Russian camels are on their way to pushing bears off the list of the most popular animals on the RuNet after two videos featuring the desert denizens went viral this week.
In a video originally uploaded to Russian sharing site Pikabu.ru over the weekend, two men are shown fishing by the side of a lake in Siberia's Tyumen region.
As the cameraman turns from left to right, a camel comes into full view.
“Tyumen. Fishing. Camel. The usual!” the cameraman is heard saying, as the fishermen erupt in laughter.
The video, which was uploaded to YouTube several days later, had been viewed almost 25,500 times by Thursday.
“What's the emblem of Chelyabinsk doing in Tyumen?” one commenter joked below the original Pikabu.ru video, referring to the symbol of that Ural mountains city, which is also a camel.
A separate video uploaded on the same day — which cannot be embedded because it contains profanity but you can see here — shows another camel getting up close and personal with two men having a picnic by the side of the River Tura in Siberia.
In truly Russian style, the animal is seen greedily gobbling up a pickled cucumber, as the men collapse into a fit of laughter.
The camel, who is obviously having the munchies, at one point tries to swallow a salt container that the men have left behind on the trunk of their car, but changes its mind and spits it out.
The video ends with the camel giving up and allowing itself to be led away from the party, where it instantly starts munching on some grass.
A Message from The Moscow Times:
Dear readers,
We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."
These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.
Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.
By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.
Remind me later.
