While our door usually remained invitingly open, I couldn't help myself and closed it for a moment to take this picture. I could close it, because the fact that I found the time to take this picture means that it was a quiet moment anyway. We did not experience many such moments though: the number of people attracted to the fair was far beyond all expectations and a many of them were interested in Middle-earth.
2. One sealed deck tournament coming up...
Under Jean-Paul's watchful eye (in the back)
everyone is opening their
packs of cards and trying to get used to life in medieval style: no heating.
It was an all limited edition sealed and those magic words still bring the
people out. -Well, that and the train strike the day before, that kept some
student players from leaving for far away places to visit their parents.-
Clockwise around the table from the left:
Rob van Gansewinkel (outside of view), Ard van Kessel, Rogier Ensing,
Jean-Paul Keulen, Erwin Barendregt, Randy Kalkman, Sirach Franssen en Cornell
Göksu
3. A look inside with one of the two demo / intro tables on the left, were GP Gooiker (in the leather coat) is proving himself an excellent staff member. Further to the back an info table devoted to registry (for the events and for the list of players and collectors), a notebook with this web-site on it and MeCCG for sale (both packs and singles). To the right a sturdy cabin trunk serving as a free commons table.
4. The artist John Howe signing some of the Middle-earth cards he has illustrated. Rumor has it that John doesn't do many autographing sessions. This may be because he does not like to just hand out massive doses of autographs. He would rather chat a bit, meanwhile making a beautiful sketch for you in the work you gave him. This however would mean that he cannot handle more then twelve people an hour and would leave many disappointed fans behind after each session. On the Fair a compromise was found. A bit of drawing, a lot of signatures and everyone willing to wait got what he came for, except John perhaps who, I think, missed his tea break.
5. This peek, taken on Sunday, shows both demo / intro tables, our wall
of flyers and, last but not least, the fire and the kind lady tending to it.
Ard (who seems to be in all the pictures somehow) and Simone were running the
demo's this day (both sitting in the middle of the picture).
On Saturday the fire in the first house of
the medieval village brought more smoke than warmth inside, so we
decided against a fire. On Sunday the map of Middle-earth we had hung in front
of the fireplace disappeared inside straight away: the draft had improved
significantly. The fire was most welcome, after all it was just
early April.