TIFI Goes to The Ekka

It was recently suggested that I go to the Ekka to give TIFI a little more Aussie grunt. Since there was a free ticket going it was really a no-brainer for me. There's nothing better than a free ticket. If the event is enjoyable then you've gained something, if it sucks you've lost nothing. Well, financially anyway. Time can be lost and that's sad.

For those that don't know the Ekka is short for the Queensland Exhibition and is a annual must-do for all Queenslanders. It all started a hundred or so years ago as a humble agricultural festival that celebrated the very best in Aussie farming and livestock. Nowadays it has evolved into something more akin to a giant carnival complete with rides, advertising and over-priced refreshments. There are still the obligatory animals from little lambs (aawww) to lumbering llamas (aaahh!).

The Llama: Natures "D" student

I found myself going to the Ekka on a particularly sunny day albeit with a modest amount of cash. That's the thing about this place. You need a LOT of money to truly enjoy yourself here. I went on one ride (picture forthcoming) that cost me fifteen freaking dollars! Luckily my new favourite vice - after smoking and fatty foods - iced coffee was reasonably priced. Upon entering we headed for the Fresh Food pavillion in the hope of blagging some free eats. There was much to be had for nothing but because of the horrible crowds all I got was a taste test of hot chilli sauce on a cracker and a cherry tomato fried in some concoction of Italian herbs. To be honest it just tasted like a regular cherry tomato. We jostled our way through the droves of people once again as I was in search of some thrills! Oh and I also had some herbal tea.

Me getting strapped into the Intensity or Insanity or whatever it was called.

I'm not actually on it there but this is just to give you an idea of how bloody high this thing went.

As you can see from the pictures I will pretty much go on any ride there is. The scarier it looks the bigger the challenge for me. It wasn't always that way though. I was a bit of a pussy until very recently. For rides this country beats the pants off Funderland (travelling carnival that comes to Dublin every January) not least because here the rides actually thrill you rather than scare you and make you fear for your life. Since I had had my fill of excitement (and paying more than ten bucks a ride) we went off to get some ice cream and see the animals.

I just wanted an excuse to post this picture.

Ha! I knew I'd work that picture in somewhere but lest this blog get too low-brow I will swiftly move on. Actually I do have one more unsavoury anecdote up my sleeve. We entered the animal pavillion hoping to see lots of baby animals. As we walk in we spy a cow in a pen to our left lying on her side.

A cow. Not the one in question but a cow nonetheless.

Now this is where it gets a little... icky. The poor cows "back end" is bulging out considerably. I thought "Wow this is great! A little calf being born. The wonder of Nature and such." I stood there waiting for about ten minutes until I realised that if there were no vets about and cow labour lasts as long as human labour then I would be waiting for a while. So I decided to walk around and look at the baby chickens and lambs (sorry, forgot to take pictures) and get my picture taken with that horrible Llama thing you saw before (I was convinced the bastard was going to spit in my eye or something).
After about twenty minutes I decided to walk back and see how Big Momma Cow was doing. I walk back to her pen and find her standing up getting her nose patted by some kids. Not a sign of a calf anywhere. It was then that I spotted the modest pile of cowshit nestled among the straw. If it took more than half an hour for Mrs. Cow to make stool then I pity her.

So after my day of rides, sunburn and cow poo I was thoroughly spent. An enjoyable day but would have been so much better had I brought an extra hundred dollars or so. The Ekka is undergoing a huge renovation very soon so who knows what we'll see next year.

Just a quick message to thank those getting the word out about TIFI. Special Thanks go to my Mum for badgering me to write all the time, the folks on my Facebook and HondosBar.com who take the time to read TIFI and give me feedback. Especially Rachael who goes to Herculean efforts to spread the word about TIFI. Rachael also happens to make some great music and you can find her on MySpace at myspace.com/rachaellandmusic

Coming Soon: Stupid Twitter updates (the dirt won't come off!).