Oktoberfest revellers raise glasses
The world's biggest beer party is underway in Germany.
Munich's mayor opened the first keg at the Oktoberfest, kicking off the celebrations by handing the first mug to the conservative challenger in this weekend's German elections.
Edmund Stoiber, the Bavarian governor who hopes to oust Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, wished the revellers a "peaceful and traditional" festival.
Fourteen huge tents that seat some 100,000 people have been spread across a meadow near downtown Munich. Some 5.5 million people visited last year's event.
State authorities say security measures put in place for the anniversary of the September 11 attacks on the United States will be in force throughout the two-week festival.
The number of security cameras in the festival area has been doubled and police explosives experts and bomb-sniffing dogs will be on patrol.
