Dragon's Breath

 The Arizona Renaissance Festival is almost at a close!  At the end of the day on April 1st, it will all be over. You'll see acts like Barely Balanced performing throughout the day. 

 I thought this would be a neat sequence to shoot.  Look at the guys in the background.  They make me laugh.  This was a really funny performance.

 And while most people shouldn't play with fire, this group does an excellent job capturing its beauty!

 You'll see fire spectacles throughout the day so keep your eyes open for these hot performances.

On a final note, I am excited to share with you all that my work is being recognized in a book written on UNESCO sites around the world. It's all been confirmed and in January of 2013, it will be out for people to read.  It's written by a Brazilian professor who is featuring several of my pictures from the Coiba Island experience we had last summer.  Now the pics on this post are not very good, but there are better ones on the posts that follow. A lot of time and effort has gone into my work.  And it would be a lie to say that it was all terrible:)  Because it wasn't. Travel is pretty exciting stuff and this is a work of love.  There's so much more to share. Until tomorrow.....

A Game Of Thrones

Right now the Arizona Renaissance Festival is happening near Florence(until April 1st).  It was a great day to celebrate a little sunshine and fun. And for me, it was a chance to work on my photography and horseback riding.

If you've ever read the Game of Thrones series, you'll be fascinated by the jousting competition that is reenacted here at the arena.

                                     
4 knights from 4 different kingdoms fight to the death for the King and Queen's favor.

In George RR Martin's first book, we read about the jousting competitions that go on.  I couldn't understand the excitement from the audience until I participated as an observer myself.  While it wasn't real, I could understand the thrill audience members felt as the knights prepared to fight.

As a photographer, I really admired the beauty of the horses. 

As the knights suited up, the Courteson heckled the other knights.  One Courteson stood for each section of the arena and got the audience screaming and shouting at the other players.  BOOOOOOOO, HIIIIISSSSSSSSSS!:)

And the jousting competition began......

The Blue Knight followed the rules and was considered whiny by most people.....

So he had to work extra hard to win the audience's favor.....

At several points of the match, the other knights tested his resolve....

But he endured the scrutiny....

All 4 jousted.  The yellow was bloodthirsty.  Another was sneaky.  The red was cocky and charming.  And the blue.....

Got into a fight with the cocky and favored knight of the kingdom......

The neutral and rule abiding one stepped in between the fighting knights.  A call to death was demanded by both the audience and knights.....JUSTICE!

The match was approved by the King and Queen and they agreed.....a fight to the death!!!

And so it happened....

All 4 knights fought.....

Sometimes demonstrating honor.....

Weapons ablaze.....

And a fight to be displayed......

For cheering audience members, but the question remains......

Who won?

A fun day with family and friends until April 1st. More tomorrow....

Birding The Renaissance Way

Peregrine Saker Falcon

Cleverly done.  An education program for the public on history and the birds of the Renaissance period.  I had not expected something like this and was surprised to see this exciting show out in the open at the Renaissance Festival near Florence.  It was the first thing we saw as we entered onto the grounds.

Red Tailed Hawk

It began with a presentation on the Red Tailed Hawk.  If you read history novels, you'll find many of these birds mentioned as they were used for hunting purposes by royalty,etc.  My eyes were drawn to the hawk as it flew over my head.

And out from my side, the camera flew into action as I caught this bird in flight.  How were these birds used in ancient times? And how did the hunter operate? The hunter would need a horn for communication with the other hunters. In addition to this the hunter depended on the assistance of certain domesticated animals. Three animals in particular were essential tools for the medieval hunter: the horse, the hound and the hawk (or falcon).

"Medieval terminology spoke of "hawks of the tower" and "hawks of the fist", which roughly corresponds to falcons and hawks, respectively. The female hawk was preferred, since it was both larger than the male and easier to train. Hawks were captured all over Europe, but birds from Norway or Iceland were considered of particularly good quality."

Eagle Owl

"Training a hawk was a painstaking process. It was normal at first to "seel" the bird’s eyelids—sew them shut—so that it would not be scared or distracted. The trainer would then carry the hawk on his arm for several days, to get it accustomed to human presence. The eyes would gradually be unsealed, and the training would begin. The bird would be encouraged to fly from its perch to the falconer’s hand over a gradually longer distance. Hunting game would be encouraged first by the use of meat, then a lure, and eventually live prey. Such prey included herons, sometime with their legs broken to facilitate the kill. " Source Wiki

They also had owls here at this presentation.  What I like about the Birds of Prey presentations held in various outlets like our Renaissance Fair or the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum in Tucson is that many of these birds were rescued and saved from near death.  They are cared for with the utmost respect and are given a second chance at life.  Reasons why they come to a program such as this....humans, a broken wing, fallen out of nest, mother killed in the wild and babies left in the nest, etc.

They then take on a new role in life and educate the public.  This was a really nice surprise for me and made me smile.  Why?  Because there were a lot of people in attendance at this festival watching this program.  Smarter educated humans make better decisions when they come into contact with majestic birds such as these in the wild or around their homes.  For the next shots, I'd like you to take a look at how BIG this Eagle Owl is!!  The above pictures show it flying to the perch.

The wingspan is incredible and they are able to lift larger animals off the ground....like yappy little puppies:) Their wings have also been known to break a human arm. Check out this pic below to see the size of this owl!!!

I'm in love and forever will be with the owl species.  When I heard that there were owls in this show, my heart started beating quickly.  I stood and just stared like a little kid into the owl's eyes.  Let me put this into better perspective....there is the man and the owl flying past his head.  When I saw this picture from my shots, I was just floored by the wingspan next to the human body!

A story that touched my heart.  The Eagle Owl does not live here in Arizona but it is related to the Great Horned Owl....which does live here.  The pic below is a rescued owl with one blind eye.  Many of these cases are human caused and the more I educate myself; the more angry I become with human ignorance...whether it be with a plant, bird or animal.  There is good but there is also ignorance which I have witnessed on many of my treks.

Great Horned Owl

Owls were symbolic and continue to be today.  Intelligence, brilliance, wisdom, power, knowledge,
intuition, messages, mysticism, mystery, unconscious, silent observation, independence, protection, bravery, transition, longevity, reincarnation......."If you are drawn to owls or owl symbolism, you may have this same ability to uncover secrets. People may feel uneasy around you, as if you are able to see through pretence. The owl also teaches us to acknowledge the dark side of our personality, and in that darkness we may find food for growth." Source

Finally, the most associated bird during the Renaissance times was the Peregrine Saker Falcon.  It was the easiest of birds to train for hunting purposes. Fast, quick, agile.....this guy had my heart racing as he sped through the air at high speeds.  The trained Falconer used his chain and spun it around in the air.   The bird took flight quickly.  As the falcon spun through the air at high speeds, an item was thrown up where it was caught in NO TIME by this bird.  I was amazed by the fast movements!

Up up and away! You'll see several of those shots below.....and did you know that Falconry has been around for 3000 years!!!  And guess what? It continues today.  Airports use the Peregrine Falcon to chase birds away from the airstrip.

Spin, spin and turn.  Catch, spin, return.....

....to arm of the Falconer!

Amazing!

The show is called the Ancient Art of Falconry and it shows several times during the day.

Vulture

The Renaissance Festival is here until April 1st.  Check it out Saturday and Sunday. 

The Arizona Renaissance Festival

If you're a Game of Thrones fan, doesn't she kind a remind you of Melisandre? Only she's not.  She's one of those street women!

 Calling ALL Arizona residents!!!  Here Ye Here Ye!!!  The Arizona Renaissance Festival is in full swing! I'm not one for street fairs or most fairs, but this one is special.  Have you ever read a medieval book and wondered what it was like to live during the times of Kings and Queens?  Today we take a trip back in time to experience what it was like to be a villager during the time known as Renaissance.

 I was a bit leary of it all.  I had never been, but I had heard it was a lot of fun.  After a weekend of hiking and exploration along the Riparian corridor of the San Pedro river, I wasn't sure what to expect.  Was this going to be another place of overpriced food and crowded with a billion people?  Well yes.  But surprisingly, the road trip up through the wildflower show along the highway and sunny bright skies made for a fun road trip.  And guess what?  The overpriced food and crowded fair wasn't bad at all!  Why?  Because there was a lot going on for different people all around the grounds.  It was around 22 bucks to get in, but you can pre purchase your tickets at Fry's Grocery Store for 18 dollars.  Parking is free at the event.  Just be careful around the traffic area as it can get congested.

 With an open mind, I saw a bird flutter.  Then 2!  What was this?!!  A bird show? YES! We were off to a good start. To make it even better, there were owls!!!  That's when I realized that the day was going to be a lot of fun.  And it didn't disappoint one bit.  We heard wonderful music, fantastic reenactments of a jousting competition, and excellent side shows.....just like they did back in the day when street performers were....well....street performers.

 What I enjoyed most was that there were times when I felt like I was in one of my books.....and I actually experienced the feeling of heckling others or watching street performers make a mistake here and there.  It was interesting and enriched my knowledge of the descriptions created in novels like the Game of Thrones.

 Color and design.  Everywhere you went, you could see unique signs and fabrics that would have been sold on the streets of the past.  I imagined villages along oceans or rivers where pirates, royalty, commoners, farmers, vendors, knights......all intermingled together.  And it made realize how complicated human society was back then.....and continues to be today.

 On a break between events and a little respite from the hot desert sun, we found a grove of shade trees where a harpist and a mound of grass awaited for us to plant our butts. If I could learn 3 instruments in my life, it would be the violin, Spanish guitar, or harp.  Why?  Because they're cool.:)

 There were acrobats, gymnists, comedians(like a pair of funny nuns), puppeteers, and plenty other performers to keep one's attention throughout the day. It seemed like fire was used often in a lot of the performances(which made for great photography).

 Barely Balanced performed and entertained crowds with their borderline adult humour and fire acts. They were very funny and made the audience laugh. One of the performers hails from my university!!!  Stevens Point!  What a small world we live in! And what an awesome place to learn stuff!

 The Fair will go on until April 1st and it's a great place to go with friends, family and loved ones.  Parents and Grandparents, while the event is family friendly, do check with performances before attending.  A lot of the talk is double entendre and will fly over your kids' head, but if you have a kid like my nephew Nolan, there may be a lot of questions:) But I have a feeling the fire will distract:)

 The shows will run throughout the day until 5 PM.  The gate closes at 5:45 and the crowds start filtering out at around 5 PM. There is a schedule for the day's events so that you maximize your visit.

 I liked the images.  I like the feel of it all.  But mostly, it made me glad I went.  Why have I never gone before?  I suppose when I hear the word "fair" I think BORING!  And if you're like me and hate FRIED FOOD or turkey legs, don't worry.  They offer other kinds of foods as well.  I had a delicious crepe, some raspberry mead, and taco salad during the day.

 There is a little something here for everyone.  For birders.  For gardeners. For history aficionados.  For people who like the Arizona sunshine.  I highly recommend this outing.  I had been secretly hoping for a pic with Twig the Fairy.  Upon our exit, she was standing there.  I watched as kids approached her.  It was absolutely adorable.  If you could have seen the children's faces......priceless.  In fairy character, she didn't speak.  But she did play her flute and it made me smile and think of Fairy Gardens and Fireflies. 

I did have my picture taken.  I'm a bit red from the sun so bring some sunblock.  I wore a hat all day, but I took it off for this picture.  What a way to end the day:)  And let's not even talk about the beautiful Arizona sunset on the way home! You can check that out below:)

The Renassaince Fair is around until April 1st on weekends. PS.  I have some exciting news.  My photography will be featured in a published book on UNESCO sites next year and I am truly honored to have my work featured.  To see those pics, you just need to visit the posts on my Coiba Island experience or The Forgotten Garden from last year. After the news, I popped open a bottle of Pinot Noir and poured myself a glass. Life is good. The adventure continues tomorrow....