Border Crossings

[Orphena]

Hello Faire Friends!

Every year for the last few, m'lord and I have made it a point to cross the Canada / US Border to visit some of the larger faires that are in driving distance of Ontario. While we have never been searched at the border, we have noticed an increase of questions when we return to Canada. Included among them is an increased awareness of the fact that weapons can be purchased at faires. The last 3 trips has included specific questions "Did you purchase any weapons / armour / chain mail while at the faire?" Now, to date we have always been able to say "no" to this question, but I am wondering if anyone knows what would happen if we were to say "yes". Some of the time, the border guard seems almost keen to see it (like "OoooOO pretty sword!"). Now IF we were to purchase, they would technically (from our point of view) be accessories, not "armour" - I am not sure if the border guard would agree.

Any thoughts / suggestions? I realize that most people here are from the US, so do you get a similar query when returning to the States?

[DeadBishop]

My thought is you could possibly be hit by customs/importation fees. 

[Orphena]

Would those still apply if we were within our daily limits? We are usually away for over 48 hours, which means we can bring in $400 each.

Was hoping someone could explain the "why" behind the new queries.

[robert of armstrong]

Mainly because there are more of us crossing to go to Faire.  They used to hear "went to the football/baseball game" or "was at the NASCAR race" for the shorter visiting crossers, or "on my way back from ....."  which gets old and boring.  When they hear "Was at the Michigan RenFest" they are hearing something new, and remember it.  They they hear it again and wonder what it is all about.  I have been stopped a couple times, not to be inspected, but because the Customs guy wanted to hear about the Faire, where it was and how many more weeks it was going.  One asked for directions.  Its new, and some are genuinly interested.

As for bringing stuff across, none of what you are referring to is restricted or prohibited in Canada.  As long as you stay under your daily spending limits, you should be fine.  They are also interested because they know that some of the things we have are bloody expensive. If I bought a Maille hauberk, it may put me close to my limit, and if I bought a bunch of stuff, I may owe duties on my purchases (if they are noticed   

[Orphena]

Thanks Robert! That makes me feel a little more "free" to bring back some of that stuff!