Roman Fair!
This is slightly off-topic, I know (unless we stretch the definition of historical fiction...) but I thought I'd share anyway: every year in late May, my town dresses up its children and willing adults for a weekend and goes out into the streets to pretend we're back in the days when we were part of the Roman Empire. The result is goofy, slightly chaotic, historically inaccurate, and immensely fun. There are market stalls, parades, mock gladiator fights, music, and lots of people dressed up all over the historical centre of the town. It looks like this:
I'll quit ignoring my Google Reader and return to actually posting about books next Monday. Have a great weekend, everyone!
I'll quit ignoring my Google Reader and return to actually posting about books next Monday. Have a great weekend, everyone!
56 comments:
Okay, I SO want to come to your town at Roman Fair time! That looks like a ton of fun.
Memory, if you ever make it here you get free accommodation and a private interpreter/tour guide :P
That has to be so much fun. I wish I could live in a town like that. You're lucky:)
Instead I live in the most boring place ever :(
What fun! Thanks for sharing the pictures.
I love the photos...thank you ever so much for giving us a glimpse into the streets that you walk...this festival looks like fun!
Eeeek! I love this! What a fun and crazy idea! How long has the tradition been going on? Thanks for the great photos.
Wonderful pictures! I loved the picture which has women and children wearing everyday clothes from Roman times - it is so beautiful and takes one to a different era! What is the name of the decoration that they are wearing on their hair? - some of them look like they are made of olive leaves and others seem to be just a decorated string. I also liked the picture where Obelix is walking in the middle of the street :)
What is the name of your town? It looks like a lovely place to live :)
This looks like so much fun! Thanks for sharing!
ZOMG...Ana, that looks like so much fun!!!! And your town...wow!!! It looks absolutely gorgeous!!! (Sorry for the profusion of exclamation points, but I just couldn't help myself!)
How fun!!! I loved looking at all the photos. Thanks so much for sharing.
Wow - that looks like so much fun. You have been missed this week. So quiet without both you and Amanda!
This looks so fun! It would be a good idea to schedule a book festival for bloggers there at the time of the fair! :--)
wow, soooo fun. Thanks for the pics
Wow, great pictures Nymeth. I would love to visit your town!
you make me love your town & hope to visit it
thanks, great town
That looks like so much fun! :)
This looks really fun!
That looks like a lot of fun, Nymeth! You took some great pictures!
What fun! :D
How UTTERLY cool. Sort of like a twisted Mardi Gras! I want to come and play!
wow, how cool is that!
great post nymeth
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Your town is brilliant! I want to go too.
What a wonderful Fair! Everyone looks like they are having a great time and your town is absolutely beautiful. Have a great weekend.
How fun! I wish I lived in your town!
OMG Ana!! That's incredible :D The closest we have is the occasional Renaissance Festival :p Braga looks incredible!! The streets are gorgeous. Damn, I want to come visit now so bad, lol. More more!!!
Oh goodness, this looks like so much fun. What a pretty town you live in :)
It looks like a hoot!
How fun! It looks like it would be such a great time. Thank you for sharing a slice of life in your country with us. :-)
That sounds fantastic!! It looks like so much fun!
I love dressing up for events! No matter how silly it looks or how chaotic it gates, fairs like this one are always so much fun! Hope you had a great time… :)
Ha ha, that is so funny! Where did they get the idea from to do this? I bet lots of people from neighboring towns come to look at your town's people. A great festival!
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Looks wonderful!
Looks like great fun for all the family, Ana plus no rain and warm enough to wear togas - I'm moving!! ;-)
How fun! I hope you dressed up and took part in the fun and festivities!
I am so jealous! That looks like so much fun to me, and unfortunately my neck of the woods has nothing like this. Maybe I'll win the lotto and next year be able to fly out to you!
Oh my! What a neat little festival! I imagine that you had a really nice time and the pictures were wonderful!!
!!Can I move to your town? I love it!
Utterly fantastic!!
What great fun!
WOW!
That's gorgeous! So fun! Where the hell is your town? What is your town??) It looks so beautiful! That's the kind of place I want to live in, if I have to live in a city/town. Toronto is so drab and ugly and uninspiring by comparison! (in comparison with anywhere!)
Oh an Obelix, how funny! You don't live in Gaul do you?
This looks like such a fun event, and your city is absolutely gorgeous! Thanks for sharing the pictures with us.
Thanks, everyone! I'm really glad you enjoyed looking at the pictures. My town is named Braga and it's in Northern Portugal. The Roman fair is a recent tradition - now it its 7th year if I'm not mistaken - and I guess it started because someone realised how popular Medieval and Renaissance festivals were in other towns and saw some potential in all of our Roman ruins and archaeological sites. The interesting thing about it is that when it started, it was a lot more formal than it is now. The first few years, a troupe of actors was hired, and they were the only ones doing the dressing up and the historical reenactment. But then people who were attending started dressing up too, and then school children, and now it's just huge and joyful and chaotic :D Sadly I didn't dress up (my only toga was in the wash ;) ), but who knows, maybe one day in the future. The Obelix cracked me up, btw :D There was an Asterix too, but I didn't manage to get a shot. And Vishy, I think those are laurel wreaths that people are wearing. There were plenty of flower wreaths too.
Also, you should all definitely come visit :P
It looks like tons of fun!!! Any excuse to be a Roman ...
What fun! I didn't know you lived in Portugal. What a beautiful town and they look like they know how to have a good time. But I missed seeing a picture of you...
What fun! Wish I was there!
It looks lovely! I should definitely use the excuse of being a history student to visit sometime ;)
I LOVE this!!! Your town is gorgeous and the only thing missing from these picture is you (even if you didn't dress up this year). Thank you so much for sharing with us! Portugal is high on our lists of European places to visit and we're actually thinking about this fall again if there are no major changes to our personal life. Although--I guess you'll be in the UK then. Boo!
The laurel wreaths are really beautiful! Sorry to know that you couldn't dress up for the fair. When I look again at the Obelix picture, I am able to see Asterix walking behind him discreetly! I have been wanting to visit Portugal ever since I read 'Night Train to Lisbon' and now after seeing your pictures and reading about your town in Wikipedia, I am tempted even more to make that trip :)
that's bizarre! but also looks like a lot of fun:D
That looks really fun. How cool for you. I love local festivals/parades/etc, especially annual ones. There is something comforting about them and I like that sense of community they bring.
As soon as you said Rome I thought Asterix your pictures did not disappoint :)
That looks like so much fun! I'm so excited about all the mediaeval stuff coming up this summer!
That looks wicked cool.
oh WOW. That looks awesome..
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