Rooney

We played to a sold out show in Munich.  The club was called Atomic Cafe.  It was the kind of place that transforms into a dance club after the rock band is finished.  The crowd started off a little quiet, but then quickly became Roonified.  There was no real separation between crowd and stage, so when people starting moshing, the people in the front kept getting pushed onto the stage.  I could see how uncomfortable those people were up front, but there was nothing I could do.  I asked the moshers to cool it, but they were unstoppable.  Anyway, everyone survived and the show felt great.  After the set, I headed into the dance club.  I was hoping the DJ would let me play some songs from my ipod, but he didn't, which I have to admit really bummed me out.  I asked why and he just kept shaking his head like a jerk.  I had some really great stuff to play that would have made the dancers happy, oh well, I tried.  It seems like all the Rooney fans left after the set.  I only met a handful of fans that waited around to meet us.  It was weird to walk out and see a whole new crowd of people.  Maybe I'm wrong, maybe the dance crowd was the same crowd that watched us, but they were too shy to say hello.  We all went to the hotel and passed out.  

The next day was off, so I slept in pretty late, very necessary.  It was the first day of Octoberfest, the big two week beer drinking festival.  People from all over the world fly in for this event and we happened to be in town with a day off, insane timing.  Ned and I took the subway to the festival grounds and spent the first 2 hours walking around in the heat, desperately trying to find a beer.  The place was packed beyond belief, I'm talking a few hundred thousand people.  We heard different accents coming from all directions.  The food was all the same, which sucked, sandwiches, sweet peanuts, cotton candy, hot dogs, etc...carnival food.  The only place to get a beer was in the beer tents that looked like giant ski lodges.  There were tons of people trying to get into the tents, every tent had a long line.  We almost gave up our quest for beer, but finally found a little tent/restaurant with a shorter line.  Once inside, we waited in another line for beers.  The tables were taken by people who had been there all day.  The guys and girls wear a specific German outfit at Octoberfest...I can't spell the outfit names, so I will not try...just think National Lampoons European Vacation.  Cigarette smoke and German folk songs filled the air.  I felt American.  After many beers, Ned and I walked around in search  of food, then headed back to the hotel.  Taylor met up with us for a couple hours.  Louie and Matt never made it to Octoberfest, which Ned and I can't believe cause it's Octoberfest and we had a day off, but it was their loss.  We took the train to Zurich this morning at 7am.  It felt like a never ending ride.  There was a group of loud German teenagers and another group of loud German old timers.  I couldn't find a comfortable position.  People kept hitting my head as they walked by.  Now we're in Zurich and I'm happy...hungry and happy.  Time to eat.  

-Robert