I was going. This is a festival to top all festivals. Not only is it great fun for those amongst us devoted to the amber nectar, but also a lot of fun for the family. Family!?! I hear you exclaim. Rest assured. The Bavarians have thought of everything including what to do with the wife and anklebiters whilst you sink into delirium. There are funfairs and side shows galore. The more hairy rides have the added excitement of dodging those around you’s early morning beers as they once more see the light of day.

There are, I am told, 7 million visitors to Munich for the beerfest (and all of them seem to be in the same tent as you…). Last year 5 100 000 mugs of beer were drunk (I guess quite a few people dont drink as I drank at least 10 of them) and 383 000 sausages were conusmed. These facts from the Munich tourist pages. The tents hold about 30000 people each (there are about 10 in total). Each tent has a band and is packed to capacity with very drunk people. I will go again next year.

Thats all for now…

Cheers!

Arthur