Not sure where I was up to, but Monday seems a good place to pick up π
We made pottage with roots and worts, lentil pottage and a mess of eggs for workers and cheesy farts for us (not enough crumb to make them for everybody) – started to get a few people coming to ask if they could eat with us even though not assigned, as they’d heard it was good – flattering but cheeky! We tended to say no as cooking for 50 over an open fire is already a challenge, but said they were welcome to come by and see if any left over π
Started grain soaking for frumenty, to be made on Tuesday with wheat grain, milk, eggs, butter, honey and dried fruit – although in the event we forgot the dried fruit and used very ripe nectarines instead π It was nice – interesting to see varied responses from school children (if they bring spoons then they can try food) as it was definitely not sweet enough for most modern palates if they expected a pudding. Pottage gets similarly mixed reactions – a surprising number really like it, but a few cannot stand it at all. When schools had no spoons then we tried to find something else they could try: dried apple rings, lemon balm or mint posset, leaves of herbs from the garden, even slices of carrot – tones of wonderment: “It tastes just like normal carrot!” π Nothing like a full multi-sensory experience π
We had a couple of patches of rain, which the tent stood up to very happily, and it was very cold at night most of the time, so we were glad to huddle together and drape cloaks over our sleeping bags. Getting children out of cosy sleeping compartment in the mornings grew progressively harder, however…
Wednesday and Friday were free-flow days, so early start as visitors arrive from 9:15 and can then go where they like but also late finish as they can go back and revisit as much as they want. Some nice groups, but also a couple of very large groups of teenagers who lumped around a bit and whose accompanying adults wanted to stay together – a shame as the beauty of free flow days is that small groups can move around more and so learn more and do things which interest them; large clumps of teens tend to just congeal!
It was nice to have a few children who were clearly special needs/learning disabled and equally clearly getting lots out of their day. History must be a very difficult concept in isolation, whereas experiencing it, hearing, seeing, tasting and touching brings it to life. Confusing for a few, but still fun, I think. I remember way back when I used to do KH we had a group of blind children and adults come round and it was brilliant thinking of ways they could experience everything π
Saturday was a changeover day, with new participants arriving but old ones still around. This should have meant we were overstaffed in the cotte (having been understaffed all week) but actually left us with extra mouths to feed and no more people, as the new arrivals decided to let us get on with it. It was nice in a way and we managed to produce good pottage and the most delicious fromenty ever – and fed 60 + with half a serving of pottage left over – and also to make gingered bread in the afternoon π but it was hard work!
The evening was to be summer solstice celebrations, so each station spent much of the morning preparing a green man – cotte had two as the children picked up on the idea of a green man to be burned on the fire and made a lovely one – very green but totally missing the point π So we ended up with an adult one too, who very clearly made the point :norty:
but also another point as his creator was in the middle of a divorce and took great delight in ripping strategic bits off the man to throw into the flames separately π―
The fire itself was rather graphic and the children thought it hilarious that there were so many willies everywhere! We had the story of the King of Oak and the Man of Holly and their battle, while the wheel of the seasons turned ever onwards, then all the green men were thrown on the fire and the musicians struck up for lots of dancing round the fire and in complicated circles and threads behind and then through the lines of dancers – lots of great pictures here to give you an idea. We took the children off to bed at about 10 but the revelry continued long into the night.
Since we knew by now that Biob would be leaving for Germany first thing on Monday morning we decided that it would be more sensible to pack up on Saturday night/Sunday morning and then leave as soon as we could on Sunday. In the event, I ended up on station in the morning as we were still short-handed, while the boys had a day off from the schoolroom and Bob went back to the campsite to pack up the tent. High winds overnight meant it was all nice and dry (and we were very cosy inside – I’m very impressed with the design) but sadly overenthusiastic help from other campers means we now have a tear in the canvas which I have not yet seen so have no idea how patchable it will be π₯ (sorry Helen) π I’ve no idea how it happened but I’m cross because I loved the tent and want to use it again! It will be returned to us on Friday, I think (Alice took the tent in her car on the way back, leaving K to travel with us) so I’ll look at it then and see what I can do.
Meanwhile K and L did a bit of spoonmaking (still rather a lot of sanding to be done) and I took J to the butts to have a go at archery. He needs to grow a few more muscles π but is now very keen to find an archery club, get his own bow etc etc π
We then did some sneaky quick changes in random places and snuck out while everyone was watching the muster π Got home in time for tea and baths, then bed for children and packing for Bob…
6 thoughts on “Still stepping back”
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Γ’β¬ΕIt tastes just like normal carrot!Γ’β¬Β
Am I missing something?!
Why would a carrot not taste like a carrot?
Enjoying the tales of Kentwell. We went to a similar thing at Gruyere castle at the weekend (just to watch, not participate) and it was most enjoyable.
Clare
It’s a Tudor carrot; they might not be the same thing! We often call them red roots too, which might confuse things π
Actually, I think it’s a symptom of one of the things I love about school group days at Kentwell, which is that people get completely caught up in the magic of time travel and actually start to believe in it a bit π Children and teachers are asked to dress up as well, so on a group day you go through the time tunnel and emerge into a world where pretty much everything looks Tudor (occasional unavoidable things like aeroplanes overhead, but we try) then meet people who speak “Tudorese” (an approximation of Tudor speech, loosely based on King James Bible and with a few fun bits of extra vocab thrown in) and have strange old-fashioned mannerisms… After a while it all starts to feel real π We had one little boy who became very distressed when it was time to leave and finally managed to sob out that it was because “When I go through the time tunnel, you’ll all be dead!”
That’s the bit that Clo would be absolutely terrified about – thinking that she was going back in time. (was so petrified at Dynamic Earth she refuses to go again :-(). She doesn’t like reality and make believe being mixed up! She’s much happier knowing it’s a re-enactment. That doesn’t mean she’ll be happy though – especially if she has an encounter with a jester.
sob sob to tent. telling myself at least it had one good last outing. i think patching canvas is a possibility, but i have no idea how you would do it. don’t think i will tell dad!
It had better be a possibility! I was seriously impressed at how the tent stood up to wind and rain and I’m not about to let it go easily!
Just waiting to see the tear for myself so I can decide what to do next. I imagine I’ll need to find old canvas from somewhere if it needs a full patch, otherwise the new bit will be too strong and cause more tears. Apparently it’s UV which does for canvas, so your dad’s trick of using a large sunshade may well be the reason it’s lasted as well as it has; I shall do the same π
BTW, we still need to give you something for your parents to say thank you for the tent – just haven’t seen you to do it!
i did wonder whether age had weakened it a bit. he was ecastatic tough when i told him you were actually using it – we’re soft romantic folk in my family to be so attatched to an old tent!!