Tag Archives: vacation

Day 4…. the Mariners’ Museum

February 4, 2020 Rivergirl 17 Comments

If you’re not a fan of museums, or history, or naval war battles and the Civil War Ironclads?

Please feel free to skip the next dozen posts because that’s probably how long it’s going to take me to document this amazing place in Newport News, Virginia.

It was an overcast day that was threatening rain so I thought this would be a good choice. I had no idea what to expect and was ready to pay a large ticket price… so imagine my surprise when I saw this.

My first reaction was… man, this place must bite.

But oh, was I wrong.

Upon arrival this magnificent eagle greets you.

It’s a remarkable carving and was lovingly restored from it’s original perch on the bow of this ship.

Look closely, it’s there. And gives you some perspective of how large those ships really were.

Next up was a light.

But not just any light.

And if these were the items in the lobby?

I knew we were going to have a great day.

There are 2 distinct areas of the museum to visit, but being a Civil War buff? I had to choose this first.

The Ironclads.

If you know nothing about them? Hang on.

You will by the time I’m through with you.

Great.

Let’s continue….

Turning the corner, we entered this bizarrely blue movie theater that told the story of the Monitor’s sinking.

Turn another corner…. and there she was.

Right under your feet.

And by watching the films, you come to realize how truly dedicated these people are to preserving history.

I found it quite moving.

Around the next corner…

Some interesting artifacts and a glimpse into our Naval past.

I tend to read faster than the husband and am always a few exhibits ahead.

Interestingly enough most people think of the Battle of the Ironclads as the Monitor vs the Merrimack, but technically that’s incorrect.

This was the Merrimack.

She was originally a Union ship that was captured by the Confederates when Gosport fell.

She was damaged, but thanks to this man…

Would be overhauled, covered in iron plate and turned into the CSS Virginia.

The Confederate’s Ironclad.

This is the museum’s recreation of her outfitting.

And what she looked like upon completion.

The Merrimack no longer.

There, you’ve learned something.

Now that wasn’t so bad… eh?

No! Not boring.

It’s history!

And how many of your friends can say they’ve seen inside a Civil War Ironclad?

None, I tell you!

None.

But now you have…

And are sure to be the envy of all your neighbors at the next block party.

thank-me-later-5cc2e0

Uncategorized

Colonial Williamsburg…. the blacksmiths, a test drive, an oak, some cows and yes, food.

February 3, 2020 Rivergirl 36 Comments

Although I hated to end our day, the time was drawing near and my phone battery was gasping it’s last breath.

Naturally the husband had to see the blacksmith’s shop with all it’s rusty tools.

And we were both surprised to learn that women worked there as well back in the day.

So after test driving a wheel barrow…

A few more natural wreaths…

Some private homes…

More wreaths…

And a massive Live Oak that is supposed to have been here when George Washington walked these streets….

We said goodbye to the cows we saw on the way in….

And went back to the car where we had to charge my cell phone long enough for Trip Advisor to point us to our first dinner in Williamsburg.

I love that app.

And I loved this restaurant.

Come on…. they had blue jellyfish lights over the bar.

How could you not?

Cocktails? Check.

Their Orange Crush was made with fresh squeezed OJ and was fabulous.

Hushpuppies and cornbread let us know we were in the south.

And may I just say? I had no idea how much I missed hushpuppies until I started eating them again.

Yeeha!

Dinner was tough to choose.

Husband started with mussels.

And moved on to perfectly pan seared sea scallops with garlic smashed red potatoes and green beans.

Me?

I was in the south, baby! Bring me those low country shrimp and cheesy grits.

Lord have mercy….. they were the best thing I’ve eaten in months.

Husband had room for a New York Style berry cheesecake….

And then we called it a day.

Day 1.

You realize that, right?

It took me 8 posts to get through Day 1 of our two week vacation.

Oh, don’t be so dramatic.

It’ll be fun!

Uncategorized

Colonial Williamsburg… Shield’s and Wetherburn’s Taverns

February 2, 2020 Rivergirl 18 Comments

Now don’t get excited food people, these taverns were for touring not eating.

Shield’s Tavern was closed, but had something the husband wanted to photograph.

Men. I can’t explain them….

But the gardens out back were lovely.

And I enjoyed a stroll among the well tended shrubbery.

I think Edward Scissorhands would approve.

There were vegetable gardens…

And wreaths…

I even saw an old ball and chain gate closure.

And then down the road, we found Wetherburn’s Tavern.

Where we had a guide give us the history and a tour.

Taverns back in the day were far different from what you might think. Rooms were rented for private parties, balls were held in the great rooms, owners lived behind the kitchen and the upstairs served as a hotel.

Which rooms you rented depended on your social standing.

Up to 12 men bunked in here.

I like cozy, but not that cozy.

Middle class families might sleep 8 in this room.

A private room? You had serious money.

Business deals were struck and government policies were made in rooms like these.

While the tavern keepers cranked out the meals in here….

That’s one high tech rotisserie right there.

Many taverns had their own smokehouses and livestock.

Which prompted a 30 minute conversation from my husband about being raised on a dairy farm.

Waiting-Memes-52918-aad4877

An appropriate wreath was decorating their door as well.

We may not have seen any beer…. but it was still a tavern.

Uncategorized

Colonial Williamsburg…. the Apothecary Shop, the Capitol and the Gaol.

February 1, 2020 Rivergirl 16 Comments

Still strolling Duke of Gloucester Street, we found the apothecary shop and it’s mistress in the middle of recounting some 18th century cures.

Trust me when I say you should be glad you weren’t sick in the 18th century.

Many towns and villages didn’t have doctors and these pseudo pharmacists were as close to modern medicine as many people could get.

There were some interesting drawings….

And a back room were the cures were administered. Though why that fellow in the corner needs a hat, I’m sure I don’t know…

Next up was the reconstructed Capitol building.

The birthplace of American government if you will.

The flag flying at the entrance meant it was open for tours…

So we settled in to wait for the guide.

With the husband admiring the rather odd gutterless drainage system.

Which was really more of a moat.

If you’re interested, the history of the Capitol is here. I’ll spare you the retelling and just post a few interior shots.

Local representatives met here, first to report to the crown….and then to form a new government.

The speaker had a throne… make of that what you will.

Here are the rooms our founding fathers formed the basis of the country we know today.

One can only imagine how they’d react to our current state of affairs.

I’d say that’s pretty close.

There was also a court where grievances and victims of crimes were given justice.

To me, the nicest part of the tour was when our guide proudly told us that he had helped officiate over the swearing in of 250 new American citizens on that day…. a 300 year old tradition lovingly continued on site.

Leaving the Capitol, we found the gaol, pronounced jail.

Which didn’t look too bad at first.

Until I realized that wasn’t the gaol.

The history of the gaol is here.

Many men and women were held here awaiting trial, and it doesn’t look like that would have been too comfortable.

The cells reminded me of horse stables.

And yes…

That is what you think it is.

Minus Mr. Whipple and his Charmin.

(We’ll visit the Public Hospital… read, lunatic asylum... another day)

The sound of that large door slamming shut?

Perfectly eerie.

The administration office was much nicer.

And it’s natural wreaths, nicer still.

All it needed was…

The clip clop of the carriage horses hooves to remind me how we could have been traveling.

Bad husband.

Bad.

bad-husband-sleeps-on-couch

Uncategorized

Strolling Colonial Williamsburg…. The Liberty Lounge and peacocks.

January 31, 2020 Rivergirl 17 Comments

I’m not sure you could find a more charming place to spend the day than Colonial Williamsburg.

History aside….

It’s just a perfectly lovely town.

Did you know the pineapple is a symbol of hospitality?

Learn why here.

Live Oak trees dominate the landscape, spreading their limbs for decades on end….

And I was seriously enjoying the all natural Christmas decorations.

How clever is that?

And while I was wreath gazing….

The husband spotted the entrance to a lounge reserved for veterans and their families.

To be honest I dreaded going inside. My husband has the gift of gab every day of the year, but when surrounded by other servicemen and women? I’ve spent half my married life waiting for him to conclude conversations.

Waiting-Memes-52918-aad4877

But there was free tea, coffee and hot cider…..

And thankfully, a veteran free room.

Of course he spotted the challenge coin cases which started a 45 minute long convo with the staff of volunteers….. but he added a coin of his own, which admittedly was rather nice.

An hour later? More decorations…

More wreaths…

Some cleverly trimmed shrubbery ….

And the silversmith’s shop…

We oohed and aahed and chatted with the man who ran it.

Did you know the phrase “put your money to work” dates from colonial times before the advent of paper currency? You were normally paid in silver, and instead of having bags of the stuff laying around your home…. you took it to the local silversmith who melted it down and made you a fabulous coffee urn or tea set. Your money was “put to work” and you got to flaunt your wealth to visitors. A win, win situation.

Many of his beautiful pieces were for sale in the shop next door…. but the husband wasn’t thrilled with the idea of me spending his hard earned silver to bring some home.

So we strolled.

And were amazed to learn some of these nice little homes were still privately owned.

Who in the world would want to live in the middle of a tourist attraction?

But more importantly…

Where do I find a peacock for next year’s Christmas wreath?

22ey1p

Uncategorized

Colonial Williamsburg… Duke of Gloucester Street

January 30, 2020 Rivergirl 22 Comments

Done with the Governor’s Palace, we headed to the main thoroughfare.

Colonial Williamsburg is a town, like any other.

If all the other towns were full of beautifully restored 18th century historic buildings that is.

George Wythe was Thomas Jefferson’s mentor.

So, you know…. that kind of town.

At the corner? The Bruton Parish Church, established in 1674…..

Still an active Presbyterian presence…

You can almost see George Washington walking amongst the stately old live oaks.

(Yes, he worshiped here.)

Taking a left put us on Duke of Gloucester Street, the busiest section of town.

Every house and business was decked out for Christmas….

With the traditional natural fruit and greenery it’s become famous for.

Another carriage made it’s way by….

And as much as I wanted to take one…. the husband had no interest whatsoever.

I mean, look at them…

They were just waiting for me to climb aboard.

But no. The husband had caught sight of this:

And that was where we went next.

Yay. More weapons…

Okay, the collection was impressive as hell.

And filled with various painful ways to kill people.

And yes…

The armory fellow was well versed and full of interesting facts.

But… but…

Horsies….

Are cuter than cannons any ole day.

And you can’t ride a cannon.

(Or maybe you can… but you probably shouldn’t.)

Next up was lunch at Chowning’s Tavern, where it’s wreath spoke volumes.

A reconstructed public house Josiah Chowning operated in 1766…

The menu of Brunswick Stew, Shepherd’s Pye and Welsh Rarebit reflected the fare of the day.

I opted for the hot smoked turkey trencher which was marvelous…. while the husband continued his French Onion soup trend.

Rum cake?

Don’t mind if I do.

Light, rummy and utterly fabulous.

Hot tea and mixed berry crumble for the other half.

Which to be honest, was so God awful sweet he could hardly eat it.

( Lunch photos just for you Martin.)

Uncategorized

Colonial Williamsburg…the Governor’s Palace tour.

January 29, 2020 Rivergirl 32 Comments

Finished with out outdoor stroll….

We headed for the interior tour…

Of the Colonial Seat of English rule in early Virginia.

Our guide led us inside…

Where we were immediately surrounded by a large numbers of weapons.

Weapons.

Everywhere.

I won’t bore you with the long history of the place, if you’re interested…. take a peek here.

I’ll just point out that it was home to the Royal Governor pre revolution, and numerous Virginia Governors like Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson post revolution.

It was an impressive place.

With an impressive wood stove.

Amazing decorative detail….

And some pretty brightly colored walls.

There was even a separate room for men to powder their wigs.

Maybe that’s what’s wrong with politics today…

Not enough wigs.

The beds were elaborate.

But the only thing I thought of when I saw the red room…

Complete with fancy dress crib to show off the progeny?

Was this:

It’s in there Rosemary….

Grab your knife.

(Sorry, but I saw that movie when I was 9 and it still creeps the hell out of me)

The final part of the tour was self guided.

And led us around back…

To the cellar.

Which was basically a whole lotta barrels…

And a whole lotta wine….

So… that done, we emerged.

And caught a charming scene.

A horse drawn carriage.

Adding a little something to the atmosphere of days gone by.

As well as making us watch where we walked… because, well. Horse diapers hadn’t been invented yet.

And yes… they do exist.

Pampers for Mr. Ed

Uncategorized

Colonial Williamsburg – The Governor’s Palace, the Arbor, the Maze and cows….

January 28, 2020 Rivergirl 24 Comments

Historic area, here we come.

As soon as we make it through the Colonial Parkway underpasses…..

Which were quite something in and of themselves.

A few more paths….

And we’re there.

As you can see, there’s a lot to explore.

But first?

Some cows.

Who refused to smile for the camera no matter how hard I tried.

cheezburger-image-6930043648

Next up? The Governor’s Palace….

An impressive place they don’t let you inside without a guide, so we killed some time strolling the grounds.

Which were impressive as well.

Of course all that strolling made some of us weary.

No…

It wasn’t me.

But how about that arbor?

I’d love one of those in our backyard.

Along with the full staff of gardeners required to trim, train and prune it as well.

Still strolling, we found the maze.

And promptly got lost in it.

h3F762405

Thankfully 2 ten year olds were in there as well….

And pointed us to the exit.

If I’d known you could climb up here….

And over look the whole thing?

I would have sent the husband in alone and shouted directions.

Maze completed, we headed back to the Palace for our tour.

Uncategorized

Day 3….. Colonial Williamsburg.

January 27, 2020 Rivergirl 35 Comments

When you visit Williamsburg, Virginia? It’s all about American history. Everywhere you go, everywhere you look… and that was fine with me. I’m a bit of a nerd when it comes to that subject and couldn’t wait to experience it all.

The pinnacle in this area is Colonial Williamsburg. 300 acres of historic sites and museums filled with people in period costumes waiting to tell you their stories…. from an 18th century point of view. Loyalist and patriots, tradesmen and legislators. Is it any wonder this was where I headed on our first full day of vacation?

You enter through the massive visitors center.

Where we learned that Williamsburg is the heart of the Historic Triangle which also includes Jamestown and Yorktown. Tickets can be purchased for all 3, or individually, but we lucked out when a volunteer spotted the husband’s USMC hat and told us it would actually be cheaper to buy a year long Veterans pass for unlimited access, which we did. We also got bright blue stars on our passes which entitled us to 10% off everything.

Sweet!

There’s a shuttle bus that runs every ten minutes taking you all around the site, but it was a beautiful day and we decided to walk.

Back in time….

80229261_2624302917624437_7663567518425939968_n

The walkway was wonderful….

79474202_2624302977624431_1188989939878985728_n

And filled with facts….

80408826_2624303010957761_5147311213817888768_n

That put things in perspective.

79450738_2624303050957757_198051378789089280_n

The farther back you went?

79688971_2624303110957751_2621064712200126464_n

The more you appreciated what you have now.

79702583_2624303157624413_6214954742603317248_n

Some facts were startling.

80317702_2624303204291075_1752190727980318720_n

Some, hard to imagine.

And then…

79599427_2624303257624403_111581768586362880_n

We were there.

The first thing we saw?

A windmill…. and the split rail fences we would see numerous times on this trip.

Then… a plantation.

Which wasn’t anywhere near as grand as you’d think.

In the 1700’s?

Things were pretty basic.

First fact learned?

A farm grows multiple crops. A plantation? One.

Yes dear readers, for the next few weeks ~~months?~~ my posts will be filled with colonial factoids.

Try to control your excitement.

But wait, that’s not all we saw at the plantation.

There were flocks of geese as well.

I love me some goosers!

Uncategorized

The resort condo, the coffee shop, free chicken coffee…. and as always, geese.

January 26, 2020 Rivergirl 27 Comments

After touring the Manor House of the Historic Powhatan Resort in Williamsburg, I knew our condo would be a bit of a letdown, but as timeshare units go…. it was quite decent.

We requested a top floor, since the husband despises people tap dancing above him at 2:00am.

Our previous upstairs neighbors

It was a 2 bedroom, 2 bath unit…

And like many of the newly renovated suites we’ve had lately…. heavily yellow and beige-d.

nifty-shades-of-beige_o_1799643

But the king size bed was extremely comfortable….

There was a working fireplace…

A full kitchen with hardwood floors and granite countertops….

Large bathrooms…

A full size dining table….

And a place for evening cocktails.

The buildings were well spaced and far enough apart to limit noise, which is a plus for light sleepers like me.

Heck, this condo was almost 1,400 square feet…. which is about 300 more than our first home, so I wasn’t complaining.

funny-meme-about-millennials-being-able-to-buy-houses-but-they-can-only-buy-small-houses

We unpacked, or rather I did. Husband just threw his suitcase on the bed and called it good. What is it with you men?

Then we decided to grab a quick bite at the on site coffee shop.

It was next to the Manor House, and attractive in it’s own right.

With a large outdoor seating area….

And a view of the ever present geese.

Unfortunately…

It also had a big fat closed sign next to it’s front door.

First the bad restaurant, then the shut up tight coffee shop. Clearly it wasn’t our day for eating out.

So we ended our first day in Williamsburg at the grocery store, stocking up for the 2 weeks ahead and wondering why no one was taking advantage of the free chicken coffee.