A Return to the Renaissance

By: Meghan 
Last year our family had our very first visit to King Richard’s Faire in Carver. Held on an 80 acres forested lot, filled with permanent, fantastical structures, it is easy to lose yourself in the surroundings and imagine you have stepped back in time. Our trip last year was fun and magical, both of my children were young enough (5 and 3) that they were easily caught up in the fantasy. Throughout the year, my daughter spoke about being knighted. My youngest would tell people she had been to princess school. A dragon pet that my oldest bought as her souvenir became a cherished and dearly loved friend, greatly needed as kindergarten presented more challenges than expected.

After I wrote my review last year, I did not anticipate how large the Faire would loom in their memories and how important that experience was to them. One of the wonderful aspects of being a parent is seeing the world from their perspective, and as they shared their memories and opinions about the Faire over the course of the year, I began to see King Richard’s Faire from their point of view. As they began to see signs for the Faire and repeatedly asked to return, I knew we would once again be going to “Carvershire.”  (picture courtesy of King Richard’s Faire).

Photo courtesy of King Richard's Faire

I was curious to see if it would have the same effect on them now that they are another year older and my big girl especially is moving farther and farther away from magical thinking. However, as we walked through the gates and we were greeted by “whale spit” bubbles practically as large as they; the magic began to take hold. 

Photo of King Richard's Faire

We spent the first hour walking around the grounds and taking in all the sights. And what sights there were! Princesses, fairies, lords and ladies, the king and queen themselves. There were warriors and knights, elves and jesters. We use this time to identify all the rides and games we may want to participate in and also start looking at the amazing wares for sale by the artisans. The girls are allowed to pick a certain number of rides and this time allows them to begin the decision making process on what rides/games they will do. 

Photo of King Richard's Faire

We made our way to the jousting field just in time for the King’s Tournament. There are three jousts every day culminating in a joust to the death. My sensitive girls can’t handle mortal combat so we haven’t seen that show yet, but I hear it is thrilling! Instead we enjoy the more genteel first and second shows which truly show off the tremendous skills these knights have gained. There are four knights to root for and each section of the crowd has their own champion. The horses are beautiful and it’s such a treat to see them put through their paces in this way, this type of action is not usually seen in the riding ring! 

Photo of King Richard's Faire

We all love the jousts, they are truly the top attraction for our family, and my youngest has a special place in her heart for Sir Jeffery, drawing this picture after we had returned home. There he is, Sir Jeffrey and his happy horse.

After seeing the King’s Tournament we began taking in the shows and riding on the rides. There is just so much to do and see, I can understand why some people make this a two day affair. My girls were kind enough to rank the shows from their perspective and these are their top three shows:

TOP 3 SHOWS FOR KIDS BY FIONA AND COCO

1.       The Tale of The Tiger – Big Cat Show – this one ranks at the top of the list for them because they are real deal cat lovers (with an allergic dad, so no kitties at home) and these larger than life cats were amazing to see up close. Also, the girls were so excited that there was a young Liger in the show this year. One of the few disappointments last year was that the Liger was not well enough to travel. The cubs were ridiculously adorable!

Photo of King Richard's Faire

2.       Vicious and Delicious – These two charming young acrobats put on such a great show that we had to stop and watch them whenever my girls caught sight of their act. Juggling, acrobatics, humor, contortionism, among other excitement kept the girls enthralled.

Photo of King Richard's Faire

3.       Paolo Garbanzo – the fire breather and juggler, Coco said “that’s not safe mom” but they also couldn’t believe their eyes! He is an award winning entertainer and puts on a great show!

Photo of King Richard's Faire

TOP 3 SHOWS FOR GROWN-UPS BY ME
 (who, thanks to the fabulous hubby, was lucky enough to sneak away from the kids to check them out!)

1.       Washing Well Wenches – These bawdy ladies have been a staple of the Faire for awhile now and it’s easy to see why. Their raucous humor and raunchy jokes are fun and great for grown-ups. Not for the kiddie crowd though as noted in the flyer you receive on entry, which identifies shows that are PG-13 or R so you don’t inadvertently expose the kiddos to topics they’re not quite ready for. Don’t sit in the front row though unless you’re looking to cool off, you’ll definitely end up with a good soaking!

Photo of King Richard's Faire

2.       The Mud Show – This is another great show for the grown-ups, very silly and good fun with lots of laughter and audience participation. Physical humor such as muddy face plants and a finale where one of the performers has to actually eat mud kept the audience involved and hysterical. Watch out for muddy smooches from the “sturdy beggars”! 

Photo of King Richard's Faire

3.       Jacques Ze Whipper – You may remember from last year my, ahem, enjoyment of this performer. Jacques puts on a great show with his whip skills and his personality adds to the fun (think Pepe Le Peu). He has a flaming whip people! 

Photo of King Richard's Faire

A quick note on the shows, all of the performers ask for tips afterwards and though they’re certainly not required a small tip is a nice way to show your enjoyment of their skills and hard work as well as a great way for the kids to meet their favored performers and say thanks.

Between shows we went to the gaming glen where you can find games of skills and man-powered rides. The games included archery, throwing knives, canon shooting, and other games that you certainly won’t find at any typical carnival. The girls forego the games though to use their allotted money for the rides. The rides are just great and a real taste of history for them. They are all operated by people pushing them or by ropes and pulleys or other simple mechanical systems that the kids are likely learning about in school. They are fun to ride and let the kids feel like they were enjoying experiences that kids in the Renaissance would have enjoyed as well.

We all enjoyed a ride on the Nina (next to her sister ships, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria, quite appropriate for Columbus Day weekend) and used our rope pulleys to swing higher and higher. 

Photo of King Richard's Faire

Coco loved riding on the pony (no really, she did)! And yes, she is dressed up like a cat. They had those in the Renaissance too, right?

Fiona loved the Jacob’s Ladders which look simple but were twisting and twirling and, as far as I could tell, impossible to climb to the top.

All the rides are an additional cost around $2-4/ride, which brings me to an important point about the Faire, there are a lot of additional costs. The food, the rides, the tips, the souvenirs, it all adds up and you could easily spend a fortune. To avoid this we make a clear budget and share it with the girls in this way: this is what we are spending on food (this means you can get one snack and one treat), this is what we are spending on rides (that equals this specific number of rides), you can each get one small item at the end of the day to take home. Additionally we knew to bring change and dollar bills for tips during the day.

All of this is discussed beforehand with the kiddos so that there are no surprises and they can put thought into their choices while at the Faire. We eat a big lunch before we arrive and spend the food money on an afternoon snack and a treat. Which for me was hard cider served in a glass with sugar and cinnamon on the rim – why did I never think to do that?! It’s delicious!! While we are walking around we identify all the ride options and they can start narrowing down their choices. We also look at all the items that are for sale and they can think about their choice throughout the day. This preparation keeps the Faire affordable for us and reduces the likelihood of meltdowns throughout the day. I was shocked when this method worked last year and that it worked again this year, but miracles happen and we’ll keep using it until it stops working. 

There are gluten free, lactose free, and vegan food choices at the Faire, which is awesome and so helpful for food allergy families! But there are still lots of nuts around, “The King’s Nuts” are one of their big sellers, so if your kiddo has a nut allergy this is not the place to bring them. Maybe in future years the Faire will consider this and make it a safe environment, but as of this year that’s not the case. I saw the “king’s nuts” littered around the jousting area and I was sad that we would not be able to recommend the Faire to our Cape Cod Moms that have family members with nut allergies. I hope this changes because it seems short sighted to cut out an entire section of customers just to continue selling the “king’s nuts.”  

In any case, back to our adventure. This year the girls chose not to attend Princess Academy and Knight School, but they give them their strongest recommendation – “Do it, you have to do the schools!”  These schools are so fun for the kids and the kids get to meet the King, the Queen, the Princesses, and the knights. It is a great, interactive experience for the kids and they also get to go out onto the jousting field. These schools are held in the Kids’ Cove which is an enclosed area for families. In addition to these interactive activities, there are also quiet, individual activities kids can do if they need a bit of a break from so much going on around them. There is also a few little nooks in there that are good for solo hiding time for those kiddos that just need a break in the middle of all of the festivities.

The vendors were again amazing, the amount of work and skill that these people have is really remarkable. The girls both chose to buy dragons from Dragon Pets, a wonderful vendor who goes above and beyond for their customers. 

This is the final weekend of the Faire for the 2014 season. I hope you and your kiddos go and have a fantastic time! We will certainly be back to see what’s new in Carvershire in 2015!

For planning purposes:

The Faire is at 235 Main Street (Route 58) in Carver, MA

Pets and outside food and drinks are not allowed on Faire grounds

You can find more info about King Richard’s Faire at www.kingrichardsfaire.net or on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest.