Windsor Castle

To continue my stalking of the English royal family... Windsor Castle!

This is one of the locations I've long wanted to see in the UK, but with being busy and having already seen enough castles and grand buildings and palaces I wasn't sure I would make it out. But after doing an architecture final presentation on modern and revamped castles, I knew I had to go. Windsor did not disappoint me, even in the cold foggy weather that greeted me off the train station in the morning. I was among the first visitors admitted to the castle when the gates opened, and spent around two and a half hours exploring its walls and touring the state rooms. Windsor Castle has been a royal residence for over 900 years, and still serves as one of the homes for Queen Elizabeth II. It started as a medieval castle, and despite being greatly expanded in the 19th century (called "inspired propaganda" by some, when George IV used it to advocate a national idea of quintessential Englishness) it still has several rooms that were originally designed and furnished by earlier monarchs like Charles I and Henry VIII. Those two are buried in its chapel, along with Jane (Henry's favorite wife and one he actually didn't behead) and George VI. The state rooms were stunning, in a very Gothically-inspired way, with many jewels, paintings, and war armor/swords/guns on display - a bit too militarily gung-ho for me, but what else would you expect from a stone fortress? I find myself a bigger fan of the classical ornamentation of Buckingham palace. Windsor, however, was more historically fascinating than even Buckingham.

Feeling a bit suffused with English royals, I spent the afternoon wandering around the city and grounds, including the great park and long walk - which, true to its name, is indeed a very, very, very long pathway stretching out across the grassy plain towards a distant hill capped with a huge statue of George IV. Probably at least four miles roundtrip. My feet were aching. It was well worth it, though, for once I finally reached the end the view was absolutely unbelievable, English landscape stretching out all around and Windsor looming in the distance. (I'm sure it was romantically planned this way: arrive at the grand monument after a long pilgrimmage and have your breath taken away by the castellar silhouette on the horizon. Ideals of Englishness, indeed.)

All of this left me thinking of how strange it would feel to be born into the royal line, to live this sort of artificial existence in the public eye, virtually being a national symbol...

York Part II: York and York Minster

After leaving Hardwick Hall just after lunch on Friday, we rode the bus up to the city of York itself. There, we all disembarked and walked as a group to York Minster - formally the Cathedral and Church of Saint Peter in York or something, but whatever, no one calls it that.

I've seen a lot of cathedrals since coming to Europe, but York Minster is one of my favorites so far. It's constructed in a Gothic style that reminded me of the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris, with its looming bell towers and ribbed ceilings inside, but it had a much brighter, airier feel - not nearly so shadowy. While it wasn't stunning in the same grand, soaring way as St. Paul's in London, the architecture was still intricately worked and beautiful. Unlike some other Gothic buildings, this one was accented with color and detail everywhere, from its ceilings to its floors and the memorials along the walls. I fell in love with one stained-glass window in particular, a complex and abstract mosaic of different-colored panes, a very divergent (and, apparently, short-lived) alternative to the "picture window" that was common at the time and for centuries after. Our tour guide told us that most onlookers tend to either love or hate this window - but what was there to hate? It was gorgeous!

Speaking of that tour guide, he was excellent, telling us many quirky/funny stories about the cathedral itself, the architecture and artwork we saw inside, and the people who have been part of the Minster's history. Apparently the cathedral has had an extensive record of fires and other disasters - I couldn't tell, it's been so well restored over the years. After our tour, we descended to the crypt below the main cathedral floor, where we found a fascinating display of excavated foundations and artifacts from Roman and Norman ruins. The place where York Minster now stands started first as a Roman basilica, then a Norman chapel, before being built in its current structure around the 13th century. Such an intriguing overlap of different eras.

It was about 4pm when we left the Minster, after which we headed out for a brisk walk around York's amazingly well-preserved medieval city walls. On top of the walls, behind the turrets, I felt like I was a sentry on duty! Plus the views back at the Minster, which towers over the whole city, and at the other historic buildings throughout, were wonderful. Especially with the fall colors bursting out on the trees.

Rounds on the fortress walls over, we wandered the city a bit, seeing old brick and Tudor-style buildings revamped to host more modern shops and restaurants, before heading back to the hotel for a buffet dinner and some R&R. Highlight of the York streets: the Shambles, a famous medieval street where the cramped buildings lean and (seemingly) almost tumble in on top of each other. It's where Diagon Alley in the Harry Potter movies was filmed. (I keep seeing so many Harry Potter places here in the UK... too fun!)