Happy 200th Anniversary Oktoberfest

Wedding toasts fit for a King and Queen

The original "Oktoberfest" occurred 200 years ago in Munich, Germany, in October 1810, to commemorate the marriage of

Crown Prince Ludwig and Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen. In later years an annual festival and parade were organized to honor the Bavarian couple (King Ludwig I and Therese of Bavaria). Intrigued by this fun fact, I went on a quest to find tasteful German wedding toasts fit for a king and queen of any time period.

The following traditional toast must have come from a father-in-law:

Erst mach' dein' Sach dann trink' und lach!

First take care of business, then drink and laugh!

Leave it to the mother-in-law to sing a different song:

Jeder hört die Musik anders - aber der gemeinsame Tanz ist wunderbar.

Everyone hears the music differently - but the dance together is wonderful.

From the drunken-best man or romantic bride’s maid:

Das Leben ist bezaubernd, man muss es nur durch die richtige Brille sehen.

Life is wonderful, you just need to see it through the right glasses.

Generated from the townspeople (German proverb):

So lange leben, essen wie eine Katze und trinken wie ein Hund

To live long, eat like a cat and drink like a dog.

But my favorite wedding toast, which is appropriate for any stately marriage:

Jeder sieht ein Stückchen Welt, gemeinsam sehen wir die ganze.

Each of us sees a part of the world; together we see all of it.

There are no current-day reports of how many marriages take place at Oktoberfest, but it is the largest folk festival in the world, according to USA Today, with more than 6.5 million visitors and serving up nearly 7 million liters of beer.

In honor newlyweds everywhere and participants of Oktoberfest, I offer Prost und Zum Wohl! (Cheers and Bottoms up!)

Michael Varma is a freelance writer, award-winning presenter and professional magician. To learn more, visit www.MichaelVarma.com. Contact Michael Varma, the author of Tasteful Toasts, for permission to reprint this article. Copyright September 2010 Magical Concepts.