The Running of the Bulls

Before I begin this story, I want to mention that it takes place in Jodhpur, a city in Rajasthan. I went there a week ago. I wanted to post the blog but I was a little tired of being on the computer to write the story! Also, update on pictures… they are coming!

So the story…

Sam, my friend and roommate, loves animals. I mean he really loves animals. Every time we see an animal it seems that he stops and goes to look at it and touch it if possible. I think he is amazed by the animals because in India, they are just everywhere on the street. Cows, goats, dogs, sometimes even pigs all seem to litter the street. No one here seems to give them second thought, they are just a part of the landscape. The common joke is that Sam should either live on a farm with animals or run a petting zoo. He would be ultimately happy doing that (or so we think).

Now cows are everywhere in India. They are considered holy so they are given free range to roam all over the place. And I do mean all over the place. They will just lay down in the middle of a highway and the traffic will be stopped. To Sam, this is like a mini paradise. He loves to touch the cows. I am pretty used to this too; after all, I do live with him. Every once in a while the cow gets a little annoyed and turns his head and Sam quickly stops.

In Jodhpur, the city streets are small and wind everywhere. They are small and cramped but have a lot of charm to them. Cows wander these roads too. Since they are rather narrow, there isn’t a whole lot of passing room when a cow is there. So as we were walking in a single file line to get past a cow, Sam pets it as usual. But this time the cow bucks his head (and this cow had like 2 foot long horns) and begins to run a little at us. We all run away form it, and I ran up some stairs) until the cow finally stops and meanders in its usual way. From now on, I am walking behind Sam. All I could think of was being impaled by a cow. How awful would that be? “So how did Tyson get injured?” “Well, a cow impaled him with its two foot horns.” So basically, I did a mini running of the bulls (although not by choice!)… in Jopdhpur… like ya do… Ahhhh, India.