cabalgata

So yesterday I did this really crazy thing called a cabalgata, which is basically like a trail ride with anyone that wants to go, with a huge party and hundreds of horses. It's unlike anything we have in the states... i've never seen so many horses in one place. (there were atleast 193 (the highest number i saw))

So i'll take you through it with the photos i took, so maybe it'll be a little more clear. this is Tavare, the horse i rode. he's an angel with hooves. some might call that the devil, but he was wonderful.

so. this event was to start at noon, and well we got there closer to 1, and still had time to get a drink, read water or beer, our numbers, and hang out listening to this crazy music that sounded like polka. apparently the dance style is close to swing, and of course i can't remember the name of that kind of music.

anyway. once everyone got there with their horses, in trucks, some had up to 10 in them, pickups with wooden platforms the horses would get on and stand with their head over the cabs, everyone had gotten a drink (we got tickets for food and drink with our numbers. the drinks you could choose from were a shot of wisky (how they spell it) a cervesa (beer) or refresco (soda)) we all mounted and moved out.

screaching, yelling, horses trotting straight up and down, that high knee action is what they all desire. the horses have been trained to pick their feet straight up and down, sometimes trotting in place, frothing and foaming. it was pretty intense.

Tavare and i were picked up by this family who owns the barn where Michelle keeps her horses. the father is this amazing looking classic costa rican cowboy. i took a ton of pictures of him because he was lovely. they were all super welcoming, made conversation with me even though i only understood some of it, and couldn't elaborate on much. The father must have asked me seven or eight times if I was having fun, did i think this or that was beautiful. I tried to explain, i think successfully, that this was unlike anything we have at home. but i liked this much more. it was a party with horses. pretty amazing.

We embarked. all 193+ (the father, above, thought that there were definitely more than 200, closer to 250.) it was hard to fathom how many there were because you couln't see all the riders at any one time. i tried to take some pictures to capture it....

taking over the streets. which we mostly rode on. and some train tracks that were in fire? that was weird. i didn't quite understand why there were little fires on the tracks.

Someone forgot to mention i should dress like a cowboy. luckily i wore jeans, no half chaps, and didn't try and wear a helmet. i would have been laughed out of the hords of horses.

(right now ravon is playing hide and seek with me around the corner of the house. he has so much energy.)

I'm going to start another post with the second half of this.... the internet is shoddy and i'm worried all lose what i wrote thus far.