As I stated, opening day was a beautiful week earlier, but the presence of Scarborough Faire could be detected sooner than that. Earlier in the month, King Henry VIII and his queen Anne Bolyne could be spotted at the Galleria Mall, singing the praises of the faire (photo, left). And speaking of singing, also present was the enchanting sounds of Queen Anne's Lace (photo, below), one of the many wonderful acts at faire. These seven lovely ladies mesmerized mall patrons with a wide variety of ballads that ranged from sweet to bawdy.

This brand new faire season and moderate weather gave me a chance to wear my new garb (photo, right). The doublet style is referred to as a "Hamlet" with custom sleeves attached. It came from Pendragon Costumes, which is owned by the incredibly talented Nicole Fullerton. Pendragon sports some of the finest garb you'll ever see. And men, just touching ones of these is enough to raise your testosterone level! The tights were made by my good friend Ginger, owner of the Faire Pair. I'm standing outside her shop. This was my twelth pair which officially makes me a tights junkie now. By the way, please excuse me if I look a little haggard: this shot was taken at the end of the day!

Opening cermonies consisted of many zany antics of different types. Such as these, er, gentlemen trying to get past the front gate without paying (photo, left).

Also typical of the faire is country dancing. During opening gate you can see a number of the faire people performing one of the many numbers in their deep repertoire. This particular dance is known as the "Lilt", which involves a fairly complex set of footwork (photo, below).

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