Lord Byron’s Castle Chillon

Lord Byron's set made it famous and it's still a sight to see.

Surveying Castle Chillon, an exquisite jewel that seems to float on the placid surface of Lake Geneva, Lord Byron may well have exclaimed, "It's a marvelous place to visit, but I wouldn't want to live here."

Byron's companions in that weird, wonderful summer of 1816 were his incredibly handsome but slightly loony bisexual physician, Dr. John Polidori; his dark gypsy of a mistress, Claire Claremont; Claire's fey, fanciful stepsister, the brilliant Mary Godwin; and Mary's lover, the poet, Percy Shelley.

They were aware of th...