Sorry for the lack of postings guys, I’ve had practically no free time to blog between work and school. But I’m three weeks away from freedom (aka graduation)!
Looking for a getaway, Peter and I, along with our roommate Connor, took a day trip to the Louisiana Renaissance Festival on Saturday.
Peter wore the chainmail he’s been working on for the last few months and I dressed up a mythical faun. 
Connor also wore a tabard and was rocking his Cthulhu hat. 
The festival was surprisingly large, with a sprawling map of vendors, performers, and events.
We got there about noon but had waited to eat all day in anticipation for good festival food. We were not disappointed.
Connor got some beer cheese soup in a bread bowl.
I was pleasantly surprised by there being a vendor that advertised having vegan food! Phil’s Mediterranean Grille had an item called vegan medley that could be served in a sandwich, on fries, or with hummus. They also had other vegetarian options like the black bean gypsy burger that Peter got.
The people running it were extremely friendly and hilarious to listen to. They were also very knowledgeable about what was vegan-friendly.
I went with the Greek fries option (which were tender red potato fries with seasoning) and asked the server to top it with everything vegan, which I expected to be two or three things. Because of this mistake glorious accident I ended with a smorgasbord of toppings. 
Here is my monster of a meal (which I struggled to finish half of) with the toppings of black beans, curry rice pilaf, steamed vegetables, sauteed onions and peppers, and fresh tomatoes.
Oh my gosh, so much food and so good. Honestly it wasn’t a bad deal either for $10, because most festivals you get half the amount of food for that price.
After stuffing ourselves, we wandered around the rest of the areas.
There were plenty of shops selling various wares (dragon puppets, glass trinkets, drinking horns, etc.) and several weapons shops too. 
One of the best things about Renaissance Fairs is the constant streams of music coming from different performers. We saw people playing lutes, pipes, guitars, bagpipes, and even didgeridoos.
A dueling competition took place. It looked very similar in technique and rules to the fencing I did in high school, just double the fun because of the two swords.
We decided to try out some weapons of our own at the crossbow shooting range. None of us had used one previous, so I’m sad to say Connor is the only one who managed to hit a target.
This festival had more learning demonstrations than any other I’ve previously visited. There was a blacksmith forge with people creating knives, horse shoes, and jewelry. The young girl below was a silver smith creating a key.
My favorite demonstration was the woman making natural dyes. Everything from turmeric to onion skins to ground acorns. We stood and talked for a while as she dyed yarn and learned about different techniques and easy beginner projects.
The day had a grand finale with a performance by Paolo Garbanzo, a comedic juggler who we’ve previously seen at the Tennessee Renaissance Festival.
Armed with juggling pins, flaming sticks, a lobster hat, and D&D jokes, Paolo had us laughing until we were in tears. A great way to finish a fun-filled day and we wouldn’t hesitate to return next year.
