Castell Coch

Woke up to another beautiful day on Saturday, so a perfect day to visit another castle!  This time we visited Castell Coch:

Castell Coch sits at the top of a VERY steep hill which Ben and I gallantly trudged up, a hard, but beautiful walk:

We were rewarded at the top of the hill with the fairytale Castell Coch:

I can barely wait to explore this castle!

Also got some shots of local horseback riders around the castle, how English!



The castle had an impressive drawbridge (which is still in working order!) and entrance to the castle:

Inside the castle, there is an open courtyard, which Ben took in:

From here we headed into the castle's rooms, always my favorite part!

We started out in the dinning hall with impressive murals painted on either end of the hall.  If these seem familiar it's because Cardiff Castle was decorated in a similar fashion, both Cardiff Castel and Castell Coch had the same owner, Lord Bute, and the same architect/designer, William Burges.

Another impressive fireplace, just as in Cardiff Castle:

and grandiose ceilings:

I took a perch inside one of the hall's three window seats, just like a lady of the court!

We then moved onto the impressive drawing room:

Here is where the drawbridge for the front of the castle is controlled, again, still in working order!

Had to take another loo shot, not quite as nice as the one in Cardiff Castle ;)

Here is Lord Bute's room, surprisingly simple for a man of such wealth (he was said to be the richest man in the world at the time), but then again his room in Cardiff Castle was simple as well, except for the fancy bathroom. 

In Castel Coch there was no modern running water tub for Lord Bute, just a metal tub right in his room!

He did give himself a nice fireplace, though not quite as impressive as his alter inspired fireplace at Cardiff Castle:

but the ceilings were nice!

Next we moved onto Lady Bute's bedroom and it seems as though the emphasis on grand design and furnishings went towards her bedroom with an ornate bed frame, dresser and chair:



as well as a fancy sink and vanity:

and even more impressive ceilings:

apparently the monkeys painted on the ceilings and walls were quiet lascivious ;)

The final bedroom was Lady Margaret's, she was the daughter of Lord and Lady Bute:

View of the courtyard from Lady Margaret's room:

Ben and I also admired the views from the towers surrounding the courtyard:

Next was the kitchen, St. Fagan's is still my favorite castle kitchen!

Autumn leaves through the kitchen windows:

creepy stairs by the kitchen:

even more creepy cellar:

Then we moved onto the chapel room.  Apparently this tower used to contain a chapel but because of structural problems, it had to be removed.  However they kept the original chapel stained glass windows for viewing:

Ben working the wheel:

After a long day of castle exploration, we relaxed with some tea and biscuits in the castle's tea room, very English indeed!

We then moved outside to explore the caste's exterior and grounds:

Just as we were leaving the castle a wedding was about to start within Castell Coch and just outside stood the cars for the bride and groom, they looked so quintessentially English that I just had to take a picture!

I really enjoyed the beautiful day at Castel Coch and the gorgeous Fall leaves in the surrounding woods, but I must say, St. Fagan's remains my favorite castle grounds and Cardiff Castle remains my favorite castle interior.  That is until we visit the next castle!