September 20, 2005

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  The Los Angeles County Fair is the largest County Fair in North America, and is located on 543 acres at Fairplex in Pomona, about 30 miles east of downtown L.A. The Fairplex facility has a Horse racing park with a 5/8 mile racetrack and full grandstand, and 325,000 square feet of indoor exhibit space. There is almost too much to see and do in a day. The Fair began in 1922 and it's always fun, crowded, and exciting. I usually go every year. The Fair is open during three weeks in Sept. (four this year, but it is closed Mondays and Tuesdays.)

  
  

  

  
  

  This year I attended the Fair with Elizabeth (TheQueenofSwords), who has already blogged about the experience. I took my camera for the first time this year, and took about 200 photos which will soon be featured in a Webshots Gallery. As usual, click on the photos in this post to see the full size pictures. Here is the Merry Go Round and the 15 story tall Ferris Wheel, which can be seen from all vantage points inside the FairGrounds.

  
  

  

  
  

  Lots of food can be found here. So it is advisable to bring an appetite. Here a pig is resting, er, I mean, "roasting" on a spit in one of the barbecue booths. You can get any type of meat, or a bucket of spaghetti, Mexican food, Indian fry bread, and any thing you can think of is sold deep fried, including the usual french fries and onion blossoms, plus corn of the cob, snickers bars, oreos and twinkies, "battered Australian potatoes" (which didn't set too well with my stomach, but I shouldn't be eating fried foods anyway) and fried fruit and veggies, for those who want to trick themselves into thinking they are eating "healthy."

  
  

  

  
  

  There is a dragstrip located at the Fairplex park, and in the 80s and early 90s I attended the NHRA "Winternationals" and "World Finals" at the park. There is also a standing exhibit near the back of the facility with about 8-10 full size restored steam locomotives, including some the biggest ever manufactured. Liz had been to the Fair before, but had never seen the trains. (I love trains) Here she is posing in front of some locomotive wheels that are taller than she is.

  
  

  

  
  

  I am taking a self portrait at arm's length inside a pullman sleeper car from 1923, which has always been closed in years past. The door was open because it was being cleaned, and Liz and I sneaked in to take some pictures. (And spend some quality time alone). A park employee was in the midst of cleaning the car and came back while we were inside, but instead of kicking us out, he proceeded to show us around.

  
  

  

  
  

  Another park employee, who isn't even a teenager yet, was sitting in the cab of one of the giant steam locomotives. Here he is demonstrating the auger system which brought the coal from the tender into the boiler.

  
  

  

  
  

  After spending time with the locomotives, we moved on to the Garden Pavilion, which was themed with Polynesian plants this year. There were lots of decorated sections like this, which were perfect for photography.

  
  

  

  
  

  These parrots are real, and they were perfect subjects, and hardly moved while amateur photographers and fairgoers snapped their pictures in the centerpiece of the Garden Pavilion display.

  
  

  

  
  

  The fairgrounds are filled with entertainment as well as exhibits, pavilions, a very large carnival, and of course the food. Among the many entertainers appearing around the grounds is Marston Smith, who plays the electric cello, and his sounds are eerily soothing and perfectly wonderful. Liz and I didn't see a lot of the entertainers, as there was just too much to do.

  
  

  

  
  

  The Fair also has an art gallery, the Millard Sheets Gallery, and the showcase this year was on "Latino Art". I kind of like this shot of a sculpure of a woman with the light shining above her head like a halo.

  
  

  

  
  

  The art gallery always showcases the artists as well as the art and here an artist is shown working on a painting. I am ashamed I did not get his name. A lot of local artists were presented, and Liz recognized the art of one or two artists who had attended East L.A. Community college.

  
  

  

  
  

  My visit to the County Fair is never complete until I see the farm animals. People rarely think of farms in L.A. but there are still areas in the southland where dairys and horse farms are somewhat abundant. The Central Valley in California is still one of the largest farmland areas in the country. In the shot above a little piggy looks out at me from a "pile of piggies' who have just had their dinner suckling their mother.

  
  

  

  
  

  This goat was really photogenic, and seemed to "pose" for me. Here he smiles at my camera, definitely ready for his "close-up". More photos will be posted in my Webshots Gallery within the week.

  
  

  

  
  

  I'll close this Photopost with another shot of the big ferris wheel. I usually check out the view from the top but we were dog tired after about 7 hours of walking around that we didn't get a ride in the wheel this year. (But there is always next year) I am always fascinated with this ferris wheel, which is the largest portable wheel in the country. It actually takes five large big rig trucks to carry it around, and I always hope that the carnys have tightened all the bolts. More photos will be forthcoming next week, and I already mentioned Liz's blog, and she also has some more photos online in her Photobucket 

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