June 26 - Windsor Castle

Today is our first day without vouchers or time constraints.  We had planned on going to Brighton to the beach but the weather was pretty cool so we went with option B, a train ride out for a day of sightseeing at Windsor Castle.  Windsor Castle is the oldest and largest occupied castle in the world.  The lines were pretty long but moved pretty fast.  We picked up our audio tour device and headed up to the castle.  

We got there shortly before the Changing of the Guards so we headed straight for that area where we were able to get front row seats.  

The ceremony took about an hour and included the “old” (outgoing) guard and the “new” (incoming) guard and the band.  Most of the ceremony sort of made sense except for the long period where the heads of the two companies paraded back and forth across the area for a very long time.  Eventually the old guard members from around the castle ground made it back to the parade ground, having been replaced by the new members of the guard.  The band then struck up another song and they and the old guard marched out while the new guard took up positions.

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Video 1 of Changing of the Guards

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Video 2 of Changing of the Guards

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Video 3 of Changing of the Guards

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Video 4 of Changing of the Guards

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Video 5 of Changing of the Guards

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We spent some time walking the castle grounds.

No photos were allowed inside of the buildings in the castle itself.  The first stop was Queen Mary’s Doll House, a masterpiece of miniaturization, and the largest doll house in the word (at 1:12 scale).  The house is fully wired for electricity, has hot and cold running water, working elevators and flushing toilets.  The library is filled with individual books by prominent authors of the period (mid-1920’s), a fully stocked wine cellar and a garden by Gertrude Jekyll (prominent garden designer of the period).  Truly fascinating.  

There was also a display of two dolls (and part of their clothing and accessories) presented to Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret by the children of France.  The clothing was all designed and made by top designers of the day including Worth, Lanvin, Hermes, and Vuitton.

Hard to beat that but we then toured the State Apartments, which were pretty opulent. 

We also saw St. George’s Chapel, sight of many Royal Weddings.

We had lunch at a restaurant near the train station in town.  The area resembled one of the covered Victorian Markets with a glass roof.  Being as it is England perhaps it was an actual Victorian Market.

After lunch at the castle, Mary and Chloe took a walk on The Long Walk that leads up to the Castle.

We did have some time to walk around the town of Windsor...

before heading back to the hotel, calling it a day.

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More Windsor

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