Visit to a Castle

Saturday was rainy so we decided that it was the perfect occasion to take the train to the nearby Château de Chillon. We woke up and headed out early so that we could be there when the castle opened and we were not disappointed!

This castle is built on an island at the edge of Lac Léman and dates back to the 12th century! You guys, this place is old! We spend the morning taking the kids on a self guided tour of the place. It's so amazing to me that they just let people walk around anywhere they want, there weren't any roped off areas, you could jump out a window if you wanted to… although I wouldn't suggest it.  I even climbed the tiny, rickety, steep stairs all the way up to the highest point of the building, it was so cool! I guess the Swiss mentality is that people are responsible for their own risk. Let me tell you, being responsible for our little monkeys in that place was a full time job!

Anyway, back to our visit… Throughout the centuries this castle was occupied by various groups, Savoys, Bernese, Vaudois. But, it is most famous for a poem written about one of it's prisoners by Lord Byron after he visited the castle and was intrigued by its stories. I guess he was so intrigued that he decided to leave his own mark on one of the dungeon's pillars!

Of all the many rooms and courtyards our kids were most interested in the Lords bedroom and "bathroom" facilities. In the bathroom the hole in the "throne" was situated high above the lake. I laugh every time I think of Quinn's face when he realized what he was looking at!

While Quinn was a fan of the facilities, Anna settled right in and warmed up by one of the many gigantic fireplaces.

The castle was warm when we visited, but can you imagine spending a Swiss winter in this place?? Brrrrrrrrrr!

At lunch Kevin and I took turns exploring a bit on our own, while the kids did laps and played in one of the courtyards.

Here's what I found at the top of the castle's keep…

And here are the kids amusing themselves with Annie's favorite game.

These days there are less knights and prisoners and more tours and functions, we even saw a wedding party getting a guided tour! It was such a memorable day for us, and our kids were troopers without the stroller for the day. We'll be back Château de Chillon, we've got more exploring to do!


PS- Sorry about the grainy iPhone pictures…I was too chicken to bring the nice camera out in the rain sans stroller…now I regret not bringing it! Oh well, c'est la vie!