Visiting the Annual OU Medieval Fair in Norman, Oklahoma

Hi. My name is Lori and I am a Medieval Freak. At one time I had an entire room dedicated to my weaponry & shield collection. I am slowly trying to re-amass that collection. It is awfully hard to try and bring that kind of stuff on an International move. I have closets full of period & fantasy garb. I even used to make bodices and sell them on eBay. I was, therefor, very sad to have missed the Viking Market this year in Sweden, but I did manage to hit the annual Oklahoma University Medieval Fair in April 2010 whilst visiting my grown kids in the USA.

To be honest about it, I was not expecting much. I'm afraid I'm a bit of a snob when it comes to various locations in the USA, and Oklahoma City is one place that I just don't hold in high regard. Sorry. I will tell you that I was very pleasantly surprised by this festival, though. They are very serious about this and it shows.

This Medieval Fair is held on the grounds of the University in Norman and much, much larger than I expected. I had been to numerous other festivals around the USA, my favorite being the Maryland Renaissance Festival. My daughter even got married at Scarborough Fair in Waxahachie, Texas just south of Dallas. Both of those are the biggest fairs in the States. OU may not be as big as those two fairs, but it is not as small as most other fairs either. It is big enough to have earned a spot on the 100 Top Events in the Nation by Events Media Network. It is large enough that you should plan to spend the entire day there.

The OU Medieval Fair runs 3 days around the first weekend in April each year. We went on the Saturday in 2010. I usually dress in full garb for these events but this time all my outfits were back in Sweden so I'm afraid my brother & I went as civilians. We met my daughter and her boyfriend there, and they were partially period. My daughter usually goes in full regalia also, but had broken her leg in a car accident a few weeks prior so had to accommodate her cast & crutches. That's OK though as there were plenty of folks in amazing garb.

Vendors were in abundance at this Medieval Fair, selling everything from kilts to leather goods to wooden replicas for kids. I bought a wooden shield for my grandson with a dragon on it for around 11USD and he just went wild over it. I wish now I had bought a sword to go with it. I also bought a long sleeved t-shirt commemorating the OU Festival and paid only 5 bucks for it. Turns out it was so cheap because it was left over from a prior year, but I liked that design best. They had some nice sweatshirts and T's from 2010 running from around 12-30 dollars, but this year they did not have OU Medieval Fair printed on the design so I stuck with the other one.

There were fortune tellers, tarot readers, and hair braiders, along with rides for kids on ponies, camels, and elephants. Getting around was not bad as there are a lot of paved pathways, but if you are handicapped then I advise against cutting across the lawns as there are some bumps and ditches that are not very handicapped-friendly.

The food was varied and you could get anything from the usual peasant breads & turkey legs to baked potatoes stuffed with brisket. I opted for that stuffed potato and oh my Odin it was huge! I couldn't eat half of it and it only ran me about 7 bucks. The food kiosks are located at both ends of the Fair so no matter when you get hungry, there it is.

One thing that was notably absent from the OU Medieval Fair was honey mead. Living in Northern Europe I have access to bottles of it year round, but I only like to drink it during historical occasions such as this festival. Most Medieval/Renaissance fairs in the US do have lots of tents and pubs selling the mead, but not this one. I was sorely disappointed and am still not entirely sure why they would leave out this period drink. Sure, it is alcoholic... but other festivals have no problem with this, why does OU not serve this wonderful beverage at theirs? That's a FAIL.

Another thing I very much look forward to at these fairs is the Jousting. Unfortunately that wonderful event was canceled the day we attended due to horrible weather. Oklahoma University certainly cannot control the weather, so I don't hold that against them. The sword fighting did go on as scheduled though and that was great fun.

There were not as many shows as I'm used to seeing at Medieval fairs across the US, but the ones they did have were very good. We stopped awhile to watch the antics of a kilted group playing Scottish tunes, and laughed as a troupe of belly dancers ambled over and stole the show. Their website does not list the acts like most do, so I do can not give you their name. Shame that... they were very good.

I do recommend highly that if you find yourself in the Oklahoma City area around the beginning of April, do make a point to stop into the OU Medieval Fair in Norman. Hopefully it won't start storming and run you out like it did us. Entry is free and the festival is larger than you expect. Plus, it is just a whole lot of fun for the entire family.