They're building a castle ...

>> But the idea of a reproduction castle in Arkansas just seems really out of place. It seems like an intrusive feature in the American landscape, which really isn't going to do its environment any favours. <<

I understand.

>> I suppose you could argue that any kind of European architecture in an American context is intrusive as it's only been a couple of hundred years since the Europeans came there.<<

Usually it is, unless designed by Frank Lloyd Wright or someone else who understood how to match a building to its environment. Most architects don't even try.

>>Something akin to us authentically rebuilding the Parthenon on a random hillside in Sussex.<<

Erm ... that's in Nashville, Tennessee, actually. I would like to visit it someday.
http://www.nashville.gov/parthenon/

>>I'm sure there's a whole load of genuine medieval structures in Europe that could do with a fraction of that money invested in their fabric so they can continue to wow folk over the next few centuries. To me, these will always have much more value, because they can still be experienced and understood in their original landscape context. <<

Likely so. Alas, those are in Europe, and unless the world and my life improve drastically in unlikely directions, I won't get to visit them. A trip to Arkansas has a considerably higher chance.

>>Other than that, I have no excuses. <<

It's okay. I was just curious about reasons, and you have some interesting ones. People don't have to like all the same things.

>> And to be honest, you have an equally valid reason to want to experience 'medieval' architecture in a place where you can actually visit it.<<

Medieval-style architecture, anyhow. I've seen a very wide range of reconstructed history exhibits, varying greatly in quality. They interest me in general, and even the awful ones are often good for a laugh or have something cool in there. Near us is a pretty darn good recreation of a farm belonging to Abraham Lincoln's family, Lincoln Log Cabin.

>>It's difficult to remember sometimes how convenient it is to live somewhere where the nearest castle is literally a couple of miles away.<<

Different places have different advantages. When we have the gas money, we can drive for days here and cross through many biotopes without need for a passport. The deep history here includes some fabulous indigenous sites -- Cahokia Mounds is daytrip distance from where I live. But it's nice to see examples from elsewhere, too. There's a temple to Sekhmet in Nevada that I'd love to visit.

>> We've squabbled for years on either side of the noble decaying ruin vs restored inhabited structure argument. I used to be all for the noble decaying ruin, but these days, I'm kind of veering towards his 'inhabited structure' opinion... <<

I like both, for different reasons. Each has its own beauty and interest.