A Castle Fit for a Queen

Some days I am boring and tired and don't do much (kind of like the last couple days).

Today was not one of those days.

Today Eva and I went to Windsor Castle, the oldest royal residence still in use and the queen's official residence today. 

The flag was flying, and that means that the queen was home today! She spends most of her weekends here at Windsor.

Walking up to the castle. It was kind of cold today, but the sun showed its face occasionally, and we had a wonderful time.

So excited to go in!!

This is the central keep, the last line of defense for the fortress. Now, of course, it's part of the royal residence, and what used to be the moat is now a "rather lovely garden," as our audio tour said.

More shots of the rather lovely garden.

Looking out over the town

Imposing view of the battlements

A view from the outer wall. Windsor Castle was originally a fortress, and thus it stands on a location that makes it easy to defend and provides excellent scenic views.

Gargoyles. I've always wanted to see some of those. These were on our way to go see the state rooms.

Queuing up to go into the state rooms. It was cold. Real cold. But SO WORTH IT.

We couldn't take pictures inside (they never let you take pictures of the coolest stuff) but we walked through the state rooms and saw a lot of things, including Queen Mary's Dolls' House, which produced an audible gasp and an "Oh wow!" Crystal chandeliers, exquisite paintings, intricate furniture made from silver and ebony, grand rooms like St. George's Hall that, when you step into them, take your breath away. Wow.

Queen Mary's Dolls' House wasn't actually made for dolls or intended for children. It was basically an exercise in miniaturization. The furniture and everything was to scale, and it had working heating and lighting. It was a gift for Queen Mary's birthday, and famous artists and authors donated miniature versions of their works for the house. Incredibly detailed. A-mazing.

The quadrangle, where the queen receives illustrious guests. Do I count?

St. Stephen's Chapel, where the remains of King Henry VIII are interred

I am still astounded at the history of these places. It still makes my head spin to try to wrap my mind around the sheer weight of years that some of them have. Let's be serious--this castle is older than my country. The British really treasure their history and work hard to preserve it, and it has been an unbelievable experience to come and see it for myself. To an extent, their history is our history. I have come to realize in the past little while the importance of having a sense of history not only as a country, but as a people and as an individual. 

We are the past, and the past is us.