On another hot day in Virginia we travelled to the Revolutionary City of Williamsburg to see the events that reflect Williamsburg's role in one of America's defining historical periods. All over town, merchants and townspeople are discussing the events of the day. You can interact with them and gain their perspective of events and be a witness to the collapse of royal government and the challenges facing revolutionary citizens at war. Each day highlights a key moment in history. Building a nation turns the spotlight on the crucial postwar years and Williamsburg's role in the formal establis [View Full Entry]

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Montcello, his plantation near Charlottesville, Virginia was the centre of Thomas Jefferson's world. To get there we travelled for 2 hours down I64. A very long day!!!! The name Monticello in Italian means 'little mountain. To understand Thomas Jefferson, one must understand Monticello: it can be seen as his autobiographical statement. Monticello was a house, an ornamental landscape, a farm, a small mountain and a large and diverse community Monticello was home to Jefferson and his extanded family but also to as many as 150 slaves who worked the farm, helped construct the house and outbuidings [View Full Entry]

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Can l just say at this point that we have not yet a day off on this vacation, sorry holiday. Today we had the morning off and went off to Colonial Williamsburg in the afternoon. We had bought tickets go to see a early 18th century witches trial. Audience members pose quesions to witnesses and play the role of jury in the strange case of Grace Sherwood, accused of causing neigbours' crops to fail, bewitching folks and turning herself into a cat. The location was set in the orginal venue and featured actors playing the part of the judge etc. Apparently [View Full Entry]

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First of all Jack. It was them damm Frenchies what done it. They hemmed us into a corner of Yorktown and blockcaded the Chesepeake Bay and stopped out troops being transported to New York. Today - this is Tuesday (for the purposes of this blog) we went to Scotland via Surry (yes the spelling is correct) by ferry across the James River. Here we visited various old Colonial houses and had lunch in your typical old American Roadhouse. Very muggy today with the odd thunderstorm. Never mind Virginia is one of the most interesting places we have visited. Tomorrow we are [View Full Entry]

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A really interesting day on Monday. Travelled to Jamestown Settlement where in 1607 the British arrived in Virginia in the hope of making lots of money. They didn't!!! Anyway what we found really interesting was the lack of black faces at the settlement. I suppose that should not be a great surprise considering how the negro's came to Virginia. The settlement is really interesting - lots of interactive things to do. We even met Pocoantas and our travelling friend, Jethro, even had his photograph taken with her. Who you ask is Jethro? Well we found Jethro, a 'teddy bear' on one [View Full Entry]

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We left Newcastle airport in the middle of a rainstorm and had a very pleasant flight until we reached the Eastern seaboard of the United States where banged directly into Tropical Storm Hanna. The things beacame really interesting - to say the least, it was bumpy, there was a rainstorm (worst than taking off in Newcastle). We have never seen so many sick bags used on a single flight. We were bumping, jumping about more than we can ever remember, ever the cabin crew looked a little concerned. In spite of this and with great skill the pilot managed to land [View Full Entry]

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Although we are not due to arrive here until Saturday 6 September here we are already thinking about the weather. Being English l suppose it is part of out cultural preoccupation. Anyway, following media reports, we have been monitoring the current Hurricane season over the Americas. So what do we find - on our planned time of 16.00 EDT in Virginia - a probable collision with a woman called Hanna. And to think we are just leaving home after one of the wettest summers on record in the UK. Never mind can't be helped [View Full Entry]

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Thursday, Sept 4 We filled up with gas in Goldsboro and then went to the Skillet Restaurant for breakfast. Mother had country ham since we were in hog raising country. We drove through tobacco fields on the way to Greenville. Took a side trip through some of the farms to get a picture. In Historic Edenton we had “Elevenes”(Elevenes is like afternoon tea but at 11:00 a.m.) at the Edenton Coffee House and Sisters Gallery with Anita & Glenn Andersen, friends who used to live in Charlotte. It was good to see them and catch up on what they are doing [View Full Entry]

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Hey friends - I'm getting ready to head out this Friday, September 5, on my cross country "Intro to Retirement" adventure. It's two months tomorrow since I left FNS, and, while I can't say I've gotten as much done at home as I hoped to during this period, I am ready and raring to go on the trip. I'm posting a map of by initial plans for my travel, but I expect there to be changes along the way, especially if Nick (my grandson!) decides to show up a bit earlier than his expected Oct. 1 due date. The first part [View Full Entry]

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So I have my own column in the Cav Daily about my travels. It's called "The French Dish." Here's a copy of the first column. Prelude to an Adventure The French Dish-By Kendra Kirk Kendra is a 3rd year studying abroad in Pau, France (the southwest) for the Fall semester Culture shock. The term is typically reserved for the unprepared tourist’s excursion into third world countries. While my upcoming study abroad trip to France might not seem like a top qualifying nation for culture shock, I am anticipating an adjustment flying from my hometown, Lovettsville (pop. 800) to [View Full Entry]

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