having a great life in spite of everything

Scarborough Renaissance Festival—the one in Waxahachie—begins April 10 and runs through the end of May. The larger Texas Ren Fest outside of Houston is probably better known, but Scarborough definitely has a charm the big one can’t match. A few years ago, Texas Ren Fest cut a large number of acts, and before that they eliminated the lane entertainments (small performances that seem to appear spontaneously in the streets). They still have the chain mail show (never to be missed!) and they have a grander, more polished overall feel. They even have one pub with air-conditioning. It’s almost Disney-esque in its renaissancery. The smaller fair, while lacking the large infrastructure, has a more personable feel, more like what the Texas fair used to be like.

One of my favorite all-time moments happened at Scarborough, when we just happened to be in an outdoor pub and caught Sholo the Nubian reciting an epic poem.

awesome in his scariness

You can see Sholo at the Texas Ren Fest, too, but I’ve never seen him reciting there.

Both fairs are about the same drive distance from Austin, and they cost roughly the same. There’s several of the same acts and vendors, and of course they both have a large selection of various meats-on-a-stick and other trashy food. They have plenty in common (they are both renaissance fairs, after all), but their personalities are a little different. Which is a good thing, really.