Summer 11 - Medieval Week Mingle

[norrhamn_residents]

Okay, so maybe Norrhamn isn't as big of a tourist attraction as Gotland. Maybe it's not home to the best preserved medieval city in Scandinavia, complete with ring wall and twelve church ruins. Maybe it can't even compete with the near Mediterranean climate that Visby has during those late summer weeks, but Norrhamn knows one thing — how to do a lot with very little.

Welcome to Medieval Week - Lite Edition

The beach on the eastern side of the Island has been decked out with as many wooden tables and benches as is logistically possible, while still leaving some areas free for games and dancing. There's a wooden stage set up close to the woods, and a couple of racks of lovingly sponsored time-appropriate clothes available for those who want to blend in with the times.

Entertainment: To set the mood, management hired a band of Baltic musicians that will take up the stage for most of the day, playing well into the night. There's also dumb-ass jester performances from time to time, usually while the musicians are taking a break. The biggest event however is the fire show that starts up as soon as night falls right by the edge of the water.

Games: There's not quite enough room for an actual jousting tournament (my heart breaks) but there's a whole heap of stick horses for those eager to make their own. You're also welcome to take part in any number of feats of skill and strength, like rövkrok, armwrestling, or pillow-fighting on a slick wooden log. For those of a more intellectual persuasion, there's also a number of medieval board- card- and dicegames available.

Food and drink: Oh man. Oh man? There's so much food. Like, if some of the early guests thought that first welcome party had food in abundance, you ain't seen nothin' yet. Between the whole spit-roasted wild boar, through the pea soup and pork, the saffron-pancakes with dewberry jam, the roasted root vegetables (no potatoes in sight), the smoked pike-perch, the freshly baked spiced breads, the apple- hazelnut bread pudding, no one will go home hungry*. Wash it down with flagons of mead, spiced wine, beer brewed on honey and hops, or perfectly alcohol-free elderberry or lingonberry lemonades.

*There is of course thirium alternatives for the android population.

For those interested in more info on the actual Medieval Week, here's a link

Comments

[dispare]

[April was among those that didn't even need a costume at all; her own clothing that she had brought with her was already mostly appropriate enough for the occasion, so she came wearing a blue dress with bits of silver trim lining the edges. It wasn't really something she would think to wear at any other time, but the rest of what she had available would probably have come off as just a little too modern to really work here.

Only a little.

That being said, she also wasn't too big on the activities themselves. The entertainment was good, but she didn't seem to be terribly interested in participating in things herself, being more-interested in watching everything else as it went on, and occasionally going back to the food and drinks.]

[withsoul]

[ It's just after a music performance ends when Chloe approaches April, smiling and bright-eyed. ]

April, hi! Isn't this fun?

[dispare]

Hey, Chloe. [With the current performance coming to an end and thus no longer demanding any attention, she turns to face toward the android.]

The music's not bad and the food is actually really good, so I guess so. [Anyone that's paid enough attention to her would know she's been going back to the food a little more often than most, so whatever anyone else's opinion of it might be, it does appear that she likes it more than just a little bit.] Not really one for games, though.

Seems like you've been having a great time, yourself.

[withsoul]

[ Truth be told, Chloe has been focused so much on the experience that she hasn't paid attention to what any given individual has been up to. ]

The food does look delicious. [ And the activities look fun! ] I'm really enjoying the performances. I'd never seen anything like them before. Have you?

[dispare]

The last time I saw anything like this was...ten years ago, I think? I don't really remember a whole lot of it, but I do remember that I really liked it.

[withsoul]

[ Interesting! ]

May I ask, what was the occasion?

[dispare]

Well, it wasn't an actual holiday or anything like that; it was a celebration of the city's fifth centennial. [She pauses for a moment, going over some things in her head.] ...Yeah, that was ten years ago, the year 1019 as far as my world's concerned. It's 1029 for me now.

[withsoul]

1029! [ Forgive Chloe a gasp. ] Sorry, it's just-- I'm from 2038 in my world. For the continent that tried to conquer most of the world, ir was a really difficult time. Plague, ignorance, bloodshed... Your time isn't like that, is it?

[ She really hopes not. ]

[dispare]

[If April's bothered by the sheer number of years between them or the question, she's doing a good job of not showing it.]

Not as far as I know, no. Then again, I guess I really can't say for sure, because the specific place I'm from is pretty disconnected from the rest of the world and we don't usually get any news about what's happening elsewhere.

[withsoul]

That's so interesting. [ She means that genuinely, and it shows in her eyes and her tone of voice. ] In my place and time, we're constantly receiving information from so many sources. It sounds like your world is more peaceful, almost like here?

[dispare]

Maybe? [It's hard to be too sure when you don't actually know what the rest of the world is like.] There are some places on the island— [Referring to her home, not to Norrhamn.] —that are really nice, but then some others that aren't so much, and it does have its share of issues, but I wouldn't know how it compares to the rest of the world or to any other world out there.