Last Day

On the last day we decided to drive to Virgina and see George Washington's home Mt. Vernon. When I purchased the tickets the lady asked if I wanted to buy timed tickets for $2 extra, which would allow me to skip the lines and go straight to the front. We decided this was a great idea, and in the end we were able to avoid standing in line for 2 hours.

The above statue shows how tall Washington was (over 6 feet) whereas his wife was 4 ft 10 in.) He ended up adopting her two children from her first marriage. The actual house and grounds are amazing they are so well laid out.

Logan loved carrying around his map.

Around the grounds there were people who were dressed up in traditional clothes.

The entire layout of his land was what really impressed me. The below buildings were the servants quarters and shoe makers building. The house is in the center and the outbuildings extend out from it in a semi circle. Then extending from that are the gardens.

They have a working blacksmith. The man has worked her for 14 years.

I loved the view from the back of the house. I could imagine George Washington sitting in a rocking chair on the back porch admiring the view.

The building below is an outhouse. I don't think I have seen a nicer looking one.

The kitchen is detached from the house because of the heat in the summer. The oven they said took three hours just to preheat.

His gardens were really impressive as well. They said that farming was very important to him and he considered himself a farmer more than a President.

I had really wanted to go to the National Archives and see the Constitution and Declaration of Independence, but we arrived literally minutes to late and they wouldn't let us in. Note to others when the website says the building closes at 7:00. It really means it closes at 6:30 and then they kick you out at 7:00, and even if you beg the guard to let you in and tell him that you traveled all the way from Oregon and you promise you will leave by 7:00 they still won't let you in. Just in case you were wondering.

On the last night I convinced Shauna and Jeff to get a baby sitter and we set out for dinner. I had wanted to see China Town, and I don't know exactly what I was expecting but a street fight with police showing up wasn't it. We came up from the metro, took a picture, and decided to go to Dupont Circle instead.

I have more pictures of our last night, but I will post these in a final post.