8
Stepping back in time
with the ladies and lords of the
Renaissance Festival
he Texas Re-
naissance
Festival is an
experience for
the senses. As
soon as you
fall under the spell of this mag
ical kingdom, you are over
whelmed with a host of plea
surable sensations that tempt
the body and tantalize the
mind.
The experience begins be
fore you even arrive on the fes
tival grounds in the piney
woods near Plantersville. As
you leave your school books
and the rest of civilization be
hind and drive down the curv
ing farm-to-market road that
leads to the site, you begin to
sense the carefree Renaissance
spirit.
Before you even enter the
front gates, you see people
dressed in unusual attire, with
Robin Hood-type hats and
capes and tights. After you pay,
somewhat hesitantly, the $12
admission fee, you begin to
take in the strange sights that
surround you.
But once your eyes make it
past the men in tights and the
buxom women with dollar bills
in their cleavage, you will see
before you a whole new world
—a Renaissance kingdom.
As in a quaint town in the En-
The muppet-like “What’s it” and an inquisitive young
passer-by check each other out.
glish countryside, baskets of
hanging flowers adorn every
corner. And the streets are filled
with endless rows of shops
where merchants sell crafts of
all shapes and variety. The
goods for sale range from
leather to lace, and the only re
minder of civilization as you
know it is found in a sign in a
shop window that reads “Ye
olde Visa and American Ex
press accepted here."
And then there are the peo
ple. They, too, come in all
shapes and sizes, from royalty
to peasant, from wizard to
wench. They wear knightly suits
of armor with swords at their
sides. They wear flowing
dresses and wreaths of flowers
in their hair, or — to the delight
of male festival goers — they
wear practically nothing at all.
You see tightrope walkers
and sword fighters. You see for
tune tellers and jugglers. You
see little wooden booths with
signs that proclaim “Paint thy
face." Your eyes are constantly
moving, trying to take every
thing in.
And just when you think
you’ve finally become accus
tomed to the Renaissance
sights, you realize that there are
other sight-seers around you —
Continued on page 10
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Story by Karen Kroesche
Photos by Bill Hughes
The Swc