sandersstudies
Something I randomly think about a lot is how when very old castles, manors, and large country estates were built, they were built with the expectation of guests. In eras when you rarely travelled over a hundred miles from home, when one did travel guests stayed for long periods of time with friends and relatives. Wealthy people would have guests in their home frequently (virtually all the time, if you were royalty), so huge houses (and staffs) accommodated for multiple guests on long stays. More homes were multi-generational, too.
And now when people live in big houses it’s usually just themselves. Maybe 4-6 in a family, and when the kids get married and move away? Maybe only 1 or two. Guests rarely “sleep over,” and almost never longer than a weekend. I don’t know exactly what caused the cultural shift, but it fascinates me.
Every time I read an old book and some young person “visits a friend in the countryside” for weeks or months I get emotional. Imagine if your friends had the resources to host you at their house for that long. And you would live there very like if it was your own home. Nowadays even if you do stay with friends or family, there’s usually events or activities intended to fill the time. Suppose if you just went to visit your friend for a month, and the two of you just read books or took walks together.
