I've been saying that I would write about my shoe crushes but it keeps getting pushed to a later post for more exciting things! Last weekend, Ben and I went to the Renaissance festival during a themed weekend (Roman Bacchanal). I've only been twice before but I have no recollection of those two times... so it felt like my first time! And yes, it was Ben's first time too. I was giddy just parking the car in the forest and walking to the entrance. Giddy enough to warrant a photo on my cell phone and candid enough to deserve a spot as my current FB photo.

I wore the boots Ben gave me last year during Black Friday. They were especially useful for the area, the setting, and the rain. We took a calculated risk with the 30% precipitation warning on the weather website. We ended up being completely wrong because it rained TWICE. The weather gradually went from hot, to humid, to cold but despite the unpredictable weather, we had a ton of fun. I love the fact that the employees in the festival stayed in character. I think I could get used to being called 'milady,' I mean, who wouldn't? And a big chunk of money was spent just eating! But I suppose it can be forgiven because of all the walking we did. I underestimated the size of the map so the soreness at the end of the day was enough to knock us out by the time we got back to my place.

There were a lot of things to do in this gorgeous festival in the middle of the forest; we tried to do as much as we could without feeling rushed. I can't count the number of tiny little shops we visited! Each one was a little different than the last; they sold beautiful pieces of jewelry, quills, fancy boots, and the list goes on and on! There was one booth claiming that we could know our moon phases and wear them around our necks. Apparently, I'm a full moon and Ben is a second rising moon. The jewelry was pretty but a bit pricey for my wallet. I was interested in the shop selling family coat of arms but I think Ben was more enamored with the weapon and armor store. It was like a tiny little museum in that shop. Everything was a veritable feast for the eyes!

We watched a joust tournament in the arena; we were sitting on the German side and we actually won. I think it has something to do with the Fabio-esque appearance of our rider, but that's just me haha. We stuffed our faces near the King's Table area and listened to wench in a dunking booth liken the repeated misses to missing a lady's G-spot . That was exceptionally humorous because she had the most interesting insults to yell out. We only hung around for 15 minutes but her goading words were enough to rack up an easy hundred bucks! We watched several belly dancers near the Agora and managed to catch the last tunes of a vaudeville trio in the Odeon. Ben and I shot arrows at a dragon (a wooden one, but a dragon all the same!). I even tried on a dress corset!



I've been a bit obsessed with costume props and half the the shops we visited were costume shops. There was a wide array of dresses, skirts, hats, tiaras, etc. I was sorely tempted to get this one item but was able to keep from purchasing it. Did manage to snag a photo though!

There were lots of people in full costumes walking around. I even saw a family where both parents were dressed in costume, and their two children as well being pulled along in a wagon. The quality of costumes on everyone made me and Ben promise to try something similar the next time go to the festival. There were plenty of people walking around that probably would've been open to being asked to take a photo with... but I only worked up the nerve to ask one of them!

Also, there's a sort of restaurant in the heart of the festival called the King's Feast. Ben and I wandered closer when we were first thinking about eating. It didn't take long for us to realize that it was an unofficial reservation-required kind of place. A woman in front of us was kind enough to explain that we would literally be served a king's feast. She apparently booked her reservation four months prior with her boyfriend. It was nice because she blurted out that it was their three year anniversary. Her excitement was catching and .

We walked away from her, talking about how her and her boyfriend looked only a couple years older than us. I guess we felt some sort of pride that we weren't too far away from that milestone either? It would be nice to celebrate our third year anniversary in a place like this but I don't think they have this in February? 

In any case, it was one of the best days ever! It's definitely going down as one of my favorite dates. I really need to visit a photo development place and get these photos in some frames! And next time, (hopefully), I'll write about several shoes I've been lusting after!