The vacation before the blog, Part IV

I decided that today was the day to share the last portion of our long ago vacation, before the title would become, "The vacation before the blog which has now been in existence for over a year." That would truly be embarrassing. Above you will find Glen posing in a replica of the fort at Jamestown. We arrived shortly after Queen Elizabeth personally visited in honor of Jamestown's 400th birthday. We had just days earlier gazed on the White House as guests gathered to dine with her and Bush 43. Our visit was enhanced by all the articles in news magazines and "The Smithsonian" regarding this special birthday which we had read on the plane. Before arriving in Jamestown, we had driven from Richmond along the James River. It was so interesting to view plantations and homes which had been in existence since the 1600's.

A bit of family history information: the Ricks family, who were Quakers, first settled in this area, Isle of Wight County, in the 1600's before moving from near the James River into what became North Carolina. Descendants then followed Daniel Boone (Boone opened up this part of the wilderness to many settlers) into Trigg County, Kentucky before finally making their way to Illinois where they became introduced to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints with whom they migrated to the west. If you managed to follow along while reading this poorly constructed paragraph, you might enjoy venturing here.

Not far from Jamestown, we stayed in Williamsburg in one of the historic houses. The floors may have been a bit uneven, the bathroom and shower very small, but all that was compensated for as we were able to step out of our lodging onto the streets of Colonial Williamsburg. Our early May visit was enhanced by beautiful gardens and comfortable temperatures.

If Glen had been willing, I would have stood in front of every flower bed to have my picture taken. I was in nirvana.

There were many shops to explore. My favorite was the Seamstress Shop. Two women (the younger, an apprentice) were sewing by hand costumes and clothing for those who "work" here. If I did not already have a life and a family almost 2000 miles away, I would have been looking for the sign up sheet. They start early in the day and can sew only until nightfall for no electricity is allowed. They worked right next to the windows. I explained my English smocking obsession and they seemed to be impressed!

We so enjoyed the reenactments of historical events. Having just visited the homes of Governor Jefferson and General Washington, I could very much imagine their young selves helping to mold a new republic.

One of our "do overs" given the chance to redo our vacation, would be to allow more time for this part of our trip. We ran out of time to visit Yorktown, part of the historic triangle in this part of Virginia. We instead had a drive to make to Norfolk to catch a plane for home.