Last October the Athenaeum hosted the inaugural German Fest in downtown Indy and it was a resounding success! This year’s event–it’s this Saturday, October 9, beginning at noon–promises to be an even bigger, better and more German day of celebration.
Big Ern (my chihuahua, in case you didn’t know) and I attended last year specifically to see the wiener dog races and Ernie could barely contain his own urge to compete as we sat on the sidelines. As you can see from the photo above, some of the dachshunds were a little confused about how to start the race, but once they got their little bodies moving, it was quite a spectacle.
If all that cuteness weren’t enough, you also get to see a bunch of guys in lederhosen. I still occasionally have a recurring dream involving marshmallows, a monkey and my high school German teacher wearing lederhosen. Thanks for the A, Herr Fochtmann!
This year also features a few more cool contests and entertainment:
- Bavarian Stone Lift Contest. Think of seeing one of those crazy strong man competitions from ESPN in person!
- Yodeling Contest. Does anyone know
if they still play that game on Price is Right where the mountain climber goes up the hill? His yodeling tune is still burned into my brain. - German Car Show. I wish I still had Heidi, my Jetta.
- GummiBear Land for the kiddos. Adults can even get in on the pretzel eating contest here!
- Music and dance from IndyBaroque, the Mannerchor, Liederkranz, Polka Motion, the Atheanaeum Pops Orchestra and Sangerchor.
Tickets are $4 in advance and $5 at the door. And don’t forget the Rathskeller has a fine selection of German brews and food available year round!
