Renaissance Festival

Last week we drove to Charlotte for the Carolina Renaissance Festival. We met up with our good friends who drove in from Chapel Hill. The girls were so happy to see their old friends and they had a wonderful time together. This was our second trip to the Ren Fest. The last time we went was 2 years ago. I was a little disappointed in the "educational" aspect of the event. Between the rides (which all cost extra money) and the circus type shows (that were taking tips) there wasn't much room for learning about the Renaissance time period. For example, the falconry show was really good but it was more like a zoo program. They told us all about 3 different beautiful birds of prey but didn't talk about how they were used or related to the Renaissance theme. Here's a picture of the great horned owl who was amazing to see anyway.

I loved all the musicians that were wondering around. They would stop and play a tune and then speak to us in accents and language that was appropriate for the Renaissance time period. The costumes were all beautiful of course.

The jousting tournament is always really well done. They are all dressed up in armor and the king and queen are there presiding over the event. The crowd is very involved and cheers for the knight on their side.


The other entertainment was certainly a lot of fun! Here are all the girls on the camel ride.
This juggler guy had chosen Arianna and her friend Rose to be a part of the act to hold spinning plates.
I didn't get a picture of the man powered rides, the maze, or the other circus shows. The whole event was worth the trip this time although I don't think we'll go back.