Castlefest

Last Saturday I have been to Castlefest, a medieval/fantasy/pagan festival with lots of stands and great entertainment in the gardens of castle "De Keukenhof" in Lisse. After a week of colder and very wet weather (nope, you won't hear me complain!) it was dry and sunny, not too hot; perfect weather for an outdoor festival. I've spent most of the day with Wonder, but I've met lots of friends. Some I had seen lately, with others it had been a long(er) time. So good to see them all!

The outfits we saw around us were simply amazing; everyone had done their best. Luna looked great, Wonder wore medieval clothing, Llwella was dressed as the tooth fairy, etc. At first I wore my Witchy Girls t-shirt and my black cloak. When Sorcha tried on a black top with purple pointed sleeves and cap, it was too wide for her. She encouraged me to try it on, so I did. Of course I had my doubts (don't I always..?), but the others convinced me and it was 75 % off. I needed to get used to it, but I think I like it!
Apart from the top I haven't bought anything. I've seen enough, but nothing I had to buy right there. Food and drinks were served in earthenware cups and plates. The deposit was 2 Castlefest Coins or 4 euro for one cup or plate. I kept my cup with Castlefest logo.

The entertainment was varied and good. Wonder and I watched and listened to a story by Donderelf. The story was "Ian Dureach and the Blue Falcon". We heard it before, but it was good nevertheless. Unfortunately his wife Theresia wasn't with him to play the harp. Later on the day we heard two other women play their harps. We sat down for a while and quietly enjoyed it.
On the big podium we saw Omnia and Faun. I like them, but I've discovered that I'm a bigger fan of Rapalje. Their Celtic folk music holds a great attraction for me: sometimes soft and melodious, another song wild and cheerful. Definitely great entertainment!
The evening ended with a big fireshow, but I couldn't see a lot of it. Afterwards I drove Luna and Sorcha to Amsterdam (otherwise they had to travel by bus and train for 2 hours). It was after midnight when I got home. Very, very tired but looking back on a terrific day!

I didn't make a lot of pics myself, but here are a few online albums from others:
Castlefest gallery
Leuke Mensen
Richard van Gils
Klik en Klaar
Liesbeth
Marco van den Broek
Henk van den Berg