Before we 'enter' the festival, though, we must review the rules:
So, why are pets and coolers lumped in with firearms and replica guns? Maybe back in the day there were pet ocelots or skunks or wild boars or other dangerous pets. And, although you mustn't bring guns or fake guns, you can certainly bring your sword - but don't forget to sheath it! The guy in front of us in line almost didn't get in because his 'sheath' was a rifle case. I wouldn't want to be him in a dual - he'll be dead before he gets the case unzipped!
There are basically five things to do at the Tennessee Renaissance Festival. First, there are lots of shows to see. The shows have movie ratings and most of them are rated G or PG. The first show I dragged Basil to was the PG-rated belly dancing show. See how the ladies are mostly covered, especially the one in the middle.
Buckle and Swash put on a G-rated comedy pirate show. They were pretty entertaining. They started the show by telling the rules.
Rule #1: Kids, don't ever get a Liberal Arts degree.
Of course, there was jousting. It got up to about 90 degrees yesterday. I would not want to be the fair young maiden who does this guy's laundry after a hard day at the arena!
Second, there are lots of things to buy: steak on a stick, deep fried candy bars, turkey legs, fresh-squeezed lemonade, medieval clothing, real swords, play swords, and lots more.
These guys sold marshmallow catapults. They had lots of fun shooting at passersby. This guy shot some at my mouth. I was 'all astonishment' when I caught the 3rd one.
I took this picture for my dad. I'm pretty sure it's not the same King Cone that he frequented in Oregon.
Third, there are games, activities, and a few rides. The unique thing about the rides is that they're human-powered. This kid is ready to go. Behind him you can see the gear-thing that the guys are going to spin to get the ride moving.
These guys were going through gallons of liquid. Again, I would not want to do their laundry! After they got the ride going, they would manually spin each kid in his hammock.
On this ride, you pay to do all the work. These kids were moving pretty fast and I was hoping that the ride would not live up to its name!
Fourth, and my favorite, you can people watch. It seems that going to a Renaissance Festival is an excuse to dress up in any bizarre outfit that you want and get away with it. I didn't take nearly as many pictures of the people as I wanted to. Next year, we're going to come back with Basil's good camera and take lots of people pictures.
With this guy we tried to do the sneaky 'I'm taking a picture of my wife and you happen to be in the picture' trick.
Then I just gave up and talked to him and asked if we could take a picture. He wasn't in any of the shows and confessed to just having 'an expensive hobby'. I was surprised to learn that he bought his leather armor at Esty.
A medieval butterfly-lady? There were lots of butterfly wings. Or maybe they were fairy wings. Basil thinks it was more like a Renaissance/Tolkien Festival.
This guy was big and imposing. I named him Horse Guy. I have to post three pictures of him. The first one to show what I saw first, the second one to show his profile, and the third one to show that he doesn't look so scary after all. See, you just can't judge a guy by his Renaissance regalia.
It's funny that, after seeing all these crazy outfits, the family that stood out the most was the Hawaiian Renaissance family with elf children. Can you find the dad?
Here's one more people-watcher photo before we move on to the castle. Seeing the castle is the fifth thing to do when at the festival.
On second thought, I'll post about the castle tomorrow because this is already waaaay longer that it needs to be.
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