Mir Castle, Belarus (2011)
| Photo below:
Ceiling in a room in the castle. The room is exquisite. The lighting is from crystal chandeliers. The decorative molding on the ceiling has been gilded. The paintings are of old kings and queens. |
| We had been inside the
room to hear a string quartet play classical music. It
was a day that had begun in the villages and ended in a
castle. The guide explained that the fancy room could be
rented for events such as weddings; her own daughter had
married there. The room is not a chapel or church, which
means that it would be used only for weddings for
non-Catholics. (Catholics must marry in a church.) Photo below: Bride arriving for her wedding in the fancy room. |
| Soon after the concert by
the string quarted ended, a wedding party arrived. As the
guests walked in, most carried flowers. It is a Belarusan
custom. The flowers at the wedding are something beyond
wedding gifts. Belarusans give both wedding flowers and
wedding gifts. Photo below: Suit of armour at Mir Castle. |
| It was a private guided
tour, from a friend of the guide. The castle guide would
explain, and then my guide would translate for me. Photo below: Ceiling in Mir Castle. |
| Photo below: View from interior courtyard at Mir Castle. |
| After Mir Castle, the next morning, it was by hired driver to to Baranovichi. |