Colonial Williamsburg

We are west of Norfolk, Va in a area know as the Colonial Triangle. Here we find Williamsburg, Yorktown and Jamestown. Today was the Williamsburg day.

The historical area of Colonial Williamsburg is about one mile by one half mile. Houses along the street are restored from the mid 1700's and are just beautiful.









This is the original Virginia capitol building. Here in 1775 the Virginia colonial government authored the Virginia bill of rights much of which was used as a starting place for the Declaration of Independence.
Here Patrick Henry addressed the Colonial government in favor of independence.

This is the chamber of the upper house of the colonial government in 1776. This building  served as the seat of Virginia government till about 1813 when the state capitol moved to Richmond.

More of the historical buildings on the main street.










More of the historical buildings. Buildings date to the early 1700's but have been restored to original condition in the 1940's when Rockefeller provided the money for restoration.

This is the Williamsburg Court House where all trials except felonies were heard. Each building had someone inside who provided details of what was happening in the 1775 time frame.

This is the Williamsburg church which is still in use today. The buildings were all beautiful and the people were knowledgeable and would spend as much time as you wanted talking about the town and the time.






This is the Governors palace which was occupied by Lord Dunsmore. until he departed in the middle of the night in April of 1775. He was appointed by King George and it seems that he was doing things the colonists didn't appreciate. So, fearing for his life he just up and went away one night.


That's all from Williamsburg..... more from Yorktown and Jamestown if the US Government doesn't shut down.

Monticello

Thomas Jefferson's residence (Monticello) is located on top of a hill not far outside Charlottsville,
Va. We drove the ten miles from the KOA where we're staying and spent the day touring and listening to stories about Thomas Jefferson.

Thomas Jefferson inherited a 3000 acre plantation near Monticello when his father died and to that he added another 2000 acres for a total of 5000 acres. Rather than live on the plantation he built this house completing it in the early 1800's and retiring here with his daughter and her family after his presidency.

He owned about 140 slaves and, while he didn't think slavery was right, he couldn't see a way to run his plantation any other way. This was the kitchen where the slaves prepared the meals for the family and guests. Slave quarters were on Mulberry row just down the hill from the house.

He was an avid gardener and often brought back seeds from his travels. He referred to his garden as the Ellis Island for plants and he referred to his plants as edible immigrants. Of course the slaves saw to the garden which is slightly larger than my Aunt Helen's.






I am including this as a picture we all see everyday. If  you take a nickel from your pocket or purse and look on one side you'll see Thomas Jefferson. Flip it over and this picture will greet you.




Thomas Jefferson was truly an amazing man. He wrote the Declaration of Independence, ran this plantation, was our third president and still had time for his family, riding the estate, and hosting friends on a regular basis. After today I feel like I almost know him and am truly impressed.

Tours of WDC buildings

Today was tour day for us. We got up early (5:30am) and got to the Metro by 7:00am. It was then off to the Library of  Congress where we started our day with a great hour and a half tour.

The Library of Congress is an amazing place. It opened in 1897 and houses some 155 million documents (not all in this building).

The interior is spectacular with paintings and statues everywhere you look. It's a magnificent place with a long history. We saw the Jefferson library that houses books purchased from Thomas Jefferson.






We were fortunate to have our Representative, Ami Bera, provide tour tickets so it was off to his office where we met his staff and one of the interns gave us a personal tour of the Capitol. The highlight was a visit to the House chamber where nothing was going on but it was great to see the place where the state of the union address is delivered.

It was a short walk to our tour of the Supreme Court. We were treated to a half hour lecture on the court and it's role in Government.

I just had to throw this in...... Sharleen is sitting at the desk of Ami Bera our Representative in the house. She looks like it's a good fit and I could be her "staffer"
Our week in WDC has gone by quickly and tomorrow it's off to Charlottsville for some more looking. More from there.

The National Zoo

Today was a fun day with no monuments or statues.... just some pretty neat critters.

There was the "King of the beasts"












And some "Queens of the beasts"












And some not so royal turtles.....










And finally a funny looking critter with a special nose for eating ants.


Lots of fun at the zoo today. Wish all my kids could have been there with us.

Tomorrow is errand day again but Wednesday is tour day at the mall.... more from there.

Dinner on Sunday evening,

Sunday was a laid back day with some errands and rest. The highlight of the day was dinner with Sharleen's great niece Laurel, her husband Mike and...... littlest but not leastest  Sophie who is a doll and stole the evening. It had been at least 6 years since we have seen them and so it was a treat to have dinner and catch up. Thanks Mike and Laurel for a great evening and dinner.

The National Mall in WDC

Yesterday started with good weather so we drove to the metro station (4 miles) and caught the metro for WDC. It took us about 25 minutes and ten stops but we made it to the mall and exited at the Smithsonian. From there we started a walking tour that took us about 10 miles around the monuments.

We walked the East side of the Tidal Basin and over to the Jefferson Memorial. It's a little out of the way but well worth the walk.









We then headed around the West side of the Tidal Basin and visited the Franklin D Roosevelt Memorial. He was president from 1933 till 1945 and saw the country through some tough times. His New Deal helped bring the country out of the Great Depression and his presidency saw us through the Second World War. It's a large and fitting memorial.

Again, along the West side we visited the MLK H Jr. Memorial. Once again a fitting memorial to a great leader.

We then visited the Korean War Memorial where soldiers are depicted on patrol in Korea. Again a fitting memorial to those brave men who gave everything for us.








We walked around the corner and saw the Lincoln Memorial As many times as I have seen it.... I used to run by it every morning when I was working in DC... it still is spectacular.










And inside is my favorite statue in WDC.
A picture can't show the size and grandeur of this memorial.

It was down the reflecting pool to the World War Two Memorial. Again a fitting tribute to those who gave all for us.












It was then around the White House for this South Lawn view. I like this spot better than the view from Pennsylvania Avenue. It's always smaller than I think it should be.

A short walk and a metro ride brought us to the Pentagon and a short walk later we were at the Pentagon 9/11 Memorial. You can see where the building has been repaired and this large area is a Memorial to the 183 souls who lost their lives here at 9:37 on that morning. We paid our respects and then again hopped the metro back to the American History Museum at the Smithsonian for some first lady dress viewing.


We again jumped on the metro for the trip back to College Park where we left the truck and a short drive later we were at the trailer just as it started to rain..... exhausted but happy. My wish is that every American would be able to spend a day like we had yesterday. It's truly a patriotic experience.
Today we rest and do chores.... like grocery shopping..... and tomorrow it's off to the National Zoo.

Air and Space Museum Dulles annex

We headed to Dulles Airport this morning to spend about three hours exploring the Air and Space Museum annex housed there.

Our first stop was at the Space hangar and there to visit Discovery, the hardest working of all Space shuttles. It flew 39 missions and logged a total of 365 days in space. You have to see it in person to appreciate the machine. All the pictures I have seen couldn't come close to seeing it up close and personal.

In another section we saw the Enola Gay, the B-29 bomber that dropped the nuclear bomb on Hiroshima during the second world war.
It dropped the "little Boy" bomb developed at Los Alamos Lab in New Mexico.

The museum is a cornucopia of aircraft so I included this picture to give you a idea of what's there. If you are ever in WDC this is a must stop. Three hours is a minimum to see it all and you'll need more time if you want to see the I Max movies.




We then headed to Dulles Station and lunch with a long tine friend who lives here now. What a great day!

Atlantic City

Wednesday we departed from the historical tour and headed for Atlantic City and the boardwalk.

The day was beautiful and the boardwalk was not crowded so we walked and took in the area.
Lots of casinos and of course the Trump tower on the left.

The beach was nice white sand and the ocean calm as we walked the boardwalk. I didn't even put a quarter in a slot machine so guess I didn't pay my dues. We headed back to the trailer mid afternoon and prepared for the drive to WDC  on Thursday. It's now Friday and we're heading to the Air and Space museum annex at Dulles and then lunch with a long time friend who lives here.

Valley Forge

The morning dawned clear and crisp (fall is in the air back here) so we headed to Valley Forge about 40 miles from here to visit the national park there. Valley Forge is the location where the Continental Army spent the winter of 1777-1778. It's just 20 miles Northwest of Philadelphia which at that time was a stronghold of British troops.

The soldiers built "huts" like these as shelter from the cold, rain and snow. Each hut housed 12 soldiers and at the peak the population of soldiers numbered some 16,000. 2,000 died from disease before the winter was over.

Initially, Gen George Washington was housed in a tent but shortly he rented this house from the owner, a man named Potts for the sum of 100 pounds. Here he made his headquarters on the first floor and slept on the second floor. He and 25 of his staff spent the winter here along with his wife, Martha. It was a lot more comfortable than what his troops endured.

The National Park has a 10 mile road that describes the conditions and locations of the various troop quarters in the area. It was a great day spent learning more about our forefathers.
One more day and it's off to WDC.

Sunday in Philiadelphia

We arrived in South Jersey Saturday noon and set up camp in a great little rural campground about 15 minutes from Philly. Sunday dawned clear and cool so we drove up to Cherry Hill and caught the train for downtown.

 
 




We started the day at the visitors center and then headed across the lawn to Constitution Hall for a short tour. The building housed the federal government from 1790 to 1800 while WDC was being built.










We saw the Liberty Bell and I got this shot of the bell with Constitution Hall in the background. A pretty neat place to visit.



















Another picture of the Liberty Bell. This place just reeks of history!

Just a little more history. This is the chamber of the house of representatives during the period of 1790 to 1800 when the federal government was seated in Constitution Hall.

We enjoyed our day in Philadelphia  and yesterday was a down day to do laundry and get groceries. Today we head to Valley Forge to look around. More from there.


 

The Big Apple

We're camped in Florida New York at the moment and we did a tour of NYC yesterday. It was a long day but well worth the effort.

We walked the Times Square area for a while...... lots of people and smaller than it looks on TV but a interesting place none the less. Had a bagel.... mandatory in New York City... and then off to ground zero.

This is the firefighter memorial wall at ground zero. Overall we were disappointed with what we were able to see there. Lots of construction there and the area of the twin towers was by ticket only and the wait was too long to see it because of our tour time limitations. The freedom tower is nearing completion and that was impressive. I'll have more on the tower later in this blog.





From there we headed over to New Jersey and out to the Statue of Liberty. This is the Ellis Island processing facility with the Statue in the background. Here is where the immigrants coming to this country stopped for processing before catching the train for final destinations.

I took about a hundred pictures of the Statue of Liberty but I like this one because of the background. Beyond the Statue and to the right is lower Manhattan with the new Freedom tower prominent on the skyline. This is a awesome area.






One last picture of the lower Manhattan skyline again with the Freedom tower at ground zero highlighted. What awesome memorial to 9/11!
Back to camp and tomorrow we drive to Chesterboro New Jersey near Philly for four days of exploring there.

Plimouth Plantation

No.... I didn't spell it wrong. That's t the way they spell it. A little different than the town of Plymouth.
Having set that straight it's time to explain. We went to the Plantation this morning as kind of the last event of out stay here. Tomorrow is just kick back and get ready to head to New York on Wednesday.

The plantation is a recreation of a 1620's village with the houses built as they would have been back in the Pilgrim's time. Materials and architecture are identical including dirt floors and open fireplaces for cooking and heat.








Actors in period dress are prevalent in the village. It's interesting to talk with them and find out what they are doing and get information about the daily life in the village. They are knowledgeable and will talk with you as long as you want.



There is also a Indian village in the complex with Indian dwellings and again actors to talk with. In all a couple of really interesting hours with lots of great information. This ends the blog for this area. Next stop is New York with a tour of Manhattan. So.....more from there I hope.

 

Battle Road

 Yesterday we drove up to Lexington and Concord, the site of the first battle of the revolutionary war.
The battle was executed over a 5 mile stretch of road between the two towns and when over the patriots had lost 97 men while the British lost nearly 300. We walked about two miles of the road and it seemed that you could almost hear the musket fire and see the soldiers.

There are houses along the road that stood there when the battle was fought in 1775. This is the Captain William Smith house, home to one of the Patriot leaders of the time.

Actors in period costumes talked about life in the 1770's and discussed the battle that took place that day. A step back in time..... what a way to learn history!







Hartwell Tavern  sits along the road just as it did in 1775. The house is original and has been maintained in great condition all these years. As the battle raged it was used as a field hospital for wounded.







We headed to Concord for lunch and found a small village that was less about tourists and more about a small town with local folks on a Sunday afternoon. This is typical of the sights in the town.

We have two more days in the area and then off to New York.