I recently went to the Michigan Renaissance Festival. For those of you that are, shall I say, oblivious to the outside world, the Renaissance Festival (also called a RenFaire) is a quasi-festival with a renaissance theme. Folks dress in old garments and pretend they are in old times, except there is plenty of food and nobody has to make a living by shoveling cow crap.
This is the second time I've been to this event. It is pretty fun to walk around and see everyone get in to character. There are lots of acts to see, from musical troupes to candid jesters. The most interesting part was when I was "arrested." Some "friends" of mine purchased a "warrant" for my "arrest" for three "dollars," which was the equivalent of a chicken and a bushel of wheat. I had to sit in the jail cell for a length of time until I was made to confess my sins, at which point I could regain my citizenship. It was similar to the Spanish Inquisition, but I was not tortured and Cardinal Ximenez was not present; either that or he was a lot stumpier than I had imagined. Anyhow, after some time I was dragged up on stage to be publicly humiliated. This did not bother me. I'm a good sport. What bothered me was the prospect of being devoured by the monstrous she-troll that led the shaming exercises.
Here you can see that she is a giant and I have obviously tresspassed on her giant mole-person's sacred ground. I was hoping that one of my friends would save me from such a cruel fate, but they seemed to be under some sort of charming spell that rendered them stupid. It has yet to wear off.
Here we are again, a few moments later. She looks even more displeased with us, and I thought that I was going to be the first course. Eventually, though, sensibility took over and she let us go free. They should have some sort of disclaimer somewhere, stating "BEWARE: Grotesque Ogre-Wenches Be Employed 'Ere!" I would have been more prepared, then.