The “Wild” Middle East
Who would have ever expected cowboys and rodeos to be a hit in Lebanon? All last week, rodeos, bull-riding competitions and other “western” festivities have been taking place at El Rancho. They even managed to bring over the Rednex (remember “Cotton-eyed Joe”?) to perform for two nights. Serious blast-from-the-past and guess what, they’re Swedish.
The participants in the bull-riding events were from all over the middle east and they take the sport very seriously. Some of the riders have had serious injuries but jump on that angry bull each time hoping to beat their records. It takes 8 minutes to win the challenge, but trust me, it’s not that easy.
All around me were Lebanese families clad up in cowboy hats, girls in frilly cowboy boots and men in plaid shirts tucked into washed-out jeans. Even outside the ranch, the “western” trend is picking up in Beirut..
