Arizona Renaissance Festival

A trip into the past always makes for an interesting day. Our most recent such trip was into medieval England. Well, it was a fair imitation of 16th century country faire considering the time machine (our truck) took us back in time but left us geographically stuck in the Arizona desert. This made for an interesting mix of scenery, with old English architecture amidst cactus and Palo Verde trees. I’ve been to several such festivals and I must say that the Arizona Festival is the most elaborate I’ve seen. Walking by security guards in medieval garb talking on walkie-talkies, however, confused my sense of history. This passed as I got deeper into the 30 acre village. A few other confusing issues like thoroughly modern privies (restrooms) were out of place but heartily appreciated.

These festivals are held all across the country and many of the players follow the “circuit”. Like me, they are fulltime RVers, but for them traveling and being stuck “outside of time” is their fulltime job. That rather makes them modern day gypsies and certainly must provide for a most “interesting” life.

Cleavage was an all important part of a lady’s attire, while the men seemed to lean toward the frilly.

The humor in the shows was abundant and often bawdy. Rose and Irene sang wildly “colorful” bar songs and encouraged parents not to attend with their children (rightfully so). The Pirate Shanty-man and Bonnie Lass left it to the imaginations of their audience to insert the bawdiness where needed. That left the humor zipping right over most (but not all) the kids heads.

Every festival has those guys that play in the mud. We had the Wylde Men.

Juggling anyone? Yep that too. This guy liked to juggle things that weren’t easily accessible in the 16th century (that's a chainsaw and it was running). Later in the show, while balanced atop a free standing ladder, he lit off the equivalent of two sticks of dynamite taped to his chest. He said he didn’t drink, smoke, or do drugs………so he needed the adrenaline.

No medieval festival would be complete without jousting and here we had it three shows a day. No holds barred. Charge and ram. And that they did. By the way, the French knight won, he's the one not falling off his horse.

Quartzite, Arizona

Saturday we drove from Mesa, AZ to Quartzite, AZ. Quartzite is near the California border and I-10 runs right through the middle of it. Quartzite is a small little desert town with a population of around 3,400. It was settled in 1856 by Charles Tyson and became a stage stop. A mining boom in 1897 temporarily revitalized the town. It then languished until 1965 when rock hounds held the first rock and gem show. The area has drawn ever increasing winter crowds since that first show.

The winter population begins to swell in December, but is mostly gone by April first. There is no accurate count, but estimates (some official) put the peak at more than a million. Quartzite is surrounded by open desert, generally flat with mountains in the distance in every direction. Mostly public lands, it is overseen by the Bureau of Land Management. RVers come from all over to spend a few days, weeks, or even the whole winter. They park their rigs everywhere, spread out over thousands of acres.

Visitors come for many reasons. There are the rock hounds, the desert sportsmen (4-wheelers), and those that just love the desert. Many come for the warm winters and the cheap stay. Winter daytime temps are usually in the 60’s and 70’s. Staying on BLM land ranges from free to less than $200 for the entire winter. The drawback is that there are none of the basics to which most RVers have grown attached (water, electric, and sewer hookups).

The real draw has to be the near circus like atmosphere. It is no longer just a rock and gem show. There are acres and acres of flea markets catering to an RVers every need. There are RV dealers that set up seasonal lots with hundreds of units. There are antique and classic car shows. Food courts abound. All these sales “villages” are temporary (tents and trailers) and is all packed up and gone by April first.

Quartzite is certainly a unique gathering spot for “Snowbirds”. That is what locals call those who flee their home during the winter months in search of a place where the snow doesn’t fall and they can wear t-shirts and shorts.