This was the final season for the
Flaming Idiots
.
The Idiots are making the move to Broadway
and the club circuit.
Gyro, Walter and Pyro ... we wish you well, but
you certainly will be missed!
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New this year are the
Washer Women of Scarborough
.
The job of the washer women is to wash clothes.
I heard a lot of talk about this, but never
actually saw any clothes being washed. But
there was a lot of water involved and a lot of
people got very, very wet. Which was not a bad
thing on those hot Texas days.
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Every year I have to treat myself to something new, and this year
it was a fancy leather pouch from
Highland Anvil.
This is only a small sample of what you can find here;
Charles and Athena also have breatplates, crowns,
masks and jewelry.
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If you are looking for good blades,
Starfire Swords
is the place to shop.
I picked up a bodice dagger here, but as you can
see, Starfire also has larger blades.
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That daring duo
WhipFlash!
is
back again.
I finally caught their "bullet catch" performance;
yes, Lauren really fires a pistol at Jim and he
really does catch the bullet in his teeth.
This is so awesome that it's really hard to believe.
I keep looking for the trick ... and of course, I
haven't found it since there isn't one.
I wonder how one learns a stunt like this; you
have to do it right the first time!
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Over at the Ship Stage
is one of my favorite singing groups,
The Corsairs
.
Not only can these pirates Yo-ho-ho, they also
entertain with witty repartee, professional
choreography and special effects (selected songs only).
And if you buy a CD they will autograph it!
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It seems that every year there are more and more men
running around Scarborough in kilts, waving claymores
and speaking with funny accents.
One of the places you can find the Scots in great number
is the Chess Match.
Sometimes they get a wee bit excited and it's hard to
tell just who they are fighting ... themselves or their
opponents!
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Another place where you can find Scots is the
Highland Games
where brawny, kilted men play such games as
Weight for Height, Weight for Distance and Caber Toss.
This particular hunky Scot is competing in the
Caber Toss.
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Scent was an important part of everyday life in the
Renaissance. Either you were trying to avoid it
or mask it with perfumes and oils such as can
be found at
The Perfumery.
My favorite scent is frankincense (yeah, give
me that pure, expensive stuff every time) ... it
goes well with amber (my favorite gem).
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The Mud Beggars
are everywhere!
This enterprising beggar earns his coin with that
frying pan you see in his hand.
No, I won't tell you what he does with it, but
I will say that it's a wonder that his brains
are not scrambled!
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What would a faire be without exotic animals?
There are elephants, camels and
llamas
to ride and a barnyard petting zoo
adjacent to the Joust. Those chickens quickly learned
to avoid the lists when the horses
were out!
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One of the guest performers this year was
The Duelists
.
This only one of two acts that I have seen in recent
years where the female member of the team was just
as proficient in swordplay as the male members (FYI,
the other act is To The Hilt).
Singing, swordplay and comedy ... The Duelists
will make you laugh!
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Every evening the Court gathers together for a
Final Sing.
Everyone is invited to participate.
Afterward the King and Queen lead the way to
the front gate for the final Huzzah!
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Over by the Birds of Prey you can find one
of the newest buildings in the Village.
I've been told that this tower houses the
dungeon and
that anyone who wishes may tour the installation.
Personally, I'm not into that sort of entertainment,
but I do think that the building itself is quite
wonderous looking.
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