Renaissance Faire
Spent the day out in Casa De Fruita, south of Gilroy with the family. It's always surreal to visit the Renaissance Faire, because it's a lot like visiting your home town once you've moved away. A lot of faces change, some stay the same. You hook up with people you know from the good ol' days, and you're hit with that wave of nostalgia and disorientation that leaves you wondering what your relationship is to the whole experience.
Eli had a great time today, and that's what it's all about to me anyhow. He spent hours at the pistolbow booth, where he shot mini hand crossbows at barbie dolls dressed up like witches, snakes, ghosts, rats and other creepy monster type things inhabiting a 4-foot tall castle. They dubbed him a 'triple captain' and a 'master of archery'. He loved it. We also went to the tourney and watched the jousting match, which was great because it was basically real, and other than just a bit of choreography, these guys were really tilting with real lances (not those cheap break-away kind).
I had my perquisite beer and turkey leg, and got a few new stars to add to my sun necklace to commemorate my two boys. So, I'm happy :).
The drive down and the drive home were brutal, however. I didn't get home until 10:30 PM. If I had any illusions whatsoever of joining back up with that mad mad pastime, the drive pretty much killed it. But, it's good to visit from time to time. Nothing like a bunch of folks reenacting a weekend from 430 years ago.
Hey, speak more on the drive, because I was thinking about taking the family down for a day, but the (three-hour?) drive is really making me think twice...
The drive is brutal. Dri and Jim are doing the commute every weekend (the fools are working it again this year), so they may have the inside track on the best route and quickest way to get there. Of course, we're also traveling with children (as would you be), so you have to work in meal breaks, potty breaks, etc.