Stranger in a Strange Land: Oktoberfest and Political Rallies... Just Your Average Weekend! :)

Hey all! I hope you all had a wonderful weekend! Ours turned into quite an eye-opening weekend to say the least...

On Friday evening, we headed over to Konstanz to celebrate the last weekend of Oktoberfest. Unfortunately, by the time we arrived, they were no longer letting people into the Oktoberfest tent... :( So, instead of celebrating in the tent, we headed over to the restaurant/biergarten located across the way from the tent, and we proceeded to celebrate Oktoberfest there! :) Although it was a far cry from the craziness of Oktoberfest in Munich last weekend, it was actually quite nice sitting outside next to the lake on a chilly, fall evening, while drinking a beer and being able to spend time with friends... Overall, it was a great way to end the Oktoberfest celebration this year. :)

Let's just say that Saturday was not so quiet and relaxing... On Friday, Brian was informed by his boss that there was going to be a NPD (Neonazi) rally/protest in Friedrichshafen on Saturday afternoon. Apparently this political group (Neonazis as they are now called... They are the extreme right-wing party here in Germany. The scariest part is that they actually hold a few seats in their Parliament!) had requested to hold a rally in Friedrichshafen, but the mayor of the city said no... So, it actually went to court, and since Germany is a democratic society and the people have the right to free speech, the NPD actually won the lawsuit, which allowed them to come to Friedrichshafen for a rally and march. However, even though they were allowed to come to Friedrichshafen, they were not allowed to go anywhere near the city center... They were only allowed to march around the city. And, as another preventative measure, the city brought in thousands of other police officers, etc. to prevent any chaos from erupting between the NPD party and the anti-NPD groups (which number quite a few from what we found out!).

Now, with that in mind, most people would want to be as far away from the city of Friedrichshafen as possible on Saturday! Oh no... My "wanna be photojournalist" of a husband, decided that it would be great to attend in that it would make for some really great pictures... Oh brother! So, on Saturday afternoon the two of us, with our two cameras in tow, headed downtown in search of the rally/protest. Admittedly, it was not that difficult to find... All you had to do was follow the thousands of polizei (police) and police vehicles which were brought into Friedrichshafen specifically for this event!

The first protest group we came across were actually the people protesting against the NPD (Neonazis). There were about 200 people in this group and they were surrounded by hundreds of police in riot gear, about 15 - 20 police vans, and an extended paddywagon... And this was just for the people who were protesting against the NPD!! At that point, I was a little concerned... If there was this much manpower needed for the anti-NPD protesters, then what did the NPD require?!

Now, I have to admit, when we first arrived at the scene, I originally thought that the group was the NPD, and after standing there for a few minutes, I was ready to head back home... It simply looked like a bunch of young kids looking to cause some trouble... However, Brian noticed that another crowd was gathering on the next street over... So, we headed over there to see what was going on. After waiting for what seemed like forever, we noticed that more and more police were heading in our direction... Police in riot gear, police on horses, police in vans... It was crazy and quite nerve wracking to be honest!

Shortly after that, we noticed a huge crowd of people in the distance, carrying flags and walking down the street towards us... So, we strolled up closer to the action and that's when we saw the actual NPD group marching down the street. I have to say, it was pretty creepy! They were carrying signs and their party's flags and yelling and chanting. Meanwhile, the people standing in the crowd were yelling back at them! It was at this point that Brian informed me that we probably shouldn't talk while they were in the vicinity, considering that that particular group of people doesn't like foreigners, and if we started talking then there's no doubt that we don't belong there! So, I stood off to the side, with my mouth tightly closed, and watched them march by. And then, to make me even more uneasy, they walked by with a huge sign that showed a picture of the Statue of Liberty with a gun and the American flag, with the statement "U.S. Imperialism Stoppen!" (U.S. Imperialism must be stopped!) Apparently, they don't want anything to do with the U.S. and they don't think that foreigners belong in Germany... Hmmmm... Definitely not a good sign! Let's just say, I stood quietly off to the side while they continued to march past... Once they passed us, the crowd followed them for a short distance, until the police finally stopped everyone.

Overall, it was a very eye-opening experience. In one aspect, it was good to see all of the people protesting against this political group... It definitely restores your faith in humanity when you see that many people that are so passionate about even the existence of this group of people. However, it was quite eerie to think that these people actually exist and still have similar belief systems as that of the original Nazis... I mean, after the horrors that took place over here during World War II, it breaks my heart to think that people like that still exist in today's society. And the thing that bothered me most after seeing them here, was the fact that there are still people living here that lived through the War. Friedrichshafen was a city that was largely affected by the war... After the war, the people living here had to pick up the pieces and rebuild the majority of the city. And I'm sure that they have probably spent the last 60 years trying to move past that part of their history... And then for them to be exposed to these young kids coming into their city (never having to live through the devastation and loss that came with that war), and marching through the streets of Friedrichshafen, cheering on this political party. They shouldn't have to be exposed to that type of nonsense (again!).... I'd have to say, that that was the thing that frustrated and saddened me the most while watching that rally.

And, on that note, I'd better head to the gym... I could probably rant and rave about this topic for hours, but those things are probably better left unsaid... :) Have a great Monday! Miss you much!