The Mighty Race Limousine: The National Limousine Cow Show in Limoges

The great Limousine, its enormous brown bulk spotted in green pastures across the Limousin, is the source of much pride for residents and restauranteurs alike. (Just check out the large billboard on the A20 highway outside Limoges as proof: the cow's massive outline sketched on the sign, courtesy of some local Culture/Heritage department.)

Last weekend we stopped by the National Limousine Show in Limoges, where breeding cows were auctioned off for staggering amounts (try $10,000, and more), the huge cows sweated and munched hay in the heat, and adorable farmers-- all dressed alike in jeans, white button-downs, and blue ties (the cow's image at the bottom)-- affectionately brushed and fussed over their animals before leading them in a parade around the ring, their fine bones and musculature on display for thousands of spectators. All waited with bated breath for the judges' announcement of the 2006 Miss Limousine.

I learned some alarming things: 1. the rings in the cows' noses are the only ways to control these massive beasts. I watched one cow lick the blood from the inside of his newly-pierced nose with a very-long tongue and pitied it. But imagine the difficulty of maneuvering them; most of these cows weigh TONS. 2. the French do eat horsemeat (we overheard a conversation about the fate of a certain race of horse, also on display in the ring. I'll leave it at that.)