Different City, Different Event...

Just a few blocks from our campground in Indio, California is the fairgrounds at which we have attended several motorhome rallies. This time, however, we hit the date for the actual Fair and Date Festival. So when was the last time you were at a National Date Festival? Some might almost think it has something to do with speed dating or internet dating or any of the other kinds of dating that happens today... Actually it refers to the dates you eat and you can't imagine how many different kinds of dates there are. This picture shows one of the display cases where dates were displayed for judging. (Make the picture bigger to see all the different kinds.)

Just across the aisle is where the lemons, oranges, grapefruit, tangerines, etc. were displayed. These are two displays you will never see at a Minnesota Fair. In other parts of the building were vegetables and other fruits but it did not appear that there was any judging for that produce - just displays and a quiz on how to tell when fruits and vegetables are ready to be eaten. Supposedly the darker and more vibrant the color of fruit, the better it is for you.

This quilt, on the other hand, could easily have won a blue ribbon at the Steele Co. Fair.

There are some things that just don't change from one fair to another - there is always lots of food and rides.

Somehow it just looks more exotic with palm trees.

And then, of course, fairs always have competitions. Since I had never been to Ostrich and Camel Races, I persuaded Mike that was something we really should do. When we got to the Grandstand, the ostriches were at the gate and ready to go. Either that or they were looking over the crowd; always good people watching at an event in California...
You must have to have Bud Light and the National Anthem at every event in every state in the union! Once the singing had stopped, the races began. Who knew that a Minnsota girl would be the best jockey on an ostrich.

After a while, it doesn't even look weird; Ok, yes it does. I have never seen a human ride a bird before.
And then it was time for the camels to race. After an introduction, they took off out of the gate with pretty good speed.

And they continued that pace for the entire (very short) race. They looked almost graceful.

After the races and checking out a couple of buildings, it was food time so Mike went in search of a Tri Tip Sandwich and we shared a date malt (they are sooooo good, very rich). By the tri tip stand, I found this explanation of the meat that we often cannot find anywhere but California.

Yes, that is fresh sweet corn on the cob being sold in the background. It looked and smelled good and I was almost tempted.

As for entertainment, neither of us could believe what we were seeing in one tent - this age group doing line dancing and loving it! The queen and attendants were watching carefully.

So is this something new among teens in MN? It might be in a couple of years...

Mike and I enjoyed the fair but, as with all fairs, we compare them to the Minnesota State Fair, which is the best anywhere! So, this one was alright, itll do, nothin' special etc. etc. And the food was even more expensive, if that is possible. $7,50 for a Tri Tip Sandwich... Hey, Dan, I think we should start marketing those out on the BLM land around Quartzite - make up for the falling stock prices...Wanna??? Huh Huh???