2010 Tennessee Renaissance Festival

I think that this year is the 25th annual Tennessee Renaissance Festival and I'm ashamed to admit that it is the first year I have ever been to it.  It certainly won't be the last though because it is quite a show!  I went three times during the time that it ran, and it was well worth the trip.  A really interesting experience, and one that I really enjoyed.

The event is held each weekend in May and is located on a farm near Triune, TN.  The area simulates a 16th century English village of Covington Glen.  It is quite elaborate and the period costumes and accents are amazingly well done.

Visitors can enjoy several different shows and concerts that are held at various times during the day, or they can partake of numerous concessions that are available.  They can also just wander around and enjoy the sights much as I did.

Needless to say, the most interesting sight at the festival are the people themselves.  An enormous amount of effort has gone into these costumes, and most of those I talked with spoke with an English accent.

May weather in Tennessee is sometimes unpredictable.  The past two weeks when I was there it was hot and humid as only the southeast can be.  Standing in the shade wearing a t-shirt I was sweating so I can only imagine how it felt in some of those costumes.  But look at the smiles on their faces.  The smiles aren't painted on, they genuinely seemed to be having a lot of fun, and that's what it was all about.

A medieval village without a bunch of fairies and imps running around causing trouble would be, in my imagination, much like a day without sunshine.  These girls were the sunshine in this village.  I was there three times and these girls were always there with a smile on their face, a wave for a kid, and always causing trouble.  They did a fantastic job and earned some special recognition.

And what would a renaissance festival be without a joust?  Having never seen one before it's hard for me to comment on the accuracy but it seemed pretty realistic to me!

There was also a display of "Raptors".  These birds are not stuffed, they are restrained but most certainly alive!  They are also quite beautiful animals.

There were a pair of camels there that kids could ride on.  I decided that my weight on a camel might literally be the straw that broke the camel's back so I contented myself with taking a couple of photographs of them.