On August break

As is customary in Spain, this blog will take an August vacation.

Last August, I attended a Renaissance fair in Navalcarnero, a small town near Madrid. The annual fair recreates the wedding of King Felipe IV and Marian de Austria held there in 1649. Photo by Jerry Finn.

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As usual, I'll take a break in August, giving both you and me time to rest and prepare for the fall.

The story will resume on September 6, and we will soon learn the answers to thrilling questions: Can Gandalin talk sense into Amadis? What will Durin tell Oriana, and what will she do? Will you be able to put Amadis's sad song in Chapter 51 to music?

Meanwhile, if you're in Los Angeles before August 14, you may wish to visit the J. Paul Getty Center's exhibition on Fashion in the Middle Ages. If you can't go, it's worth your while to visit the web page and listen to the explanations of the glamorous, costly outfits:
http://www.getty.edu/art/exhibitions/fashion/index.html

Remember that this blog is licensed under Creative Commons 3.0, so feel free to use your spare time to copy, distribute, display, share, or perform all or any part of it, or to create derivative works — for non-commercial use. Just say where you got it. If you want to do something commercial, I can be very reasonable.
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Links: Medieval life on the Internet

Visit a castle, cook a meal, go jousting, or just enjoy the scenery.

[A tournament of Foote will be held at Scarborough Castle on June 26 and 27 in North Yorkshire, England, an English Heritage event.]

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English Heritage
http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/
If you'll be visiting Great Britain, this will make your visit spectacular. English Heritage protects and promotes England's historic environment. Visit abbeys, castles, ruins, stately homes and palaces, special events, and historic re-enactments. Overseas Visitor Passes available.

Ozark Medieval Fortress
http://www.ozarkmedievalfortress.com/
If you'll be in Arkansas, USA, you can visit a castle under construction, built with 13th-century techniques – a carefully knotted rope is essential. You can even volunteer to help.

The Food Timeline
http://www.foodtimeline.org/
Wherever you are, you'll need to eat. This site, which is collection of links, starts with pre-historical foods and brings us to 2010. You'll need a well-supplied spice cabinet to cook medieval – roast swan, for example. Don't forget the wine.

Living The Life Of The 'American Jouster'
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=113429069&sc=fb%25cc=fp
NPR interviews Richard Alvarez about his documentary, American Jouster, which explores the world of Renaissance Festival knights and tournaments. Jousting is risky work, Alvarez says, and you can get hurt, but the pay isn't bad.
Châteaubriant, France
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=43097
Visible and infrared light recorded by NASA's Terra satellite was combined to make this simulated natural color image of the city and its surrounding area. The city began when a man named Briant erected a castle there in the 11th century as part of Brittany's defense line against France. A sharp eye can see the vestiges of medieval development.
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Five links to the past

Some interesting websites related to Amadis or medieval times.

A detail from an illumination in The Romance of Alexander the Great.

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The Romance of Alexander the Great
http://bibliodyssey.blogspot.com/2009/09/romance-of-alexander-great.html
BibliOdyssey has reproduced some stunning pages from a manuscript of The Romance of Alexander the Great, produced by the workshop of the Flemish illuminator, Jehan de Grise, between 1338 and 1344. Click on the photos for the large and very large images to appreciate the gold-leaf detail.

History Cookbook's Normans/Medieval section
http://cookit.e2bn.org/historycookbook/index-27-normans-medieval.html
This site offers English recipes and podcasts of their preparation, along with food facts, health facts, and notes about life in those times. It's aimed at British school children, but we're never too old to learn. The whole site covers Britain from prehistoric to postwar/modern times.

The F-Word: The Problem with Feudalism
http://historymedren.about.com/od/feudalism/a/feudalism.htm?nl=1
Historian Melissa Snell explains why the word feudalism "has the power to annoy, disgust, and even upset the ordinarily cool and collected medievalist." The problem, she says, that feudalism never existed in medieval Europe.

Exposición Alfonso X el Sabio
http://www.alfonsoxelsabio.info/
An exhibit in Murcia, Spain, open now through January 31, recounts the life and contributions of Alfonso X the Wise (1221-1284), King of Castilla y León. He led developments in literature, science, scholarship, music, and law. The site is in Spanish, but non-Spanish-speakers can still enjoy the music and images.

Semi-staged Handel, with care
http://www.boston.com/ae/music/articles/2009/10/17/semi_staged_handel_with_care/
The Boston Globe reviews a recent performance of Handel's Amadigi de Gaula, a Baroque opera loosely based on Amadis of Gaul. The reviewer concludes that the music was better than the plot. The libretto leaves out the frequent blood-spattered jousts and focuses on a love story, and the role of Amadigi is written for a castrato. (!)
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A collection of relevant links

In which we can discover a few interesting articles and sites.

[Gold penny of King Henry III, 1257-1258, from the Fitzwilliam Museum.]

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The Middle Ages is alive and well on the Internet. Here are a few notable links:

Éowyn under Seiege: Female Warriors during the Middle Ages
This article in Strange Horizons e-zine describes the realities of women in battle.
http://strangehorizons.com/2009/20090406/ingstrand-a.shtml

Guide to Carcassonne, France
Visit one the best medieval walled cities still in existence. This brief but seductive tourist guide includes videos and an aerial photo of the city that alone is worth the click.
http://www.medievalists.net/2009/01/04/guide-to-carcassone/

Coin of the Moment, Fitzwilliam Museum
Coins and medals of particular interest from the Fitzwilliam Museum collection are described, with commentaries on the history behind the money — for example, why King Henry's gold penny failed, and what the depiction of the King tells us.
http://www-cm.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/dept/coins/exhibitions/CoinOfTheMoment/index.html

The castle Monty Python made famous
Terry Jones, who directed the Monty Python movie about the Holy Grail filmed at Doune Castle, which attracts many fans, is the voice of the new audio guide.
http://medievalnews.blogspot.com/2009/05/doune-castle-in-scotland.html

Chivalry goes to Gaul with Amadis
I'm interviewed in Episode #31 of the Chivalry Today podcast.
http://www.chivalrytoday.com/Castle/Podcast/Podcast-Home.html

xkcd - A Webcomic - Alternative Energy Revolution
Finally, here's a modern reference to a derivative work of Amadis of Gaul. The world is doomed! Who will save us?
http://xkcd.com/556/