Castle

Series Dancing with the Stars: : Belinda Carlisle, David Alan Grier, Shawn Johnson, Lil' Kim, Gilles Marini, Ty Murray, Steve-O, Denise Richards, Lawrence Taylor, Chuck Wicks and Steve Wozniak partner with dance professionals in a new season of this unscripted competition series. (8 p.m., WMAR-Channel 2) How I Met Your Mother: : Ted's college girlfriend (Laura Prepon) moves to New York. (8:30 p.m., WJZ-Channel 13) Medium: : When an earthquake follows an apocalyptic dream, Allison (Patricia Arquette)

Mario and Donna Clementoni call their Ellicott City home "our castle on the hill" and it's easy to see why: The 9,800-square-foot house has eight bedrooms, 10 bathrooms, 60 interior doors and hundreds of windows.The house is so big, in fact, that when the Clementonis first toured it they ended up in different parts of the house and had to use the intercom to find each other.But the impressive numbers are just part of the story here. When the Clementonis moved into their "castle" less than a week after closing in late April, it was more royal wreck than regal dwelling.

MY BEST SHOTEnglish country charmsBy Anna R. Denbow, Bel AirMy sister, Janet, and I have just returned from a very enjoyable holiday in England, visiting the Cotswolds and Cornwall. We enjoyed the charming villages of Northleach, Burford, Stow-on-the-Wold and Bourton-on-the-Water, to name a few. The scenery of Cornwall with the cliffs and the Atlantic Ocean was breathtaking. There was so much to see -- Windsor Castle, Winston Churchill's grave, cathedrals, castles. This was our second trip to the British Isles and we hope to return again.

PRAGUE, Czech Republic -- Who hasn't dreamed at one time or another of living in a castle?For many Czechs, that dream came true after 1989, when the government gladly unloaded dozens of rundown castles and chateaux on their original owners -- nobles it had disinherited or run out of the country more than 40 years before.But with repair and maintenance costs, damp walls and drafty halls, the inheritors are finding out that being lord of the manor isn't as much fun as it used to be.Take Adam Bubna-Litic.

"The Castle" wants to be one of those engaging comedies you can't help but like, a quirky tale about some quirky people who do silly things, yet somehow manage to seem more genuinely human than the rest of us. You know, kind of like "The Full Monty" or "Waking Ned Devine."Trouble is, "The Castle" makes more fun of its characters than it has fun with them; rather than mix equal parts humor and humanity, this Australian import mocks its characters so broadly that it's more parody than comedy.

The first glimpse of the Cherokee Castle is enough to make you stop your car in its tracks.What's a medieval Scottish castle doing in the middle of the Colorado Rockies?It's the legacy of a woman who loved the West so much she made sure that the 4,000 acres surrounding her home, the striking castle, never will be developed. And, for the price of a tour, visitors can explore the Sedalia, Colo., escape of the late Mildred "Tweet" Kimball.Volunteers give tours three mornings a week at the castle, which now is owned by a private foundation.

COLLEGE PARK -- Going into yesterday's game against Virginia, the Maryland women's lacrosse team faced the prospect of going 0-for-the Atlantic Coast Conference this season.Determined not to let that happen, the No. 6 Terrapins scored five of the game's first six goals and held off a strong second-half Cavaliers surge to beat No. 3 Virginia, 11-8, at Ludwig Field.Freshman Jen Adams made the play of the game, coming up with a loose ball at midfield and feeding Christie Jenkins for a 9-7 Terps lead with 1: 38 left.

ELSMERE, Del. -- At the Elsmere Christmas Parade yesterday, the Hit Squad steppers clattered down the route in tap shoes, girls in blue-spangled vests twirled to a heavy percussion version of "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer," and Rep. Michael N. Castle waved to the crowd from the smack-dab center of the road.It seemed like an apt place for him to be.As the Delaware Republican ponders his vote on the impeachment of President Clinton -- he remains one of a handful of lawmakers undecided as the House prepares to vote next week -- he finds himself walking down the equivalent of Congress' double-yellow line.

"I have an idea," Henry's mother said.Henry opened his eyes.Henry's father sat up.But Mudge kept on sleeping.He didn't care much about ideas.Not until the ideas smelled like something."Let's make a castle," said Henry's mother."A castle?" said Henry and Henry's father."We still have the box the new refrigerator came in, and the box the new stove came in."Henry was getting the idea."And that paint set Uncle Arthur gave me," said Henry."Let's do it!"They headed for the basement.Mudge was still trying to sleep.

DOBROHOST, Slovakia -- Laszlo Beks leaves off gutting his modest haul of underweight trout and turns his eyes toward the silent marshland as if it held the ghost of a dead friend."

Last week, President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama went to Copenhagen to make a pitch for Chicago's 2016 Olympic bid. The capital of Denmark has never been host to an Olympics, but Nordic neighbors Norway and Sweden have welcomed the world's athletes. This cosmopolitan city's appeal extends beyond the sporting type. Here are five things to do: 1 See the Little Mermaid. : If you're expecting to see Denmark's Statue of Liberty, keep in mind that this is a small country. Appropriately, Den Lille Havfrue, as she's known in Danish, is a small statue, slightly less than life-size, that pays homage to the character created by Hans Christian Andersen.

As visitors take to the cobblestone paths of this town, they are walking along the steps of history. When Vilnius was being built there was an entry fee of one stone per visitor. The collection was used to create the town's walls and roads. Today, entry to the town and many of its historic sites is free. This year Lithuania celebrates its millennium anniversary, and Vilnius styles itself as the European Capital of the World, with its vision to create a city that is open to new ideas and culture.

A private school with a nearly century-old castle at the center of its campus plans to expand in the future while keeping an eye on its past. Maryvale Preparatory School's humanities building, its latest proposed addition, has won approval from the Baltimore County Planning Board and will now move through the development review process. Maryvale opened nearly 65 years ago in the castle, a stately stone residence in Brooklandville patterned after a British medieval manor. The home, built in 1916 with 65 rooms and a great hall, is designated and preserved as a Baltimore County landmark.

Series Dancing with the Stars: : Belinda Carlisle, David Alan Grier, Shawn Johnson, Lil' Kim, Gilles Marini, Ty Murray, Steve-O, Denise Richards, Lawrence Taylor, Chuck Wicks and Steve Wozniak partner with dance professionals in a new season of this unscripted competition series. (8 p.m., WMAR-Channel 2) How I Met Your Mother: : Ted's college girlfriend (Laura Prepon) moves to New York. (8:30 p.m., WJZ-Channel 13) Medium: : When an earthquake follows an apocalyptic dream, Allison (Patricia Arquette)

Just how does one dress for a fundraising party that has "The Seven Deadly Sins" as its title and theme? If it's for the Maryland Art Place, a little personal creativity comes in handy. For MAP board chair Suzi Cordish, that meant welcoming the evening's guests in a chic cocktail pajama pants outfit. "I'm epitomizing Sloth," she said, looking anything but. "Out of desperation, I wanted to be a little greedy, so [I went] into the Monopoly game," said Ray Mitchener, the owner of Ruth Shaw, explaining why his suit lapels were covered with play money.

The Bonvegna family made a tradition of attending the Kennedy Krieger Institute's Festival of Trees almost since the event began in 1990. Now, led by Theresa Bonvegna, owner of an art school in downtown Bel Air, family members are festival exhibitors. Bonvegna, the director of the Bel Air School of Art, has pulled family, friends and a student, well-versed in dragon lore, into creating this year's exhibit, dubbed "Knights Before Christmas." Since July, they have been building on their idea for a castle that would stand between two 7 1/2-foot tall pines.

It's Oktoberfest time, which makes Munich, Germany, the place to be. This city near the foot of the Alps is the capital of Bavaria. The area is both historic and up-to-date, with glorious castles, tranquil lakes and a thriving technology sector. Here are five things to do: 1 Drink up at Oktoberfest : The world's largest beer festival (6.2 million people visited last year) runs through Oct. 5. It has more than 200 attractions and sideshows, brass bands galore and, of course, all the Bavarian sausage and beer you can eat and drink.

The best castle hotels in Europe, according to TripAdvisor.com, based on rankings by travelers who contribute reviews to the Web site and TripAdvisor editors. 1. Glin Castle in Glin, Ireland ($491 average nightly rate) 2. Castle Stuart, Inverness, Scotland ($614) 3. Thornbury Castle, Thornbury, England ($394) 4. Domaine de la Tortiniere, Tours, France ($310) 5. Borthwick Castle, Edinburgh, Scotland ($273) 6. Chateau de Bagnols, Lyon, France ($1,335) 7. Castelletto di Montebenichi, Bucine, Italy ($242)

Spat over scholarships The dust-up over scholarships that were promised - and then rescinded - at Patterson High School shows that there may be such a thing as bad publicity after all. Howard Castleman of Castle Toyota/Scion pledged $8,400 for four graduating seniors, to be presented at the school's senior assembly. But then Patterson's beloved JROTC instructor died, and the ceremony became more like a memorial service. The media were banned, Mr. Castle withdrew his offer, and bad feelings ensued on all sides.

Castle Toyota/Scion in Southeast Baltimore promised $8,400 in scholarships to four graduating seniors from Patterson High School to cover tuition at Baltimore City Community College. But in a dispute over publicity, the dealership withdrew its offer, leaving all parties feeling bitter. The money was to come from Castle's advertising and marketing budget, and the owner wanted news media present at the school's senior farewell awards ceremony to document his gesture of goodwill. Then, the week of the ceremony, Patterson's longtime JROTC instructor collapsed in the school parking lot and died of a heart attack, and the principal decided the ceremony should assume the tone of a memorial service.