Oktoberfest draws crowds

On warm day of fall

By SERRA MUSCATELLO — Journal Staff Writer

NEW ULM -Len and Sue Henkelman of Wausau, Wis., drove almost 300 miles to attend Oktoberfest this year in New Ulm.

"It's just a good all around event. It's just all in all - fun," said Len Henkleman. "We saw it on the Internet and thought we'd come and take it in. It was well worth it."

New Ulm's 27th Annual Oktoberfest began last weekend at two locations - downtown and also at the Holiday Inn. The event continued this weekend on Friday night and all day on Saturday.

"The two weeks together - it has to be a record-setter (for Oktoberfest)," said Terry Sveine, who is the manager of the Convention Visitors Bureau (CVB). "What we offer is what people want - we're outside in October."

Sveine remembered when they first started having Oktoberfest downtown they had one guy grilling meat on a "backyard grill." Now, they use a four-foot by eight-foot grill to prepare food for the crowd.

"They're grilling from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. They're grilling non-stop," said Sveine. "Travel is meeting expectations. I think we meet their general perceptions of Oktoberfest."

The crowds downtown have been "well-behaved" and "polite," said Sveine.

"Lot's of people have been coming through (the Chamber of Commerce office) asking questions," said Jenny Eckstein, vice president of the New Ulm Chamber of Commerce. "There's a lot to see and do."

One new thing this year was adding landjaegers to the menu of food items served to visitors, Eckstein said.

"They've been selling almost one-to-one compared to the brats," said Eckstein.

Her favorite thing about Oktoberfest is seeing all of the people come in to the Chamber office.

"They're happy," said Eckstein. "They can't get bored."

Lance Renberg, who is the president of the Minnesota State University, Mankato (MSU) German Club and a German major at MSU helped organize a group of about 30 students to go to Oktoberfest this year. The group was made up of both American and exchange students at MSU from Germany, Austria, Austrailia and Norway.

"I enjoy it (Oktoberfest)," said Renberg. "The mayor gave us a welcome and some of the German students went on stage and said a few words."

The MSU German Club's goal is to help members learn the German language and also to get to know the German students who are studying at MSU.

Nadja Krmer, who serves as assistant professor of German at MSU, said she is orginally from Frankfurt, Germany.

"I think Oktoberfest has a long tradition," said Krmer, "The sausage is excellent and the beer is good. A good time can be had."

Krmer said that going to Oktoberfest is a good opportunity to foster communications.

"It's a nice way of connecting and going on outings with each other," said Krmer, "I was an exchange student in high school. It was a profound experience."