I spent a day and night at the most famous castle in the Netherlands (Slot Lovenstein). Loevestein is a water castle that was built between 1357 and 1368. It was built in the middle of the Netherlands, where the Maas and Waal rivers come together.

Castles fascinates me quite a lot. I always have a long list of questions “Who lived here and why?” “How was life during that period?” “How did people manage to build this masterpiece is that period?”. Yes, the list goes on and on. There is something about Castles that fascinates me especially History, and I love History.

The Castle is surrounded by water, so the most famous way to access the Castles is by a fairy. With your bike or car, you hop on to the fairy. The Castle is also surrounded by two towns (Poedroijen, Brakel). I have seen Castles but mostly on Game of Thrones ;). This Castle was the real deal.

You are greeted with a warm welcome from the little street and the Tavern. The ground around the Castle is lush green and I love how the little street takes you back in time.

Unfortunately, you can’t stay in the Castle. I stayed in the cutest house, there are different Rooms through out the House. The house I spent the night was the house of the Commanders during world war II. They also kept most of the original furniture. The room I stayed in was cozy, the only strange part was that the shower in the room was not hidden away so people can literally see you (Don’t worry the Room had Curtains over the Windows 😉 ). The Kitchen and Dining area is so beautiful I love how they kept most of the original furniture.

Castle Tour

The following day I had the best breakfast, with a view of the Castle. After breakfast, I got my Castle Key and went off to Tour inside the Castle. First I dressed up before continuing on the Tour.

The Tour amazed me, the best part was seeing the original furniture, soldier clothes, cutlery and maiden dresses.

The soldier above was an Italian that fought during the 16th Century. This is the only original soldier gear the castle holds. There are some original pieces of other soldiers, but this was the only fully displayed soldier. I can’t imagine how heavy this must have been for soldiers to wear. The second best part was definitely the view the castle windows offered. You literally have a 360 view of everything that surrounds the castle.

I was absolutely fascinated after this Tour. All I could think about was how these people lived and how amazing they were at creating simple life skills, cutlery, clothes, weapons and more.

The most fun fact that I learned about this tour: People had a specific set of skills, for example a Blacksmith or a Spinner. These people were mostly known as peasants and they used their skills to provide for the Royal Family.

Unearthed

The Castle Tour is not the only Tour you get to experience. In the Soldier Houses (Soldaat Huisjes) there is a big collection of Unearthed. The exhibition brings you face to face with the lives of everybody who lived here. Sometimes, their lives were quite astonishing, but at other times surprisingly normal. Together, the Unearthed items tell us stories about how they lived, how they worked, how they ate and simply how they survived.

More photos…

  

For me, this was such an awesome experience. I just loved to learn about life in the Middle Ages. I do love Game of Thrones, but this is one epic Castle.

xoxo

Chante’