The vacation was actually really perfect. The family snuck up on me in the Norfolk airport and it was so great to see their beautiful faces! They had driven 24 hours straight to be able to pick me up (which is a long story in itself) so they were looking really tired and hungry and ready for a shower.
Our first stop was Williamsburg, Virginia. We stayed on site in Williamsburg Lodge, where the rooms looked dated and entertainment almost always included fifes and drums. We listened to Patrick Henry's address and heard the Declaration read by costumed colonials on the 4th. It was what Virginians called "hot" until the evening when it started pouring down rain. My family was so annoyed by all the natives complaining about their 90-95 degree weather and it wasn't until I got home that I truly understood why. It was a great 4th but I definitely missed spending it with my "family": the Drews, Pistoles, Caves, Staats, & Hamblins. I haven't missed an Independence Day celebration with them in years (or any other holiday for that matter).
William & Mary was walking distance from the Lodge so we looked around their "Campus Corner" of sorts. There are some neat shops and restaurants to browse so we spent one evening in that part of town. I always wonder if people who go to school that close to tourist attractions ever visit them. Probably not. Nevertheless, it was neat.
The next stop was Yorktown which is a shorter trip altogether. Their little museum has one of General Washington's tents and some replicas of boats that you can walk through. The really enlightening part was the tour we were given by an employee who gave a walk-through of the battle, which was pretty incredible. She knew her stuff, which is always nice when receiving a tour. We got to see Surrender Field and old cannons and stuff. The only thing that would've been better would've been receiving the tour from Mr. Uselton. Few people will understand what I mean when I say that.
My favorite, though, was visiting Jamestown. There are two locations: the original and the museum location. The museum location has an on site replication of both the Indian village and the colonial town. They also have 3-4 boats docked that you can look through but they seemed like cheesy fabrications, honestly. The original Jamestown was incredible, though! The archaeologists are digging what would've been the foundation of the original church right now. They can estimate the locations of graves within the church as well as the burial of various construction pieces because of the back-filling of the soil. They had already searched through old wells to find artifacts that were disposed of, some of them in great condition! Can you imagine -- 400 years later?? They also had a museum on the original site displaying a lot of their dig-findings. Chloe took forever going through it because she felt the need to read every single plaque. Come on, now, Chloe. Lol. The museum location was much more juvenile. They had canvas structures built (not teepees) that were filled with real furs and drying plants and other props that were supposed to be accurate representations. They stretched "hides" from various trees to show that the Indians used every part of the animal. Blah, blah, blah.
On our way to South Carolina, we stopped by two plantations: the Berkeley Plantation and the Shirley Plantation. I can tell you right now that I was tired and ready to sleep all the way to Hilton Head. So when my parents told me we'd be stopping to visit plantations, I wasn't too thrilled. I know what you're thinking: "You'll never be back out there. You can sleep for the rest of your life!" But when you're tired, you're not thinking about the rest of your life. We stopped at the Berkeley Plantation first: the home of the Harrison family -- the William Henry Harrison's, that is. Their history is really spotty in that house, what with generations dying in wars and McClellan's army taking up camp there and the Civil War not being too kind to it, either. The caretakers pride themselves on being the location responsible for the composing of "Taps," although I don't really know how you'd know something like that. As if every soldier was keeping a journal? It was a neat house and I was glad we stopped. Then they said we would be stopping at the Shirley Plantation, too. Seriously? Best decision ever. It was incredible. I won't go through all the history with you but basically, the house is still in the original Carter-Hill family to this day. It has survived both the Revolution and the Civil War and most of the furnishings are originals. The portraits are still intact and they have original cutlery and real silver. One of the Carter's married and built the Berkeley Plantation so everyone who was rich in Virginia was probably related. They're even still a functioning plantation, selling cotton, corn, and something else. Before we left, my dad asked the tour guide where the slaves quarters would have been. She said their location is about a mile away and that property is now owned by the neighbors. While we were driving back to the interstate, we made sure to pass by the neighbor's house and we saw a remaining slave house! I'm dead serious. All the windows were gone, the wood was rotting, and the weeds were overgrown. It was so eerie and mysterious-looking. I felt like a kid peeking in on something I shouldn't. Incredible, though, really.
The last two days were the beach! My first ever beach experience! It was sticky and humid. Our cameras wouldn't work and I got an awful sunburn. But it.was.fantastic. I can't explain how relaxing it is to stand in the water and let the waves toss you around. Me and Chloe stood out there for what seemed like hours and never got tired of it. My sisters and I got into a mud-fight, throwing the dirty sand at each other from the low tide we were standing in. To avoid a huge mud blob, I dove into what look like deep water but was only a wave's leftovers and got an awful sandburn on my side. It looks awful and the salt water kept stinging for the next two days. I saw my first jellyfish and we played with the ones that had washed up overnight. They felt rubbery and fake; Chloe was just scared that they were going to sting her, even after trying to convince her they'd been dead for hours. The beach is perfect, but after 7 weeks, I just wanted my own bed.
Ben and Rachel had done the house-sitting and Boston proved to be his usual self. He was so happy to see us when we got home but he was still giving us the cold-shoulder for leaving him. He spends his time following us from room to room, cutting his eyes at us. I don't know how many dog treats it will take to win back his affections but I refuse to continue to give them.
"Another airplane, another sunny place. I'm lucky I know, but I want to go home."
P.S. If you're looking for an easy read, check out the autobiography of Laura Bush: Spoken From the Heart. It's precious.
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