The Strange, The Funny, and The Sporting Food Festivals of Europe and the USA and yes – Down Under! – Part II

In Part I we looked at the oddest food festivals in the USA.  Let us now consider some of the most unusually inventive food-themed festivals in Europe – and yes, Down Under.  Once again see if you can guess the Name of the festival or its Country of origin or both.  Good luck and good pickings!

(1) Held in the Valencian town of Bunol every August for the past 67 years, it is the world’s largest vegetable fight known for its red pulp. NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE COUNTRY IT IS HELD IN.

(2) Held every February in the province of Turin in the foothills of the Alps, this peculiar three-day festival is known for its tradition of throwing a particular citrus fruit between organized groups. NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE COUNTRY IT IS HELD IN.

(3) Held every spring at Cooper’s Hill in the Cotswold region for over 200 years, this downhill racing festival follows a wheel of dairy product that can reach speeds of up to 70 miles per hour. NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE COUNTRY IT IS HELD IN.

(4) Held every January, this Down Under festival features men and women flinging a particular fish weighing between 8 to 10 kilos as far as they possibly can. NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE COUNTRY IT IS HELD IN.

(5) Held every December in Oaxaca since 1897, this festival features a folk art competition of sculptures made from a carved vegetable that is fantastically transformed into religious, historical and mythical scenes. NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE COUNTRY IT IS HELD IN.

(6) Held every March at the western port town of Hokitika close to Greymouth and the southern Alps of this island, this festival features stalls of bizarre wild foods ranging from insects and ferns to sea gull eggs and sheep testicles. NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE COUNTRY IT IS HELD IN.

(7) Held every August and filled with gaily colored paper lanterns, bibs, and hats and traditional drinking songs, this traditional but rowdy five hundred year old Nordic party festival is all about a freshwater crustacean similar to a lobster. NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE COUNTRY IT IS HELD IN.

(8) Established in 1653 and held every October alongside the Weimar Beer Festival, this singular street fair is filled with medieval stalls of local crafts and local bands playing around the clock, and most of all – wreaths of this pungent smelling vegetable. NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE COUNTRY IT IS HELD IN.

(9) Held annually since 1971, this village fair and edible vegetable-shooting contest uses lung-powered pieces of tubes and laser sights to hit a target made of putty from a distance of 12 yards. NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE COUNTRY IT IS HELD IN.

(10) Held every autumn since 1743, this Nordic seafood festival begins with a competition for the “Pickled Fish of the Year” whilst selling local artisanal handicrafts like birch and maple wood kitchen utensils, regional food products such as jam-packed pancakes and wild honey from Lapland and this particular Baltic fish in every imaginable form – in a jar, in a can, in a sandwich, in soup, deep-fried, and even on a pizza. NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE COUNTRY IT IS HELD IN.

(11) Held biennially in February in the town of Chinchilla, this one-of-a-kind fruit sporting festival features a unique brand of fruit tossing, fruit skiing, fruit Ironman, fruit ball games, fruit bungee, fruit bullseye, fruit splitting, and pip spitting contests for the entire family. NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE COUNTRY IT IS HELD IN.

(12) Held every February in the Flemish town of Geraardsbergen, this Celtic festival celebrates the onset of spring with a parade, a blessing of the hill, the hurling of ring-shaped bread rolls, and the symbolic drinking of live tiny grey fish immersed in red wine. NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE COUNTRY IT IS HELD IN.

(13) Held every weekend between October and November, the ancient Piedmont town of Alba, an important wine center, celebrates this subterranean mushroom with parades, musical bands, medieval costumes, and donkey races. NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE COUNTRY IT IS HELD IN.

(14) Beginning in 1445 and held ever since on “Shrove Tuesday” (also known as Mardi Gras or Fat Tuesday – the day preceding the first day of Lent), the women of the town of Olney race from the market square to the Church of St. Peter and St. Paul with this food item and frying pan in hand. NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE COUNTRY IT IS HELD IN.

Answers:

(1) La Tomatina – Spain

(2) Ivrea Orange Festival or Battle of the Oranges – Italy

(3) Cheese Rolling Festival-England

(4) Qantaslink Tunarama Festival-Australia

(5) Night of the Radishes-Mexico

(6) Hokitika Wildfoods Festival – New Zealand

(7) Crawfish Party – Sweden

(8) Weimar Onion Market Festival – Germany

(9) World Pea Shooting Championship – England

(10) Baltic Herring Festival – Finland

(11) Chinchilla Melon Festival – Australia

(12) Krakelingen Festival – Belgium

(13) Alba Truffle Festival – Italy

(14) Olney Pancake Race – England

The Strange, The Funny, and The Sporting Food Festivals of Europe and the USA – Part I

Late November is almost upon us and once again Americans across the country are readying their table for that ubiquitous paragon of poultry – a large roasted turkey with assorted culinary accoutrements. Known as Thanksgiving Day or “Turkey Day”, the turkey has gradually become the reigning mascot of this holiday tradition but if one looks closely – there are other unusual festivities in both Europe and the USA that feature a particular creature or foodstuff as part of its celebration. Here in Part I, we shall look at some of the oddest food festivals in the USA. See if you can guess the State of origin or the Name of the festival or both. Good luck and happy gobble, gobble!

(1) Held every summer for the past 66 years, what five-day food festival celebrates a luscious red crustacean sometimes called the “Cockroach of the Sea”? Festivities include a big parade, an international crate race, cooking contests, US Navy ship tours, and wonderful displays of local crafts. NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE STATE IT IS HELD IN.

(2) Known as a powerful seasoning, a relative of the onion, prized by the Egyptians for culinary and medicinal purposes and known for its repellant properties against vampires, what three-day festival celebrates this pungent herb? NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE STATE IT IS HELD IN.

(3) A member of the sunflower family, introduced to the New World by Christopher Columbus, and sometimes referred to as ‘rabbit food’, what food festival celebrates this leafy vegetable which Americans consume at the rate of 30 pounds per year? NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE STATE IT IS HELD IN.

(4) Of Native American origin and common in the southern United States, what three-day food festival honors this thick corn-based porridge with contestants rolling in it, grinding it, and eating it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner? NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE STATE IT IS HELD IN.

(5) A member of the nightshade family, first cultivated in Central and South America over 6000 years ago, what two-day festival celebrates this type of pepper used in enchiladas, stews, and sauces?  NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE STATE IT IS HELD IN.

(6) Held the second weekend of each November, what food festival features a green mascot indigenous to the bayous of this state? Festivities include a queen’s contest, carnival, parade, live music, and of course this tailless amphibian’s racing and jumping contests. NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE STATE IT IS HELD IN.

(7) Held in the Midwest every July, this three-day food festival features a fun-loving polka parade, a Precision Lawn-mower drill team, a twirling Babushka Brigade, a Polish Princess, and dancing dumplings and dumpling tosses – all in honor of this Eastern European handmade dumpling popularized by immigrants coming to America in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s. NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE STATE IT IS HELD IN.

(8) First introduced in Chattanooga, Tennessee in the 1930’s, this round marshmallow-filled graham cracker cookie pastry is celebrated each year on the third Saturday of June along with soft drink, Royal Crown Cola, in a one-day Southern classic extravaganza. Festivities include a 10-mile run, games, contests, cloggers, Country music and bluegrass, and dozens of food stalls and arts and crafts booths. NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE STATE IT IS HELD IN.

(9) Also known as “Shroomfest”, what four-day food festival in this mile-high state celebrates a foodstuff grown in darkness? Festivities include people dressing up like delectable fungi, cooking demonstrations, and guided hikes in fungi hunting. NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE STATE IT IS HELD IN.

(10) Held every September, what bizarre food festival features wild game commonly found dead along the road such as armadillos, deer, rabbits, porcupines, possum, raccoons, squirrels, groundhogs and bears? Festivities include a 5K run, a dog show, a beauty pageant, duck races, musical shows, and arts and crafts. NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE STATE IT IS HELD IN.

(11) Held every September at the Museum of Natural Sciences, what southeastern food festival features insects as the sole gourmet item? Festivities include live bands, a street carnival, a nocturnal insect tour of moths, fireflies, katydids, face paintings for kids, beekeeping workshops, buggy dishes and exhibits and roach races. NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE STATE IT IS HELD IN.

(12) What three-day food festival in May features one of the oldest rattlesnake hunts in the world? Festivities include a horseshoe tournament, a poker run, live music, caboose rides, helicopter rides, a town-wide garage sale and snake measuring contests. NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE STATE IT IS HELD IN.

(13) Beginning in the Depression and held every July since 1935, this three-day event celebrates this tart-flavored fruit with an arts and crafts festival, a Grand Day parade, royalty coronations, a 5 mile run, and a pig roasting at the end.  NAME THE FESTIVAL AND THE STATE IT IS HELD IN.

Answers:

(1) Maine Lobster Festival – Maine

(2) Gilroy Garlic Festival – California

(3) Yuma Lettuce Days – Arizona

(4) World Grits Festival – South Carolina

(5) Hatch Chile Festival – New Mexico

(6) Rayne Frog Festival – Louisiana

(7) Whiting Pierogi Fest – Indiana

(8) RC Cola and Moon Pie Festival – Tennessee

(9) Telluride Mushroom Festival – Colorado

(10) The West Virginia RoadKill Cook-Off – West Virginia

(11) The Bugfest – North Carolina

(12) Okeene Rattlesnake Roundup – Oklahoma

(13) Hopkins Raspberry Festival – Minnesota

Eco-Stylish Accessories & Gadgets Fit For The Next “James Bond” Movie!

The latest installment of the James Bond film series – “Skyfall” – is now playing in American cinemas across the country with rapturous reviews. Having seen the movie myself and inspired by the newly appointed fictional character “Q”, here is a list of eco-stylish accessories and gadgets that now exist that might help James Bond out of tight situations in his next assignment as the world’s most stylish super spy!

1- Electric-Powered Car – Tesla – Model X — With its cool falcon wings and futuristic touchscreen dashboard, this car can go from zero to 60 miles in less than five seconds! http://www.teslamotors.com/modelx

2- Electric-Powered Motorcycle – Mission Motors – Mission One — Utilizing a lithium-ion battery pack that charges under two hours, this super stylish scooter is able to reach 150 miles per hour and 100 foot-pounds of torque at any point between 0 and 6500 RPM! http://www.treehugger.com/cars/mission-one-by-mission-motors-the-worlds-fastest-production-electric-motorcycle.html

3- Electric-Powered Seaplane – FlyNano  —   This Finnish designed single-seater carbon-fiber airplane can get over 80 miles per hour in the sky and land on any body of water with ease! http://www.flynano.com/

4- Electric & Solar-Powered Jet Board – Kymera – Kymera Bodyboard —   Shaped like an hourglass, this cool compact and lightweight looking surfboard can propel lifeguards and wave riders up to 18mph in the water! Due to be released in 2013! http://inhabitat.com/kymeras-solar-powered-jetboard-looks-like-a-surfboard-but-cruises-like-a-boat/

5- Solar-Powered Airplane – Solar Impulse — This Swiss designed monoplane is currently able to cruise at 43 miles per hour with a maximum altitude of 39,000 feet and an airborne endurance rate of 36 hours! http://solarimpulse.com/

6- Solar-Powered Pontoon Boat – Tamarack Lake Electric Boat Company – the Loon — This cool 22-foot long light-weight boat, capable of touring inland waterways, comes with a flexible interior configuration of removable side-rails made from bamboo, recycled plastic, and natural fibers and a retractable solar roof that can be lowered onto the rails. http://www.tamarackelectricboats.com/

7- Solar-Powered Luxury Yacht – LOMOcean Design – MS Turanor PlanetSolar — This German-built, New Zealand-designed catamaran is the world’s largest solar-powered ship ever built and the first sailing vessel to have circumnavigated the globe using solar energy exclusively. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tûranor_PlanetSolar

8- Solar-Powered Dirigible (aka Spy Satellite) – Lockheed Martin – HALE-D acronym for High Altitude Long Endurance-Demonstrator — Still being perfected, this 130 foot long blimp will afford the US Army a 600 mile view of the earth allowing alternative options of military reconnaissance, intelligence gathering, environmental monitoring, and communications. http://dvice.com/archives/2011/07/lockheeds-halo.php

9- Solar-Powered Necktie — Researchers at Iowa State University are busy working on photovoltaic textiles and have come up with a cool solar tie fashioned in such a way that it can be used to charge a cellphone. http://www.coolest-gadgets.com/20080816/solar-powered-necktie-charges-your-gadgets-on-the-sly/

10- Motion-Powered Shoes – InStep Nanopower – Human Gait Energy Scavenger — This footwear-embedded energy harvesting device converts human locomotion (the motion of walking) into electrical power up to 20 Watts which in turn can be used to power mobile electronic devices. http://www.instepnanopower.com/

11- Electric-Powered Roller Skates — These motorized electric skates can be strapped right over shoes propelling the wearer as fast as 8 miles per hour by means of two six inch rubber wheels on each skate.  The control for these skates is a handheld wireless remote which can increase speed or bring the skates to a gradual halt. http://www.hammacher.com/Product/12158

12- Solar-Powered Sunglasses – Yanko Design – SIG ( Self-Energy Converting Sunglasses) —
The lenses of these cool sunglasses have dye solar cells which turn sunlight rays into electrical energy able to power small devices through the power jack at the back of the frame. http://www.yankodesign.com/2008/12/17/solar-powered-solar-panel-sun-glasses/

13- Solar-Powered GPS Watch – Seiko Epson Corp. – Seiko Astron GPS Solar Watch
This cool Japanese-designed solar-powered watch can set itself to any of the 39 time zones on earth using a global network of GPS satellites and is accurate to within one second per 100,000 years. http://www.seiko-astron.com/

14- Solar-Powered Men’s Shaver — Weighing in at only 105 grams, this sleek and portable razor with built-in solar panel and rechargeable lithium battery is perfect for the man on the go!   http://www.envirogadget.com/solar-powered/solar-powered-electric-shaver/

15- Pedal-Powered Submarine – Scubster — This sleek 11.5 foot long French-designed one-seater submersible has a twin-propeller system which can reach a speed of 5 mph and a depth of 20 feet which is great for exploration in rivers, lakes, and shallow ocean areas. http://www.scubster.org/

16- Pedal-Powered Superbike – Aston Martin – One-77 — This superbike features a “motorsport-derived data logging system” with over a hundred channels of performance feedback options accessible from its handlebar-mounted head unit including speed, temperature, rate of climb, power, respiration rate, core body temperature and electrical activity of the heart. http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/aston-martin-launches-one-77-superbike

17- Hand-Powered Pocket Chainsaw — This pocket-sized 28 inch chainsaw in a tin can contains 124 bi-directional teeth that can cut a 3” diameter limb in ten seconds! http://www.thinkgeek.com/product/ea93/

18- Invisible Bike Helmet –the Hovding — This Swedish-designed bike helmet is a folded up air bag with sensors hidden in a stylish collar which will inflate into a protective hood around the bicyclist’s head when triggered by an accident i.e. falling off the bike.   http://www.hovding.com/