Nicholas and Ashlyn-Windsor Castle (above and below), May 2006 . That palace guard wouldn't even crack a smile :). We tried, and tried.
We definitely have visited many castles and palaces during our years here. We have seen both castles still used as residences and ruins. I remember our first month in England when we visited a nearby castle-Weeting Castle. It is a 12th century ruin, but I thought it was neat to picnic there. I think the oldest one was Castle Acre, founded after 1066. The most ornate was the Palace of Versailles outside Paris.
Hilary wanted some pictures of them, so I looked in the archives and found these. My favorites have to be Windsor Castle, Leeds Castle, Sandringham, and Schloss Neuschwanstein (the Cinderella/"Disney" castle in Bavaria, Germany).
Lincoln Castle (above)-September 1999. A copy of the Magna Carta was there! (We also saw a copy at Salisbury Cathedral). Lauren is a newborn in the sling. There are usually many steep stairs at castles, and other historical sites, so I usually take some kind of sling because strollers are hard to push or not allowed.
Leeds Castle (above)-June 2001. It has a cool moat around it and a grotto to explore!
(above) Palace guard at Edinburgh Castle, Scotland. His uniform looks different than the guard in the first photos; (below) Edinbugh Castle-May 2002. We walked the Royal Mile between this castle and Holyrood Abbey. Holyrood was closed since the Queen was in residence for her Golden Jubilee. Boo hoo. We wanted to make another trip back to Scotland, but never did. It was too far! The people in Scotland were very friendly, and the scenery is amazing. It was cold though! We found ourselves shivering, even in May.
I think this was a castle in Wales. We went to several, but I can't remember the names...they were in the welsh language! 
Castle Rising (above) in Hunstanton. A 12th-century castle where Queen Isabella spent her last days. Nick (sling) and I are in the very bottom of the picture. It is mainly the ruins. I remember seeing the kitchen area, the chamber for the cleric, and the hole where they would pour hot tar on invaders at the door!
The girls in front of Schloss Neuschwanstein in Bavaria, Germany-March 2005 (above) and a view from the bridge (below). Definitely a dreamy castle....
3 fabulous friends:
Looks like tons of fun! My brother is stationed in Germany...can't remember where.
we were in heidelberg for two and a half years. i miss it!!! would much rather live in europe than anywhere else. would really like to live in france, but there aren't any military posts there anymore. so sad.....
I LOVED this post - and so did my girls! I loved the Queen Isabella one. Old stuff like that and stories like that are things I love. Too bad you didn't make it to Scotland. That is one place I would LOVE to go - check out my ancestry there and stuff. Plus, it just looks beautiful!
Thank you so much for all of the gorgeous pictures. I really am jealous that you have seen so many neat things - and your kids will appreciate it so much someday. You are amazing!
And I have to ask: Have you ever seen Shanghai Knights? Silly movie, but I think it is funny. Every time I see one of the guards in front of a castle, I have to laugh because of that movie. (In case you didn't see it, they try to make the guard move because he says they aren't supposed to, so they do all sorts of stuff to try to get him to move.) Pretty funny.
Anyways, I have written a novel for this comment. Sorry. But I really, really love the pictures! Thank you again. My girls thank you too!
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