A few weeks ago, when we saw the billboard near Jefferson City, MO advertising “TESTICLE FESTIVAL,” we knew this was one event we couldn’t miss. Today was the day of the long awaited event! Olean, Missouri, population 128 grows by leaps and bounds for their annual unique festival. The city’s Jaycees club has been putting this on for the last 20 years to raise money for the community and put their tiny town on the map.
We got there and we were met by a dozen or so folks in brightly colored staff shirts waving us into their town. We aren’t sure, but it seems like there is only one way in and one way out of Olean. So every vehicle coming into town paid the admission price. We parked and had a look around. The night before came a torrential downpour, so everything was soggy. We believe that perhaps that scared away some vendors, but there were still several that didn’t let a little mud dampen their spirits.
The line for the Jaycees testicle booth stretched the length of downtown. We weren’t sure that we wanted to partake in the festival’s main dish, but we looked at each other and said “Why Not?” We overheard a young boy say to his parents, “I can’t believe we are doing this!” We just had to chuckle, because we couldn’t believe we were doing it either. Turns out that another name for the dish is turkey fries. They were small and with enough ranch or mustard on them, the deep fried nuggets were tolerable.
Now I don’t know if it was the curvy road or the thought of what we ate, but by the time I got home, I wasn’t feeling quite right. I’m sure it’s all in my head. We have no regrets, after all if we didn’t go, how could we be “Been There Doing That?”
Click below to play the slideshow of our picture gallery.
