Yes, I almost bought a castle, but not the one you see to the left.
Back in 2002 when we were house hunting, I had my mind set on looking at Victorian style homes. I loved the look, and most homes were old with many antique features.
Imagine my surprise when our real estate agent brought us to a castle-style home to see! Of course it was MUCH smaller that a REAL castle, but had some of the same features: towers, vaulted ceilings, made of stone...but no moat or drawbridge. Beautiful backyard, too.
Inside, I immediately felt swept away to another time, another place. I became Queen of the castle. One feature that will always stand out in my mind is the circular stairway...almost right in the middle of the living room. I remember thinking how romantic it would be to climb my stairway each night with my husband and head to our "bedchamber".
Castle living brings to mind hidden rooms, dark hallways...and plenty of places to grab a loved one and share a kiss...or two. Elegant rooms with adornments fit for a king and queen would add to the ambiance of a castle.
This castle home had some updated features, but not enough to take away from the antique feeling of the place. Old fireplaces adorned some rooms and the basement was absolutely dark and scary.
I loved the inside and backyard...but hated what I could see surrounding my "castle". Unfortunately, it sat on a corner of an industrial area. So outside the front door, all I could see were buildings and warehouses. Not exactly what a queen would hope to view.
Sadly, we didn't buy the home, even though the price was reasonable. And now that I've watched all seasons of Downton Abbey, I wonder if my "castle" would have been looked upon as more of a fascinating curiosity, and not an object of "what is that doing there?"
Is there a castle in your dreams...complete with a handsome king?
Marianne Stephens
http://www.romacebooks4us.com
http://www.mariannestephens.net
http://naughtyliterati.com
photo:Flickr: Myron Rennard's photostream
9 comments:
We had friends in my hometown who owned a version of a castle. It sat in a forest of trees, had a turret, winding iron stairs, rounded walls. Very cool. I loved going there to visit and dream :)
There's something very special about castles. We used to stay at one in a Norman castle in Ireland was when I was a kid which was full of secret passageways, secret hiding holes for priests but most of all it had that ancient castle smell...that reeked of history. Definitely a good place for childhood adventures and a wild imagination!
Pretty neat.
Wow, how cool, Marianne. :) I love Victorians.
What a possibility!
We were actually tempted by a castle too. The owner moved it from somewhere in Europe and rebuilt it in my county brick by brick. They even put in a wine cellar accessed by an elevator. It's still for sale as far as I know. The owners divorced and the castle is insanely inexpensive. The yearly taxes however...holy cow.
I grew up in a Victorian house--complete with tower and 15-foot ceilings (imagine a Christmas tree that tall!). It even had an 2=story stable and "servant" quarters. Great fun as a child. There's a castle near me in FL called Solomon's Castle--a sculptor built it himself and covered it with shiny aluminum plates--it even has a moat!
Marianne, I would have loved to see that Victorian "castle." There's a beautiful Victorian near me that I walk past every day. It looks like a castle too. It's for sale now and I'm hoping they have an open house. I'd love to see the inside.
There's big farm house not too far away from here with a turret. I think I'd love to see inside. It looks like the person loved castles and added to their small beginning home with fun additions.
Sometimes, the homes we didn't buy stick with us more than the ones we did.
Love castles from afar...not really interested in winding staircases and hidden ghosts to live in. Love to read about them though!
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