There is the world, and then there is Appleby.
That is, the Appleby Horse Fair, where every year thousands of Gypsies and Irish Travelers gather in the North West of England for the unusual pleasure of not being disowned by communities, but welcomed.
“When we come to a place like the Appleby Fair and sit around the campfire, it gives us a sense of place, a sense of belonging and a sense of ancestry,” said Billy Welch, one of the organizers. “We feel like, for a week, we really are at home.”
Life has never been easy in England for the Irish Travelers or for the Gypsies, as many still refer to themselves (elsewhere, many view the term as pejorative and prefer to be called Roma).
Both originated as nomadic groups centuries ago, with the Roma migrating from India to Europe and the nomads emerging in what is now Ireland.
In England, Appleby’s have brought the community together year after year.
The fair’s roots date back to the 18th century, when merchants from across the UK began camping each June in the rural Cambrian town of Appleby-in-Westmorland. And the horses are still the stars.
They are bathed in the River Eden. They participate in races through the streets and parade with hype and cymbals. They are still bought and sold.
The families of many fairgoers have lived in England for centuries. But life is often hard. Poverty and health problems are widespread, and many places are openly hostile to their camps.
“People tell us to go back to where we came from,” Welch said. “My family has lived in Darlington for decades, and they still tell us that.”
During the festival, Appleby, a town of 3,228 inhabitants, receives up to 30,000 visitors. And it can be a partying crowd. “You can feel a change in the atmosphere if there’s going to be trouble,” said Ruth Harper, a police officer.
Some businesses close for the five-day fair, and some residents are openly angry about it. But Harper claimed that she was looking forward to the fair.
For some who spend much of the year resigned to the conventions of the modern world, the Appleby Fair is a chance to live out their traditions.
Those who have wagons traditionally painted green dust them off to make the journey, which can take several weeks. It is both a sentimental and a strategic decision.
“With a cart, you don’t get the same abuse as in a motorhome,” said Becky Lumb, 35, who traveled to the fair from Bradford in northern England. “People see that it has something of tradition and romanticism.”
By: Eric Nagourney
BBC-NEWS-SRC: http://www.nytsyn.com/subscribed/stories/6810978, IMPORTING DATE: 2023-07-19 21:00:06
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