For my ethnography project, I chose life at the Spina Farms Pumpkin Patch (The SFPP) that is located in San Jose, California. This place seemed interesting to me because I have never been there and I wanted to know about this culture. What I expected from this place is that it was going to be a place where you can go and just buy what you need. Nothing special, nothing interesting. Over the past few weeks, I have spent several hours there observing the norms and the culture of the Pumpkin Patch. My observation mainly focused on the parents who bring their children to this place. The Pumpkin Patch is the best place to show children American tradition to buy a pumpkin in October and spend time with family.
My observations took place from the view on the bench overseeing the whole farm, as well as time spent walking around the perimeter. I have taken careful notes on the overall behaviors of the visitors that I will outline in the next few paragraphs.
The SFPP is located in beautiful Coyote Valley in San Jose. It took us almost one hour to drive there, but it worth it. When you get there, you can see that the parking there as big as Target's parking, so there are always many people. At the entrance, you see friendly staff who meet you and say "hi". As you come in, you can see the largest pumpkins they grow for this fall that I could not even lift. I was very shocked; they were four times bigger than regular pumpkin. The boldest children were trying to climb on them and their parents were taking pictures. Also, you can see the group tents or the picnic area where people usually have snacks. On the right side of the farm, there is a petting zoo with small farm animals that you can feed. On the left side, there is a place where you can take a hayride on antique tractor. The rest of the free space is occupied with pumpkins. You can walk between them and choose the one that you like.
The SFPP is the large farm with a big amount of pumpkins different kind and shape.