swedish rodeo

actually, it's austrian rodeo via spain about 500 years ago: the royal lipizzaner stallions of the spanish riding school!  we got some very last minute tickets to see them at stockholm's ericsson globen and were thrilled to have done so--it was like equine ballet.  although not as loud or manic or spectacle-y as the houston livestock show and rodeo (and, really, what else is?), it was lovely.  it was slow, elegant, mannered, intentional, european...and oh my god those horses were remarkably controlled.

unfortunately...i forgot my camera, so these are iphone pictures, hence they are kinda crappy.  sorry about that.

...ahem...at least my family stayed awake...

and...the famous royal lipizzaner capriole kick, which must have freaked the hell out of anyone fighting against the habsburgs:

yeehaw!