Getting Colonial in Wiliamsburg (cont.)

The Governor's Palace is impressive.

Day 4

We awoke the next morning ready to tackle another day at Colonial Williamsburg! We popped into Wythe House and gardens, where we smelled delicious crabmeat, butter and scallions bubbling on the fire in the kitchen. When we made our way into the parlor, who should we find but Marquis de Lafayette? (It was all I could do not to start singing "Guns and Ships" from the Hamilton soundtrack.)

Clay LOVED seeing him and talking with him about the Revolutionary War and (for real) told me not to embarrass him in front of Lafayette. (Though, when Lafayette asked the crowd what was the hardest part of invading New York, and I piped up The traffic!, it not only got a laugh from the room, Lafayette himself acknowledged, with a wry smile, "Very good, madame.")

We also toured the Governor's Palace and grounds, and both are gorgeous. The display of weapons in the entryway was a favorite, as were the spooky tales of graves beneath the garden's pavers. (We also got a taste of the chocolate maker's discussion in the kitchen. Mmmmmmm.)

Clay was sooo impressed with Lafayette!

We cooled our heels a little bit with some root beer purchased from the McKenzie Apothecary and consumed in the grass on the palace green. (This was really fun. Just cold root beer, great people watching, and some gorgeous family time on the grass.) Then, we chatted with the leatherworkers and bookbinders, got our feet dirty at the brickyard, and played the handmade harpsichord at the cabinet maker's shop!

A little pooped, we stopped in at Chowning's Tavern for one of our favorite tavern meals of the trip. We chose the sampler platter, which features all kinds of delicious colonial goodies, and a salad. We also got the family punch bowl, which was refreshing and fun! Our waitress at Chowning's was fantastic, too. A great lunch!

After lunch, we checked out the armory and the church, hobnobbed with the guys at the foundry, and browsed the market. We ended our day with a rousing tour of the capitol (There was a Brit in our group, which made for some interesting conversations.), a peek at the public jail, and a quick stop to talk to the gunsmith. (The gunsmith's shop is amazing. They make every gun by hand, start to finish. If you order a custom gun now, it'll take about 8 years to get it, due to the backlog of orders.)

Somewhere over the two days we spent at Colonial Williamsburg, we also talked with the wheelwright, the barber (This was almost a little show. He had a monologue in addition to the traditional audience Q&A.), the carpenters, the Indian delegation (a really cool culture share), and the weavers. (Clay even tried his hand at weaving some cloth.) There's just so much to do there. So many people to talk to, so much to see and learn.

We ended the day with dinner at Christiana Campbell's Tavern, which is said to be a favorite of George Washington's. A little spendy, but delicious! And the wait staff is top-notch!

The drive to Yorktown affords lovely views. 

Day 5

After two full days at Colonial Williamsburg, we were ready for a change of pace. We decided to head to Yorktown for some battlefield tromping. (Plus, Clay wanted to take a look at what Lafayette was prattling on about.)

We had a lazy morning, then drove the scenic byway to get there shortly before lunch. Yorktown has a picturesque little square, with cute shops, statuary, and pathways along the river. We walked around a bit before lunch, later settling in at Riverwalk Restaurant for a light bite. (They have an incredible lobster roll! And you can either eat in the indoor dining room or out on their patio, with a lovely view of the river. Pricey, but yummy.)

Checking out the artillery.

Fortified, we drove to the visitors center for Colonial National Historical Park. (Be aware that if you are visiting several historical sites in the Williamsburg area, it's worth checking to see if you are eligible for a discount on admission fees. Happily, we were!) After spending some time at the visitors center museum to orient ourselves, we followed the main Yorktown interpretive trail, pulling over at the wayside exhibits to explore further and read the historical markers.

We traced the British inner defense line, the allied siege line, the battery, some of the redoubts, and Moore House, ending at Surrender Field. Really cool to see, and we had a gorgeous day to enjoy it!

That evening, we relaxed at the resort. In addition to the amenities we'd already discovered, we found bikes, a small on-site theatre, and a game room! (They also had a golf course, but as we aren't golfers, we didn't partake.) In addition to his hoop and stick prowess, we learned that Clay is *also* good at shuffleboard. ;-)

Day 6

After three straight days of history, we went in search of pure fun on day 6. Our quest led us to Busch Gardens Williamsburg. We hadn't been to a theme park since our trip to Universal Studios in the fall of 2016, so we were ready for some rides!

We'd purchased our tickets and parking pass ahead of time online, so getting into the park was a breeze. (It also probably didn't hurt that we went on a weekday - fewer crowds.) Once inside, we headed straight for Battle for Eire. Not only is it near the park entrance (in Ireland), it's also one of their newer rides, combining 3-D virtual reality with moving seats. Really fun! Then, we backtracked a bit to Scotland to take wild ride on Loch Ness (one of Clay's favorite coasters of the trip), which was celebrating its anniversary! (I'd been a little worried that Clay wouldn't be game for all of the coasters at this park. But once he got off Loch Ness, raving about how much he loved it, I knew we'd be ok.)

As it was early in the day, lines for rides were still short. We were able to make a quick walk to Germany to hop on Invadr, a really cool wooden coaster that I think was my favorite of the day. Such a great throwback feel to it. And, because it was so close (and just opening, as the temps began to warm), we hopped on the Le Scoot water ride. We didn't get *too* wet!

By this time, we were jonesing for some lunch. We tucked in at Trappers Smokehouse, snagging an umbrellaed table where we could cool our heels. While we were there, we rode the easy Le Catapult (no line). We wanted to take a coaster break, since our tummies were still so full, so we spent some time at the Land of the Dragons playground, then took the easy Rhine River cruise while our lunches digested.

The drop on Verbolten. Be still my heart!

Then, we made our way to Oktoberfest, where we started with Der Wirbelwind (a fun, high-flying swing ride) before hopping on Verbolten. I LOVED the drop by the water on this coaster, and if the line had been a little shorter, I would have wanted to ride it again. 

Then, we walked over to Italy/Festa Italia, where we rode Escape from Pompeii (short line, with a fun, short water ride at the end), the Trade Wind, and the Battering Ram in quick succession. Closing time was approaching, and I allowed Clay to convince us to get in line for Roman Rapids. Mistake! The line was soooo long!! We ended up spending the majority of our remaining park time waiting on this one ride. We did go on it, got completely soaked, then took the train back to the park entrance and called it a day!

So. Many. RIDES!!

Grateful for a chance to have dinner outside of a theme park, we drove to Second Street Bistro, where I attacked a steak and relished in the air conditioned quiet. An oasis after a day of overstimulation. We ALL slept well that night!

More to come . . .