Photo Gallery Getting Sloshed on 'Men's Day'
In Germany, Father's Day is always held on Ascension Thursday. But the event has little to do with the Father's Day most have grown up with. Here, it is one big slosh fest, with men taking a day off from work and familial responsibilities, carting beer-filled wagons into parks and boozing until they fall over. There are exceptions, of course, like these men in Magdeburg who are trying to lend a little class to the festivities.
In other parts of Germany, however, Männertag can end in disaster. In Troisdorf near Bonn, a fireworks mishap led to the injury of 25 people. The number of accidents generally increases on Männertag, with three times the normal number of alcohol-related traffic accidents, for example.
Here, a group of men gather in the city of Freiburg on antique tractors. You could pull a lot of beer with these beasts.
In Berlin, a group of men dressed as monkeys pull the traditional Bollerwagen cart filled with beer as they head out to celebrate.
dapd
In Magdeburg, another group gets into the spirit, beers in hand. Prost!
"I love beer!" In the northern port city of Rostock, city officials offered to exchange beers for non-alcoholic beverages to people passing by.
Tempting as the offer might have been, these gentleman preferred to stick with their 5 percent tipple.
In Hanover, these men participated in a so-called "Beer-athlon," which involves consuming a minimum amount of beer within a certain amount of time on a set course.
Of course, beer isn't the only ingredient for a successful Männertag. If you want to start your own Männertag tradition in your country, look no further than the example set by these men in Hanover. The key ingredients to a successful day: Bring a wagon filled with beer (bottles or cans), schnaps, a portable grill for BBQing in the park. The day should include a short walk and should also include copious amounts of drinking.
Enough to have fun like this man in Berlin ...
... but not so much that you wind up passed out like this man in Munich.
