10 days for a week in Visby
Aug. 14th, 2011 11:23 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kareinaThursday (4 Aug) we loaded up the car, and were most pleased to discover that the pile of things we felt important to take with us for the Visby Medieval Week not only fit in the car (or, in the case of the pavilion poles and frame for the rope bed, on the roof), but there was enough room to spare that we had a gap in the center through which one can see using the interior rear-view mirror. We got on the road by mid-day, and made it a very relaxed journey south. I did all of the driving (which is good because I will need to get a local driver's licence once my personal number and resident card arrive, and it had been long enough since I had access to a car my driving was more than a bit tense at the start of the trip, but very relaxed at the end of it), and we took frequent breaks for things like yoga, climbing a mountain (really!), walks, touring a castle and some ruins of an older one, just enjoying one another's company, and naps.
This relaxed approach got us to the Ferry Terminal around 18:00 or 19:00 on Friday, and our Ferry wasn't scheduled to depart till 03:00 on Saturday, so we relaxed some more, played a game, and had another nap till time to depart. That ferry arrives in Gotland at 08:00 on Saturday, which (probably not coincidentally) is when the gate at the SCA camp there opened for the day, so we went straight there, signed in, set up the pavilion and moved in. That day we didn't leave camp, other than a walk to the nearest grocery store (~20 minutes away) to get some fresh fruit & veg to put into our ice chest for lunches (the food plan for the camp, which we had bought into, was only for breakfast and dinner). We spent the early evening getting to know folk camped next door, who also enjoy Medieval music and dance, and didn't stay up all that late due to not getting a whole lot of sleep on the trip down.
Sunday was the big Market day in a park just inside the town walls of Visby, so we walked into town (about 40 minutes to the closest gate in the walls) and spent the day there*, arriving back in camp just on time for dinner That evening we went back into town to watch a sampler concert--all of the major performers who were to perform during the week had enough time each to do one or two songs or other form of entertainment. It was much fun!
Monday we got a ride from our neighbours into town for dancing in the park--there were at least 75 dancers present--both SCA folk (I knew one of the teachers from SCA dance events) and other people in costume, and the general public, again getting home just on time for dinner. We then spent the evening hanging out with people in the camp.
Tuesday we stayed in camp during the day because it was an SCA open camp day, where tourists were welcome to come in and see what we do and ask questions. We gave many pavilion tours to people. In general he did the talking, since most folk spoke Swedish, and I was pleased to learn that when I *know* the subject (e.g. my own pavilion and the rope bed and how they were made) I can mostly follow spoken Swedish, even though I can't yet follow most conversations. After that ended we did a second trip to the grocery store, which let SCA folk turn in warm little blue bricks for ice chests and get frozen ones in return), and spent the evening in our own tent, which was warm and dry compared to outside (but no where near as warm as it will be when we get the door closing attachments finally put on (I never needed them in California, where it is so hot I never closed the doors, preferring to encourage any breeze I could get) and the inner walls we want to add, having seen another tent that uses them). He started playing the violin as I did my evening yoga, which drew a musician friend of ours in, and they spent the evening playing tunes together on various instruments while I did enough finger loop braiding to make straps to hold the new hat onto the head.
Wednesday we returned to the day time dancing, followed by the market, where we got a few more things we had been tempted by on Sunday, again returning to camp on time for dinner, followed by the SCA court for the Principality and local Barony, after which we hurried into town to see the fire show by TriX (there seem to be lots of youtube videos of them if anyone is curious).
Thursday we went to a singing session at the library (open to the public--I counted at least 65 people there) which was much fun. I know I was the only non-Swedish speaker there by the fact that for some of the songs everyone but me laughed at some lines. I commented as much to an SCA friend, and he said that the funny bits were all about sex, to which I replied "no wonder I didn't understand--I am learning Swedish by reading children's books, I don't know those words yet". When that ended we went outside and discovered that there was a lone violin player playing Swedish folk dance music for a few dancers in the park, so we joined them, and![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
archinonlive and I got many compliments on our dancing (I love having a partner who is so good he makes me look good, too). A couple of the people who complimented us on it are from the next town, so we told them about the beginning class we will be teaching in September, and they sound very interested. After a bit archinonlive took over playing, and I danced with the other musician instead. He is also a very good dancer, and the evening was a joy.
Friday we broke camp and loaded the car in the morning, then went to an advanced Medieval dance class during the day, followed by one last trip to the market, followed by dinner and then a feast in the SCA camp. I took a nap in the SCA crash tent from 22:30 to 01:30, while he stayed at the party, and then I got up and we went to the Ferry Terminal to begin our journey home.
Saturday the ferry reached the mainland around 06:30, and we arrived at his brother's house in Uppsala around 08:30, where we enjoyed breakfast and visiting with his family, then took a nap, and then started the long drive home. Had I been willing/able to drive straight through it would have taken 10 more hours, but I require breaks for yoga and naps, so instead we got home at 06:00 on Sunday. we took a nap, then spent the day relaxing and putting away a tiny fraction of the stuff. We also returned to their Highnesses the things we drove back for them (flying meant they didn't have room in their luggage).
*Items that followed us home from the market:
* a Hungarian horse bow, leather covered (his last bow, which he had made himself, had broken earlier this summer)
* a wood "tin whistle" purchased from the maker
* a small hand-held drum, from the same guy as the wooden flute/whistle/recorder
* a bone flute, purchased from the (different) guy who made it
* enough very light-weight white wool to make me a veil
* enough light weight dark blue linen to make him a tunic (his only over-tunics are wool, which is great when it is cold, but it is good to have a hot-weather/indoor choice, too
* lots of plain grey wool, purchased cheap from a fellow SCA member
* an oil lamp that has three wicks (and matches another he already had)
* a nice straw hat, just like the one we picked up at the market at Double Wars, so now we have one each
* a pair of wool nålbinded fingerless gloves (I forgot mine in my jacket pocket at home, and these were very reasonably priced--after the event I wound up giving them toarchinonlive's sister in law, when she complained about being always cold, especially her hands)
We also purchased some yummy saffron cake with cream and jam, and some yummy flat bread that they cooked seconds before selling to us (a nice, soft yeast dough from which they cut a small piece, rolled it out thin as a pie crust, and then applied to a large hot metal cooker), brushed with butter (both were good enough that we bought them again on another day, too). Because I enjoy looking at such things, I have just added up how much was spent on stuff, and how much spent on the costs related to getting there and staying in camp--the things we get to keep on the above list represent about 36% of the money spent for both trip and loot.
Now for yoga and bed--I am tired after re-reading all that!
This relaxed approach got us to the Ferry Terminal around 18:00 or 19:00 on Friday, and our Ferry wasn't scheduled to depart till 03:00 on Saturday, so we relaxed some more, played a game, and had another nap till time to depart. That ferry arrives in Gotland at 08:00 on Saturday, which (probably not coincidentally) is when the gate at the SCA camp there opened for the day, so we went straight there, signed in, set up the pavilion and moved in. That day we didn't leave camp, other than a walk to the nearest grocery store (~20 minutes away) to get some fresh fruit & veg to put into our ice chest for lunches (the food plan for the camp, which we had bought into, was only for breakfast and dinner). We spent the early evening getting to know folk camped next door, who also enjoy Medieval music and dance, and didn't stay up all that late due to not getting a whole lot of sleep on the trip down.
Sunday was the big Market day in a park just inside the town walls of Visby, so we walked into town (about 40 minutes to the closest gate in the walls) and spent the day there*, arriving back in camp just on time for dinner That evening we went back into town to watch a sampler concert--all of the major performers who were to perform during the week had enough time each to do one or two songs or other form of entertainment. It was much fun!
Monday we got a ride from our neighbours into town for dancing in the park--there were at least 75 dancers present--both SCA folk (I knew one of the teachers from SCA dance events) and other people in costume, and the general public, again getting home just on time for dinner. We then spent the evening hanging out with people in the camp.
Tuesday we stayed in camp during the day because it was an SCA open camp day, where tourists were welcome to come in and see what we do and ask questions. We gave many pavilion tours to people. In general he did the talking, since most folk spoke Swedish, and I was pleased to learn that when I *know* the subject (e.g. my own pavilion and the rope bed and how they were made) I can mostly follow spoken Swedish, even though I can't yet follow most conversations. After that ended we did a second trip to the grocery store, which let SCA folk turn in warm little blue bricks for ice chests and get frozen ones in return), and spent the evening in our own tent, which was warm and dry compared to outside (but no where near as warm as it will be when we get the door closing attachments finally put on (I never needed them in California, where it is so hot I never closed the doors, preferring to encourage any breeze I could get) and the inner walls we want to add, having seen another tent that uses them). He started playing the violin as I did my evening yoga, which drew a musician friend of ours in, and they spent the evening playing tunes together on various instruments while I did enough finger loop braiding to make straps to hold the new hat onto the head.
Wednesday we returned to the day time dancing, followed by the market, where we got a few more things we had been tempted by on Sunday, again returning to camp on time for dinner, followed by the SCA court for the Principality and local Barony, after which we hurried into town to see the fire show by TriX (there seem to be lots of youtube videos of them if anyone is curious).
Thursday we went to a singing session at the library (open to the public--I counted at least 65 people there) which was much fun. I know I was the only non-Swedish speaker there by the fact that for some of the songs everyone but me laughed at some lines. I commented as much to an SCA friend, and he said that the funny bits were all about sex, to which I replied "no wonder I didn't understand--I am learning Swedish by reading children's books, I don't know those words yet". When that ended we went outside and discovered that there was a lone violin player playing Swedish folk dance music for a few dancers in the park, so we joined them, and
archinonlive and I got many compliments on our dancing (I love having a partner who is so good he makes me look good, too). A couple of the people who complimented us on it are from the next town, so we told them about the beginning class we will be teaching in September, and they sound very interested. After a bit archinonlive took over playing, and I danced with the other musician instead. He is also a very good dancer, and the evening was a joy.Friday we broke camp and loaded the car in the morning, then went to an advanced Medieval dance class during the day, followed by one last trip to the market, followed by dinner and then a feast in the SCA camp. I took a nap in the SCA crash tent from 22:30 to 01:30, while he stayed at the party, and then I got up and we went to the Ferry Terminal to begin our journey home.
Saturday the ferry reached the mainland around 06:30, and we arrived at his brother's house in Uppsala around 08:30, where we enjoyed breakfast and visiting with his family, then took a nap, and then started the long drive home. Had I been willing/able to drive straight through it would have taken 10 more hours, but I require breaks for yoga and naps, so instead we got home at 06:00 on Sunday. we took a nap, then spent the day relaxing and putting away a tiny fraction of the stuff. We also returned to their Highnesses the things we drove back for them (flying meant they didn't have room in their luggage).
*Items that followed us home from the market:
* a Hungarian horse bow, leather covered (his last bow, which he had made himself, had broken earlier this summer)
* a wood "tin whistle" purchased from the maker
* a small hand-held drum, from the same guy as the wooden flute/whistle/recorder
* a bone flute, purchased from the (different) guy who made it
* enough very light-weight white wool to make me a veil
* enough light weight dark blue linen to make him a tunic (his only over-tunics are wool, which is great when it is cold, but it is good to have a hot-weather/indoor choice, too
* lots of plain grey wool, purchased cheap from a fellow SCA member
* an oil lamp that has three wicks (and matches another he already had)
* a nice straw hat, just like the one we picked up at the market at Double Wars, so now we have one each
* a pair of wool nålbinded fingerless gloves (I forgot mine in my jacket pocket at home, and these were very reasonably priced--after the event I wound up giving them to
archinonlive's sister in law, when she complained about being always cold, especially her hands)We also purchased some yummy saffron cake with cream and jam, and some yummy flat bread that they cooked seconds before selling to us (a nice, soft yeast dough from which they cut a small piece, rolled it out thin as a pie crust, and then applied to a large hot metal cooker), brushed with butter (both were good enough that we bought them again on another day, too). Because I enjoy looking at such things, I have just added up how much was spent on stuff, and how much spent on the costs related to getting there and staying in camp--the things we get to keep on the above list represent about 36% of the money spent for both trip and loot.
Now for yoga and bed--I am tired after re-reading all that!
