February 6, 2008, is the 50th anniversary of the Munich air disaster when the plane carrying the Manchester United soccer team back from a European Cup football match in Belgrade, crashed on takeoff after a refuelling stop in Munich. The crash took the lives of 23 people, including eight members of the brilliant young team and also a number of football journalists, striking at the heart of British soccer.
To mark the occasion, Manchester City football club will join Manchester United in a special commemoration when they visit Old Trafford next month for a local derby, Premier League fixture.
Saturday, 22 September sees the start of this year's Oktoberfest in Munich, with the tapping of the first keg of Oktoberfest 2007 beer. Such is the popularity of the event that virtually every hotel bed in the city and its surrounds, is booked for months in advance; so if you haven't already booked a visit to Munich or have the fortune to live in Mingga, your best chance of getting to Oktoberfest is to plan on next year.
For beer lovers in New York, there is an alternative celebration of the golden nectar, the Fifth Annual Brewtopia, or Great World Beer Fest, featuring hundreds of international brews to taste. Craft beers from little-known labels or small producers, like Captain Lawrence Liquid Gold or Bethlehem Brew Works Rude Elf Reserve, and an international array of beer-friendly foods, like sausage and pretzels. The festival runs October 26 and 27, 2007.
I came across this nice little travelogue documenting a trip to Munich, made by Aeric Winter and his friends, Liv and Alex. It starts a bit slowly but there is some interesting footage, including a bit at the end about Oktoberfest.
The opening shot is of Cologne cathedral at the start of their journey. Some years ago I saw a very impressive busker performing on the piazza at the top of the steps, in front of the cathedral. Buskers can be found in most large cities and towns around the world and some perform to a very high standard, but this busker was playing Mozart on a full size concert grand piano.
Next week, Munich celebrates its film and television industry, beginning with the Munich International Short Film Festival which runs 14 to 20 June, 2007, and then followed by Filmfest München, the Munich Film Festival, which runs from 22 to 30 of June, 2007.
Munich is Germany's film capital and this year, Filmfest München celebrates its 25th year; it is Germany's largest summer film festival with roughly 200 films on 15 screens. The general public are encouraged to participate in this audience-friendly festival, which attracts more than 65,000 ordinary movie lovers, over 600 members of the international press and 1000-plus film-related professionals.
