Summer Trip ~ Washington D.C. at last!

Our Nation's Capitol!

Our final summer vacation destination was Washington D.C.  The weather cooled slightly, making it possible for us to walk and enjoy seeing the remarkable museums and monuments.  We stayed at the Embassy Suites in Chevy Chase and the subway to downtown D.C. was right across the street.  One of the smart things we did was get the hop on, hop off passes for the tour bus.  If nothing else, it provided us with transportation (and a few minutes to rest) between spots, but the first time we rode it we were also able to get our bearings on where everything was located and how far apart sites really were.  Here are a few of the hundreds of pictures we took.

The Jefferson Monument was one of my favorite places. 
 I have such an admiration for what he accomplished.

Thomas Jefferson.

The Lincoln Memorial has square sides, rather than the round shape of Jefferson's Monument.

Looking down the mall from Lincoln's Memorial.

The size of Lincoln is breathtaking.

We walked down the mall from Lincoln's Memorial to the WW II Memorial.  
With all my heart I wish my dad could have seen this in his liftetime.  I was moved to tears 
by the love and respect for our WW II vets that this memorial represents.

My dad served at Peleliu.  He shared his stories of the war in the autobiography he wrote in 
the last few years.  It was incredibly moving to see Peleliu represented at the memorial.

Remembering my Dad's brother, Bill, who was killed in WW II....

So many stars, representing those who died in the war, and I couldn't even get them all in.

Washington's Monument was closed to the public due to the earthquake they had.

The Newseum was a fascinating look at our world through the eyes of journalism.

We could have spent an entire day in the Smithsonian's Air and Space Museum.

We had arranged for a private tour of the Capitol on our last day there through Congressman Sam Farr's office.  We took an underground tunnel from the Congressman's office building to the Capitol.  I can't even describe the history and the beauty of what we saw, we saw so much, and our tour guide (an intern) was full of interesting details.

As a member of the DAR I couldn't skip seeing the DAR Headquarters while there!  This is their library, full of geneology records.  You can't see the beautiful sky lights in this photo.

The National Cathedral

Not included among all these photos were our visits to the Spy Museum, the Natural History Museum (another one we could have spent a full day in -- it's fabulous), and last but not least -- the National Archives where we got to see the original Declaration of Independence, Bill of Rights and Constitution.

It was one fabulous vacation and I feel so fortunate to have been able to spend such quality time with my daughters and see all of these fantastic sites.  And now our summer vacation 2012 is a very sweet, beloved memory.

Summer Trip ~ Jamestown to Mount Vernon

 Replica of the Jamestown Settlement

With the long lapse of time between posts, you have probably forgotten that I was actually trying to map out our summer vacation to the east coast and had made it as far as Williamsburg, Virginia.  My daughters and I started in Raleigh, North Carolina, drove to Corolla where we spent a week with my sisters and their families at a beach house, and then drove our rental car up to Williamsburg.

We enjoyed an afternoon exploring historic Williamsburg and by evening welcomed the air conditioned comforts of our hotel there.  The next morning we got up early and went down the road to Jamestown.  There is the "real" Jamestown, which we saw briefly.  The real Jamestown is referred to as "Jamestown Rediscovery Archaeological Project" which is where they are excavating artifacts from the original 1607 James Fort.  However, we spent most of our time at the "Jamestown Settlement Victory Center."   There you will find an interesting (thankfully air conditioned) museum and re-created colonists' fort, Powhatan village, and replicas of the three ships that sailed from England to Jamestown in 1607.  As I stood looking out over the water front, I couldn't help but marvel at the courage of those who actually sailed in the real ships across the mighty ocean and saw this land for the first time.

 Replica of one of the three ships that sailed.

Colonists' Gardens

Craftsman at Work

I've heard of a turkey-in-the-straw, but not a rooster-in-the-bed.

Powhatan Village Dwellings

I was astounded by the amount of history surrounding us, wishing I could bring that sense of time and place to the west coast for our schools to impress upon the hearts of our students.  Williamsburg and Jamestown are definitely worth seeing!

Suitcases in the trunk, we said goodbye to Jamestown and headed north to Mount Vernon.  History buffs that we are, we were eager to continue our historical trek.  We arrived at Washington's home in the late afternoon, again greeted by a fabulous museum.

Mount Vernon - Washington's Home

The Gardens surrounding Mount Vernon

Statues of Washington's Family Greet Guests in the Museum.

A stained glass mural depicts scenes from Washington's life.

A young George Washington.

George Washington becomes our first president.

After a full day of sightseeing, we drove the last few miles to Washington D.C., turned in our car rental and took a cab to to our hotel where we would stay for the next few days, taking in the sights of our nation's capitol!  Stay tuned for the last leg of the trip.

Wonderful Williamsburg!

Aye-yie-yie!  Imagine returning from a fabulous family vacation, falling right into charity committee work, click-click-clicking into a new school year -- everything suddenly seeming like its all in fast motion.  Sums up my life for the last two months.  So let's rewind here and go back to my last post -- yes, back into hot, sultry summer days, into that rental car driving from the blue waters of North Carolina's Outer Banks into Virginia....  Back, back, back to hot summer days, radio blaring, my daughters and I taking photos out the car windows as we take in the scenery.  And then we pull into Colonial Williamsburg!

Lunch at a town tavern was simple fare, but satisfying. It was mid-summer hot and we were thirsty!

It's interesting that there are actually a few private citizens living in some of the houses in this non-drivable historic area of town.

 

We watched artisians and laborers at work....

 Shopkeepers....

 and soldiers in the military encampment....

 

We even listened as Patrick Henry and other speakers presented their political views.

The courthouse was the site where Benjamin Waller read the Declaration of Independence on July 25, 1776, after it arrived from Philadephia.  Such history resonates through these walls and on these steps!.   

 The Governor's Palace below is a strong reminder that we were once under the rule of the British Monarchy.

  

The wig room....

 

 Lavish linens on the canopied beds....

 

 

 Swords lined the entry hall of the Governor's Palace...

 The flag during this period bore British and eventual USA symbols.

Being the history buffs that we are, this was a a much loved and memorable stop on our road trip north!

Treasures from a North Carolina Beach....

What a wonderful summer it was!  My daughters and I joined my sisters and their families in the Outer Banks of North Carolina for a week on the beach.  On a Friday we flew into Raleigh where my nephew lives, grateful for the yummy curry vegetable and rice dinner and soft beds to sleep in.  Saturday we all hit the road, caravan style, and drove on to the Outer Banks.  Here we approach the bridge over the sound ~

Once we fought through the bumper-to-bumper traffic (everyone seemed to be making a beeline to their beach house on the two lane road) we finally arrived at our home away from home -- a large 3-story where we all had our own bedrooms and bathrooms, a pool, two hot tubs, and wood steps right down to the beach! 

There were 16 of us in all.  The real reason we planned this very special family reunion was to celebrate my dad's 90th birthday this year.  Although he is no longer with us, we knew he would want us to get together and live lovingly and joyously in his honor.

Here are just a few treasures we'll remember ~

Yummy, yummy suppers from the grill and juicy watermelon

Squealing grandnieces and grandnephews when our flashlights spotted crabs in the sand when we went "crabbing" at night

Lazy moments in the swinging hammock chair, reading our assorted novels

Rooting for our favorites on the Olympics on TV at night

Long walks and collecting shells on the beach every day 

Swimming, boogie boarding and sand castle building

Working on our family jigsaw puzzle for several days

Discovering the old village of Corolla

Jeeping to see the wild horses of Corolla

Spa day with massages, facials, pedicures and haircuts

An afternoon visit from a thoroughly entertaining magician who performed extraordinary tricks

No schedule, just awaking when we wanted and going to bed when we were tired

Game night with all around the table.

Pelicans roosted on the tops of these wood poles in the water.  We enjoyed watching them fly in formation and dip into the water at dinner time.  Sand pipers joined us in running from the waves on our walks.

 The view from our back yard!

Moon light dancing on the Atlantic...

How did he do that?  The "Amazing Stanley" amused us with his tricks and witty jokes!  As close as we were to him, and none of us were in on his tricks, we could  NOT figure out how he did things!

 The little village of Corolla is quaint, nestled in the trees near the light house.  Here is the first school house of Corolla:

One day my daughters and sister were going to go parasailing -- we paid and walked down a long wooden walk way to the water where the boat was docked.  As you can see, storm clouds suddenly came in, the wind began to blow, and the captain cancelled the trip for safety reasons.  (Later we saw water spouts over the ocean!)  All was not lost -- we went shopping nearby where I found that darling picture at the top of this post -- it was on a wall by the gourmet popcorn shop where we bought bags of Cheesey Garlic Popcorn!

Tons and tons of photos were taken.  This is such a small sample...  I hope you enjoyed peeking in on our week.

And guess what?!  From Corolla, my girls and I drove our rental car to Washington D.C.!  Can you remember your geography to know some historical places between North Carolina and Wash. D.C.?   Stay tuned for my next blog!