Riverside County Fair and International Date Festival

"Riverside County Fair and International Date Festival No. 1 " 

It's that time of year when the county fairs of California begin to entertain and amuse us with sounds, smells, tastes and thrills. This year I started out by going to the Riverside County Fair and International Date Festival out in the desert community of Indio last month. This is the first county fair of the year and even though it was held in February, it was particularly warm. I'm sure the fair would be too uncomfortable for folks to enjoy later in the year when the average temperature is a cool 110º.

Just 30 minutes east of Palms Springs in the Coachella Valley, Indio is considered the date capital of the world! The groves of date palms lined the fair grounds and gave it a distinctive back drop. I had a lovely conversation with "The Queen of the Dates" Ms. Linda Beal who had grown up on a date farm in town. She graciously described the history and mystique of Indio back in the 40's and 50's and showed me her display of memorabilia. Her tales of residence dressing up during the entire week of the county fair in harem pants and fezzes had me intrigued as she showed me the many photographs documenting this mid-century craze.

The exotic nature of the Middle East, the date palms and the similar desert climate inspired the Coachella Valley to market itself as an exotic tourist destination with an Arabian theme. They even renamed local towns to invoke the Middle East as can bee seen in Thermal, Oasis, Mecca and Arabia. 

The Riverside County Fair and International Date Festival has been in operation since 1947, a relative new comer to the older county fairs around California. Yet it emanates a feeling of timelessness that I strive to capture in this series I've been shooting for the past 2 years. From the camel and ostrich races, to the Arabian Nights outdoor stage and the annual Queen Scheherazade beauty pageant, this county fair showed that it was proud of its heritage and happy to share in the bounty of its agricultural past.

All the worlds a fair,

Julie Green
March 26, 2016

"Riverside County Fair and International Date Festival No. 2"

"Riverside County Fair and International Date Festival No. 3"

"Riverside County Fair and International Date Festival No. 4"

"Riverside County Fair and International Date Festival No. 5"