In partnership with Rheinsinn Enterprise, the
German Trade Office Taipei (GTO) has attracted over 440 distinguished guests to
attend this year’s Oktoberfest Opening: The GTO German Business Day. This event
did only raise cultural awareness, but also established valuable business
exchanges between Taiwanese and German companies and subsequently enhance trade
relations between Taiwan and Germany. By organizing the opening of this years’
HB Oktoberfest, the German Trade Office aimed at introducing German Oktoberfest
traditions to the Taiwanese public.
Among the guests of the event were Taipei
City Mayor Ko Wen-je, GTO Executive Director Axel Limberg, Director General of
the German Institute, Dr. Thomas Prinz, the Director General of the
Industrial Development Bureau, Mr. Jang-Hwa Leu and Director
General Dr. Chuan-Neng Lin from the Bureau of Energy. The event commenced with
the traditional “Tapping the Beer Keg” ceremony, in which Taipei City Mayor Ko
Wen-je opened the first barrel of beer by affixing and opening the tap.
This ceremony marked the official opening of the HB Oktoberfest Taipei.
Mr. Limberg highlighted the importance
of beer festivals to German tradition and culture, saying that “beer festivals
have been an integral part of German amusement culture for over two centuries.
Beer festivals have always had the power of letting people forget the stress of
their daily lives and bringing people from all parts of society together.
Today, we celebrate with our Taiwanese friends our excellent relations and
cultural diversity in an authentic German Oktoberfest ambiance.”
It is the third time that the German
Trade Office Taipei organized this event. The guests were seated at 54 tables
within an authentic Hofbräu outdoor high ceiling tent. The event featured live
music by an original HB band, real HB German Waitresses, all-you-can-drink HB
draft beer and authentic German food. On top of that, every guest got a
gingerbread heart.