If I Were Going...: January 2025

Castles and more!

Happy February: the shortest month with the most extra squares on the calendar. That’s important, because I always pick a subject with either LOTS of photos or LOTS of variety for my February pages.

This is the third installment of posts providing an overview of the 2025 Stevens Family Calendar. The first two can be found here and here in case you didn’t see them. Actually, they can be found there regardless of whether you saw them!

February is completely different from January. Last month concentrated on one specific area – Antarctica – and featured predominantly nature – scenery and wildlife with just a few human-made subjects.

February is all about what I call cultural scenery: structures created and built by humans.

Carcassonne Castle, France

Remember, unless I say a photo is featured in the calendar, it is one we didn’t use.

In 2024, I visited Europe twice: to England and Wales with Caty in June and to France and Andorra (with incursions into Spain, Switzerland, Germany, Luxembourg and Belgium) with Scott in September.

Foix Castle in France and Beaumaris Castle in Wales

Among the things Europe is famous for are castles and cathedrals. This month concentrates on castles; you’ll see churches and cathedrals later. In some cases, there is some cross-contamination because it’s not that unusual for castles and churches to overlap: sharing space, changing purpose, being built adjacent to each other or even serving one purpose while looking like the other. But I tried to keep them properly categorized. You can decide how well I did – or if it even matters.

Here’s an example: Mont Saint-Michel looks like a castle, but is actually primarily an Abbey, so most pictures we took were considered for the "church section" of the calendar. However, Mont Saint-Michel also has a town within the walls and some of those pictures appear in another section of the calendar that features villages, towns, cobbled lanes and quaint houses.

But, it also has some castle/fortress features, which are found here.

Make sense? It doesn’t really matter; they are pretty photos

In addition to castles, February also features manor houses, châteaux, royal gardens and ancient structures, including a stone circle, a dolmen and a Roman bathhouse.

Pentre Ifan dolmen in Wales

And, boy did we see lots and lots of castles and ancient structures!

By the way, I did a whole blog post about Welsh Castles back in July. You can read it here. I think most also applies to French castles. Half the time people were building castles in foreign countries anyway – or at least they were invading or defending castles.

Main Page

So, let’s get started with the main calendar page, which is pictured above. I will start in the middle and then discuss the castles clockwise around the perimeter (sort of).

Smack in the middle is Carcassonne Castle, which is in Provence, France.

Calendar page centerpiece! Photo: Scott Stevens

This castle was not on our radar at all; rather we happened upon it while on our way to a cassoulet restaurant (which turned out to be inside the castle’s city walls).

It was a gorgeous day and we spent an inordinate amount of time photographing the castle/fortress from afar. And, we pulled quite a few photos to consider for this page; many tricky because the photos tended to be exceptionally wide horizontal views because the castle is expansive.

Even when you get some of the neighboring vineyards in the foreground,
it is wide! Photos: Scott Stevens

Pull in closer and you get more detail, but less castle!

Carcassonne is a really classic castle – so much so that I wasn’t even sure if it was old (maybe Disney built it!). But, some of it goes back to the 5th Century, with massiveadditiona and restorations throughout the centuries.

Crenelated (toothed) walls, keeps and turrets

Gargoyle, painting and castle; Lower right: Scott Stevens

Because our stop at Carcassonne wasn’t originally planned, we didn’t have a lot of time to explore. The visit was predominantly find – shoot – eat – shoot – leave. Maybe if we had stayed longer, we would have had a bit more variety in our shots.

They do tend to look alike, but with subtle differences

The upper right photo on the main page is a view looking up a Foix Castle, also in southern France.

The shot of Foix Castle from the main page

Another truly classic castle, this beauty dates from around the same time as Carcassonne, but, instead of lying on a flat (ish) plain, it sits majestically above the surrounding town on a hill.

Castle on the hill

The towers are built into the rock below, as are some houses

This visit was, unlike the drive-by at Carcassonne, a planned activity. The castle has a lovely education center and a staff of in-costume interpreters who give a historical perspective and demonstrate how things (such as catapults and crossbows) work.

Armory and smithy; Photos: Scott Stevens

A contraption that helps lift heavy objects over the wall

Something I really liked was that Foix gives you a lot of freedom to wander about, exploring the castle on your own according to …

... your interests (I like furnishings) ...

... and your abilities; these stairs aren't for everyone; Photos: Scott Stevens

I used a tower photo in the calendar because it was so striking against the blue, blue sky. Interestingly, Foix is a great example of how castle tower-building evolved because it has both square towers (built in the 11th Century) and round towers (built in the 15th Century). The design changed as canons developed because cannonballs were able to nick off the corners of the square ones. The round ones became better defense.

Square and round

An interesting thing about what we consider to be “classic” castles: they are designed more for defense than for comfortable living. We saw this at all the true castles we visited.

A high defensive wall at Foix

The top middle photo on the main page is a bit different.

This is of Lowther Castle, in Penrith, England: Photo: Caty Stevens

This abandoned beauty is in ruins but being restored. And, despite its regal appearance (from afar) it was actually a manor house built to look like a castle.

It looks older than it is

Although on the site of a legit castle, this giant country house was built in the early 1800s, long after cannonballs were a threat. It turned out to be too expensive.

To avoid taxes, the roofs were removed

Exposure to the elements turned it into an indoor/outdoor garden

It is now the domain of ever-present Eurasian Jackdaws; Left: Caty Stevens

This transformation is a bit ironic because Lowther has always been famous for its gardens, both formal and informal.

Beautiful flowers

Wildflowers

Linden trees and a European Robin

As I said, Lowther is being restored, with much of the emphasis on the gardens. Whether the house will bever be re-roofed, I don’t know.

Meanwhile, you can enjoy the chaos

The next photo and the photo in the lower righthand corner of the main page are of a truly legitimate ancient fortress, Pembroke Castle, which overlooks the ocean in southwestern Wales.

Both of these are in the calendar

You can both visit the castle and walk around the outside of the ancient walls.

Statue of William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke, outside and walkway inside

This castle, which, like Foix, sits above the city, is characterized by a number of very tall round keeps.

Some of Pembroke's impressive keeps; Middle: Caty Stevens

Pembroke is the only castle to get a double shot on the main page.

Right below Pembroke on the main page is another quasi-castle: Château du Chambord in the Loire Valley, France.

Chambord is considered to be the most beautiful château in France; Photo: Scott Stevens

Chambord was used primarily as a hunting lodge and was never really occupied for any continuous period of time. The ornate exterior is a photographer’s dream ...

day ...

... and night

Château du Chambord is known for its ornate towers and spires, no two alike. It was said to be designed based on the skyline of Constantinople, which, at the time was a center of culture in Europe.

An exercise in excess

Towers and a moat

An interesting perspective; Photo: Scott Stevens

Chambord is a major tourist attraction (it requires reservations, but I am not sure we needed them), with a horse/history/falconry show, guided tours (we didn’t indulge), access to the almost barren interior and free rein of the grounds and gardens.

Interior details

There is a nice hotel on the grounds, where we stayed, which made it possible for me to take some night shots of the illuminated building.

Proximity has value

Another photography feature is the lovely stone bridge that crosses the Loire River and leads into the grounds.

That made for more great shots; Upper right: Scott Stevens

Below the photo of Château du Chambord on the main page is a picture of the formal gardens at Levens Hall in the Lake District of England.

Topiary! Photo: Caty Stevens

These whimsical sculpted formal gardens were a delight to stroll and it was hard to select a favorite for the calendar.

How to choose!!!????

The manor house, which is pretty but not spectacular, is also open for tours. Because it is still occupied by the owners, photography is not allowed. Boo!

Well, at least that didn’t add more stress to selecting photos.

The middle bottom main page photo is a departure from castles, going back so far in history that no one really knows its purpose. The Pentre Ifan dolmen was originally thought to be a burial chamber …

Stones balanced on stones; Photo: Caty Stevens

… but archeological excavation has unearthed no bones or artifacts that would prove this theory. Instead it may have been some sort of memorial, public building or religious site.

Different views

It sits in a serene field surrounded by Sheep and Snails …

Thousands of Garden Snails; Right: Caty Stevens

Access and parking are free, but the trick is to find it on the narrow Welsh roads. When Caty and I arrived, we were the only ones there and we had all the time in the world to take pictures. I also featured a shot of Pentre Ifan in the opening section of the calendar.

Next, we have the drawbridge gates to that is-it-this?-or-is-it-that? place I mentioned before: Mont Saint-Michel in northwestern France.

Left is in the calendar; right is not; Left: Scott Stevens

The drawbridge takes you into the walled city on a cobbled road that eventually ends at the Abbey. But, this part looks more castle than city or church.

You’ll see a lot more of Mont Saint-Michel later in the calendar. I am just glad that Scott was able to get such a nice drawbridge shot, despite the crowds.

Above that shot on the main page is another ancient site, the Castlerigg Stone Circle in England’s Lake District. Akin to Stonehenge, this site probably had some religious or spiritual significance, but the purpose is lost to history.

What was this for? Photo: Caty Stevens

Both Caty and I took photos, but they all looked pretty much alike, so we quickly narrowed it down to the one above. The only other shots I considered were not really on this theme.

A stone wall and a Swaledale Sheep

And, finally, the main page ends with another classic castle: Beaumaris Castle in northwestern Wales.

Built as a fortress, Beaumaris boasts the quintessential castle defense: a moat

The moat actually contains water, which is often not the case anymore. However, the water didn’t seem deep enough to be a deterrent (except it was high on the yucky scale). Still, it made for some good photos.

Other options

Beaumaris also had an offset entrance that would require invaders crossing the bridge to change direction in an exposed area inside the gates, making them vulnerable to slaughter.

A true fortress

Add that to all the arrowloops and places designed for dumping boiling oil, you have a very hospitable home. Unlike some we visited, Beaumaris is a true ruin, with missing pieces, crumbling stairs and absent roofs. The openness provides an opportunity to see how the tall keeps were made and supported.

Inside the keep and a buttress

That wraps up the main page (and many of the photos we didn’t use), but we have more castles and ancient sites to show you on the calendar page …

Calendar Page

First up is Cardiff Castle, which sits atop a steep hill and overlooks Wales’ biggest city.

I used this (I wish the Welsh flag had been unfurled)

I could have used the one with the trees in the foreground

It’s actually quite interesting because on the same site there is the medieval castle and Victorian Gothic mansion.

Once on the grounds, you can visit both

The mansion is certainly worth it; it is spectacularly decorated. We took so many photos, but it was a bit dark so there were just a few that felt calendar worthy.

In the end, I didn’t use interior photos here, but they could have worked

The castle itself was similar to others we had seen, but did have some interesting angles.

To see the view from above, you have to climb steep steps (note changing shadow on the left)

The clock tower was lovely, but just didn’t fit anywhere

The Bear on the "animal wall" in front of the castle and real tea at the onsite shop

The next shot on the calendar page is a castle we stopped by early in the morning for just a few photos.

Roquetaillade Castle, which sits across from a vineyard on a country lane south of Bordeaux in France seemed to be a perfect simple, small fortress.

We just happened upon it

We took just a few (almost identical) photos before moving on

Later, I learned that there is a significantly larger wing behind what you can see from the road and that the interior is “one of the most lavishly decorated” castles in France. Too bad they weren’t open a 6:30 a.m.!

The next (double) photo on the February calendar page is another road find. Caty and I were driving through small towns in Wales and happened upon Ffwrnais (Furnace), which is both a town and an actual pig iron smelter (AKA furnace). We looked around a bit and got some photos before heading out.

The left is in the calendar; the others aren't

The next shot is along the outer wall of Mont Saint-Michel. This is perhaps the most “castle-like” part of the island fortress.

The featured photo is on the left

And, next is a castle not featured before: Caernarfon in northwestern Wales (not too far from Beaumaris in an area known for an abundance of castles).

Of course, Caty and I toured this one, too

The square towers indicate that the castle is quite old. It was a rainy day, so a lot of our shots were moody or rain-speckled.

Old windows

Castle door and (speckled) ornately engraved canon

Next up on the calendar is St. Davids Bishop’s Palace, a lovely spot in southwestern Wales. The castle is ruined; the cathedral next to it (which you will see later) is still functional.

The round windows were a theme (as were the carved heads on the wall)

It was a gorgeous summer day when we visited, so we had lots and lots of photos to choose from. If you are in Wales, the St. Davids complex is a must-see.

This arched wall was once brightly painted; Photo: Caty Stevens\

You can still see some paint

The displays are interesting as is the lesson that one did not need to be royalty to live like it. Sometimes the church leaders did quite well. Quite well.

Of course, many European palaces are graced with phenomenal formal gardens like one finds at Château du Chambord.

The right photo is in the calendar

The only problem with photographing the gardens and neighboring woods was the ever-present gardeners and their trucks. I know their elaborate lawns need constant care, but perhaps if they could wear medieval garb and use horses ...

The next shot, La Bâtiaz Castle, is from Switzerland. We came upon it perched on a hillside above the town of Matigny as we were driving from the Riviera to the French Alps (going through Switzerland is faster).

The castles’ simplicity and the rising morning fog made for a lovely look

The next shot is another from Levens Hall. I showed you the formal topiary garden above. This arbor was in the more “natural garden” that included hedgerows, flower gardens and lots and lots of bees.

The English love their gardens and it shows

And, the final shot on this page is an abandoned Roman-style bath in Ornolac-Ussat-les-Bains, France.

We had driven by it twice and had to stop the third time for a few photos

A Few More

I hope that’s enough castles.

Of course, we took many, many more photos of most of these castles. I just showed you the ones we considered for the calendar. And, even that was a lot of photos. Here are a few more that just didn’t make it.