Oktoberfest

I'm counting down the days ... my friend Vicki arrives on Sunday night, and I'll be off for a week. I've been Googling like crazy, finding out what's on next week. Something she's just going to really enjoy is the Oktoberfest.

Apparently, this was on last year too, but somehow it managed to slip me by. I can't imagine how or why, but it looks like load of fun. As you can no doubt guess from the name, Oktoberfest is a celebration of German culture involving lots of German beer, music and food.

Well, that sounds good. And while I've knocked back a few German beers in my time, I'm pretty sure I've never actually had any real German food. Too bad Vicki is going to miss it, but there's plenty on next week to keep us occupied. I'm a bit nervous about introducing her to Saoirse, my best friend in Ireland. What if they don't hit it off?

I've done it before, but will definitely take her on one of those Wild Wicklow tours, because I think a trip to Dublin just isn't complete without seeing it from the mountains. I'm actually really looking forward to that, and hoping for one of these bright, golden fall days that we're having two or three times a week as opposed to the grey, overcast days we have the reset of the time...