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Showing posts with label weird. Show all posts

31 October 2011

bullfight!

I never thought I'd voluntarily watch a bullfight, but when these (non-killing) ones were announced as part of the celebrations for Ollanta's town anniversary festivities, Iain and I figured, why not? It turns out bullfights in Ollanta go something like this: you show up at the town's tiny bullfighting ring at the what everyone said was the right time, and wait an hour before a marching band heralds the arrival of a random crowd of people who jog through the stadium and then leave:

At least they were having a good time?

A few minutes after them come the matadors (in pink socks!) and also a clown.

And then we all wait another fifteen minutes for the bull to show up, while the matadors pose for pictures and yawn, and vendors ply the crowd with yet more of the same ice cream, cotton candy and beer they've been selling for the past hour.

Finally, the first bull is eventually coerced into the ring. Waving of colored flags commences.

The matadors do in fact wear very tight pants, were you curious.

The matadors, clowns, and some random dudes who do not appear to be officially affiliated with the proceedings, take turns jumping out of the bull's way.

Or just jumping over the bull.

Eventually the bull is lasso'd and dragged back out of the ring, much to (I'm assuming) its relief. Iain and I stayed for two fights, and then left; it turns out we missed some drunk guys jumping in from the crowd and one even getting mildly gored and then fighting with the police - something I think I'm okay with having missed.

So that was my first, and most likely my last, bullfight. I'm glad I saw it - and am extra glad that it was of the non-bull-killing variety - but mostly we just felt bad for the bulls and a bit freaked out by the idea of random people drunkenly hopping in the ring. Next time, I think I'm happy just to sit under the cork tree and smell the flowers.

05 July 2010

strange beach sightings

... I'm not too sure what's going on here either.

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02 July 2010

the shy plant

A few weeks ago, I bought a cheap leafy plant for the backyard. After carrying it home and re-planting it, though, I noticed it was looking pretty rough, with none of the pretty fern-like leaves it had had before - now, it was so shriveled up I couldn't imagine why I had bought it in the first place. A minute later, though, the leaves unfurled and slowing puffed back into shape - when I poked at them again, they immediately folded and dropped back down again. Best plant ever! Once we were able to peel ourselves away from tormenting the plant and get on the internet, it didn't take us long to figure out I'd unknowingly bought a mimosa pudica- commonly known as the 'shy' or 'sensitive' plant.

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13 June 2010

Kanogawa Epic Cycle Run!

Every weekday morning begins for me with a drive alongside the Kanogawa River and the Numazu mountains to a factory, where I teach everyday and where Iain teaches three days a week. Since both of us love the drive, we decided to take our bikes out today on more or less the same route so we could enjoy it a little more. (As a side note, I did not know the term "cycle run" until I went to Scotland and Iain's sister suggested taking one; at the time, I thought she meant something along the lines of, riding your bike for a bit and then going for a jog, possibly while holding the bike, because I am a genius.)

All week, my students have been issuing ominous warning about the rainy season beginning on Monday, so now seemed like a good time to go for it, particularly as the clouds overhead in most of these pictures seem to be proving my students right.

There are really nice bike paths along most of the river, so, aside from one detour that involved Iain having to heroically push our bikes up a steep, unpathed hill, it was a really nice, flat ride. We drove through farms of all sizes:

... and lots of rice paddies that are just starting to turn green:

Above: on a work morning, that white van is us!

It was really nice to take our time and to just be able to take in a bit more of the scenery we rattle past at 50 km/hour every morning. You can spend a lot more time admiring the Numazu Alps...

...or noticing quirky details that you'd never otherwise see, like this weary (bored? sleepy?) looking statue:

...or just plain weird things, like this sizeable bridge to ... nowhere:

Most disturbingly, though, were these creepy plastic doll heads that wandered straight out of a horror movie to guard some dude's vegetable patch:

Above: Come play with us FOREVER, Iain and Mikka.

Seriously, if we promise to stay away from your eggplants, will you take your creepy serial killer trophy heads down?

Fortunately, not 10 meters away was the world's best antidote to the horrors of the Children of the Eggplant:

DUCKLINGS! So, so many ducklings in mud. Awesome.

Three hours and some seriously sore legs later, we are home, where, like clockwork, the rain began about an hour ago.