I visited the Castle Green. It's not really a castle. It's an old hotel; one of the earliest ones built in the Pasadena area.  The Castle Green is now not a hotel; it contains private apartments. Because of the hotel's historical significance, people pony up $700,000 dollars for the privilege of living in a one-bedroom with no air-conditioning.  At least that's the price that runs that high in half the Castle Green; the half that is open to the private sector. 

The other half of the Castle Green is owned by the government and rented to low income earners in Pasadena. The contrast is stunning. One half of the building is well-maintained, well-decorated, historically-preserved. The government-owned half looks like a peeling, crumbling, old stinky building.  Only rich and poor in this building. This whole trip turned out to be more a lesson on why middle classes disappear in government manipulated economies rather than a tour of a historical landmark. 

So the people who do care about the historical integrity of the Castle Green open the doors for one day a year for the outside public to take a tour of select, self-volunteered, rich residents' condos.  Cost was $20 dollars, and included a self-guided tour, hourderves, and wine. Also, we were, of course, only allowed to tour the rich part of the building.  Noone wants to see how the Other Half Lives; Yucky poor people.

Cool seeing how people worth millions decorate their studio apartments. Taught me a thing or two about decorating with almost no place to put anything.  Little voyeuristic to be touring someone's living space, though, with the owner standing right there watching you. You have to embrace the inner creep in order to have a good time. It's hard, though. I spent a lot of time casually following groups of people so as not to accidentally be the only person entering an apartment. I'm not so good at the "I like your bedspread" conversation.