Who doesn’t associate Texas with the flair of medieval markets, knights, bards, and jugglers? We do, for example! And probably the locals too. That makes it all the more amusing to us that such a “medieval market” has been established near Dallas for 40 years, running for over 8 weeks. So, let’s see what they’re up to and what attracts around 200,000 visitors there every year.
It’s Sunday, Celina doesn’t have to work, the weather looks like it’s going to be good, and it’s vacation time. Off we go to a type of event that we last attended or actively participated in more than 10 years ago in Germany (not without first stopping off at BUC-EE’S, of course).
After a nearly three-hour drive, we arrive at the festival grounds in Waxahachie and are initially overwhelmed by the number of visitor vehicles already parked in the huge parking lot. It’s definitely packed… The girls quickly change in the car and we trudge to the entrance to pay the hefty admission fee of $38 per person.
After being granted admission, we are pleasantly surprised to see how the crowds of visitors are spread out across the grounds, which is hardly surprising given the 140,000 m² of space available. The grounds are huge and equipped with permanent structures. This is not what we remembered from our active days, when there were only tents and wooden stalls.
However, the positive mood is dampened after about 10 minutes when Andrea’s shoes decide to separate from their soles. This does not lead to cheers, but rather to the slowest shuffling movements accompanied by various curses. Then comes the saving idea to solve the problem. Matthias is wearing socks, and his shoes and soles are firmly attached. So Matthias’ socks go over Andrea’s shoes to keep the soles in place as much as possible. It looks silly, but it works.
Now the fun can continue and we stroll across the spacious grounds, marvel at the multitude of stands, stages, and attractions, and smile at the visitors, some of whom are dressed in very bizarre costumes.
So… and as is customary, now it’s time for the knights’ jousting tournament. Four warriors more or less voluntarily squeezed into their armor in the pleasant 40°C heat to entertain the visitors. Thank God we don’t have to do that anymore! We’re already warm enough as it is.
After about three hours, our feet are sore and we head back to the car. After all, we still have a long drive home ahead of us.
We take a quick break at McDonald’s, where Celina is sent to get food and drinks because Andrea doesn’t want to go in wearing her sock-covered shoes. And then the day is already over.
Incidentally, the socks didn’t survive the day…
