It’s getting a little too cold to explore all of the little (and not so little) palaces in the Brandenburg region around Berlin (and a little further afield), so I’ll start off by doing so virtually. Which of the ones below would you visit first? By appearance or by reputation/association?
When it gets cold and dark in the winter months, it is tempting to dream of escapes to warmer climes. But for me, there is nothing more romantic than a castle in the snow (especially if it has good skiing facilities nearby and huge fireplaces indoors to warm up).
I’ve been showing you an awful lot of bookshelves and working spaces lately, which represents a minimal level of escapism. So I’ll give you a break this week and invite you to complete escapism via that other favourite subject of mine: chateaux! Besides, with wedding season coming up, wouldn’t any of these make the perfect backdrop for an unforgettable, if expensive day?
I know it has become quite fashionable to purchase run-down chateaux in France and renovate them without speaking a word of French and then renting them out to other Anglos for weddings and parties. But there are beautiful manor houses in other countries as well. The ones below are certainly not looking too run-down.
In summer we might be islands in the stream, but in winter, I feel more like a castle in the snow, don’t you? And, since it’s escapist Friday, we won’t even worry about the heating bills!
Merry Christmas to all who are celebrating, and a happy end of the calendar year to everyone! Hope you get a chance to rest and recharge your batteries!
When things go against you and the entire family collapses with something that could be flu or bronchitis or tonsillitis or all three rolled into one, one should stick to what one knows and likes best, namely my beloved chateaux or manor houses, which is how Friday Fun got started.
In previous years, I might have been tempted to do a World Cup of stately homes from the countries participating in the FIFA World Cup, but this year it has been so problematic (not that I was any happier about 2018) that I will just stick to a few sturdy favourites. Oh, and they all are (or were until recently) for sale, so better hurry!
There was an expression much used by estate agents in France while I was living there ‘for lovers of old stones’. This typically was used when advertising dilapidated old chateaux or farmhouses for sale, with a lot of exposed rustic stone walls. I have to admit, I am a hopeless romantic and love those old stones – although I could not embark upon some of those overly ambitious renovations. Here are some that are more or less finished.
Now that we’ve acquired the perfect manor house, how do we furnish it? The preference seems to be for traditional 16-19th century furnishings (matching the exterior of the building), but occasionally you get the more adventurous owner (or designer).
They are officially listed under ‘chateaux’ on the exclusive property site Belles Demeures, but they range from medieval castles to 19th century extravaganzas for the lord of the manor, and the prices are far more reasonable than in England (the scenery often far more beautiful too). My conclusion after closely examining every single property on the site is that not enough people make use of all the space they have to create wonderful libraries…
[Apologies for the watermarks on the pictures, since Belles Demeures is an aggregate site for a collective of estate agents in France].
I gather there is a film currently on one of the streaming services featuring a popular novelist who can afford to buy a Scottish castle just in time for Christmas, so I couldn’t resist combining two of my favourite topics: castles/palaces/manor houses and snow. Of course, not all of these are ‘chateaux’ strictly speaking, but ‘palaces in the chalices’ or ‘castles for the passels’ just don’t quite have the same rhyming resonance, do they?
findingtimetowrite 