On July 28, 2005, after three nights in Richmond, the
conference ended and it was time to leave. But we continued our
journey by heading further from home - with quite a lot planned for today.
First stop was the settlement at Jamestown. This
is a rebuilt settlement near the location of the actual Jamestown
settlement, America's first permanent English colony - settled in 1607.
Included at the site are replicas of the three ships that the settlers used
to sail from England: The Susan Constant, Godspeed, and Discovery.
It was very interesting (even on a warm day) to be
able to tour these ships, and see what it was like to sail for that length
of time on these small ships. Discovery, at less than 50' long,
carried a total of 21 people for the voyage, along with supplies and such.
Heading back away from the waterfront, we next toured
the replica of the fort, including the blacksmith (who was making nails),
the hut pictured here being repaired, church, and other dwellings. And
on the way back out through the Indian village nearby, I did take a picture
of one of the huts.
So, upon leaving the Jamestown Settlement, we headed
toward Norfolk and the Chesapeake Bay Bridge & Tunnel. But first, I
was intent on detouring into North Carolina for a little bit. Well...
a misread of the map got me off at the wrong exit.... and we got to see a
little bit more of Norfolk than we expected. I don't think it's right
that the highway you're looking for crosses the one that you're on in more
than one place. But I ended up figuring out where we were going (I was
on the right road the whole time.. just could have exited onto it later &
saved time), we managed to go into North Carolina and made it as far as
Elizabeth City, where we filled the tank and got some food. Trip
Odometer: 950 - representing our furthest point south.
Heading back north the way we came, we made it back
to the Norfolk vicinity and headed to the Chesapeake Bay Bridge & Tunnel.
Paying the $12 toll (it is a 17.6 mile long bridge/tunnel combination) we
headed out, stopping at the first man-made island where the bridge
transitions into the first tunnel, allowing ships to cross above.
Timing at this rest area was pretty good, as a ship was just heading out...
and in front of the ship were dolphins jumping. In the first ship
picture, you can see a small dot in front of the ship - that's a dolphin.
After a quick look around the gift shop (and a few postcards), I took a
picture looking back at the bridge we just crossed, and Kyle on the walk
above the tunnel entrance.
We continued our trip on into the night, heading
into Delaware where we stopped for dinner. With the plan to be in
Washington D.C. the next day, we headed in that general direction until it
was time to stop, which eventually happened pretty late when we arrived in
Annapolis, Maryland. Trip Odometer: 1203.
Well... let's see. We woke up July 29, 2005 to
what amounted to a dreary looking day. It wasn't raining just yet, but
was clearly not as beautiful a day as we had been having.
My ultimate destination in the Washington D.C.
area: Arlington National Cemetery. I suppose it kind of
continues the Civil War theme for the overall trip (Gettysburg & Richmond).
First stop within the cemetery was the grave of John F. Kennedy. Very
inspiring, but not quite what I expected. We then made our way around
& up the hill to the home of Robert E. Lee, which he had inherited from his
wife's family. We managed to arrive at just the right time to begin a
self guided tour (following the map & the roped off areas) through the
house.
Continuing the tour through the cemetery, we ended
up making our way to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and watched the
changing of the guard ceremony. Again, very inspiring, as well as
solemn. As many people as were watching, it was very quiet.
Having no other particular place to go within the
cemetery, it was time to head across the Potomac River into Washington D.C.
With no particular place to go in mind (except for the Hard Rock Cafe) and
the beginning of rain, we decided to not stop at the Washington Monument or
Lincoln Memorial. There was road construction in this area, and a lot
of cars (no place to park). I did also want to go to Ford's Theater.
So by the time we found a place to park (at no cheap
rate) near Ford's Theater, it was starting to rain pretty well. We
headed over to Ford's Theater, a block from the parking garage, and wandered
in.
All I can say is wow. First off, it is not as
large as what I expected. And the ease of access, just walk right into
the theater and you can see the balcony right there. Then going into
the museum in the basement, there are many artifacts that tell the story of
not only the assassination, but much more of the history of events at the
time.
And then, across the street is the house where
Lincoln died. When I saw the theater, it wasn't that far from what I
expected except for the size. But this house was not what I had
pictured. To see the sitting room where Mary Lincoln waited, and the
bedroom where Lincoln spent the night until he died the next morning.
A fitting if not solemn end of our tour of many Civil War sites on this
trip.
Next door to Ford's Theater we made a brief stop at the
Hard Rock Cafe, for a browse through the gift shop & a picture of the
guitars for Jerome.
Leaving Washington D.C. to make the quick trip up to
Baltimore, we headed straight to the waterfront and the Hard Rock Cafe
there. Now this is a waterfront. Nothing against Richmond, but
the this area of Baltimore has got it all, with restaurants, museums, the
aquarium, and the ballpark. And there were lots of people.
By now it was time to eat, and the Hard Rock Cafe
was our destination. I took a few pictures inside this one as well.
My All-Access card that I purchased at the Hard Rock Cafe in Las Vegas in
June came in handy, as there was a wait for tables, but we got right in.
The last picture shows that this HRC is in an old
building on the waterfront, on one of the piers.
By the time we were done eating and headed outside, the
rain was finally heading out for good. Looking for other things to do
with no real plans, we decided to tour the ships in the area. This
moved us squarely out of colonial times (Jamestown) and the Civil War era,
and into the World War II era. First we toured The Chesapeake, an old
time lighthouse ship that was used in the bay to guide other ships.
They even let me steer the ship. Having just eaten, Kyle didn't get
much food while onboard. In front of this ship is Tusk, a WW II era
submarine. Heading through the aft-torpedo room, we moved gradually
toward the front of the ship. Kyle is pointing at Baltimore on the
map, our current location. The bunks on the sub, while not entirely
cozy looking, are much better than those on the Susan Constant that was used
to settle Jamestown in 1607.
Continuing on to the final ship, the U.S.S. Taney.
This ship was in Pearl Harbor during the attack, and returned fire on the
attacking planes. Later serving as a Coast Guard cutter, it is now on
display in Baltimore. Beyond the Taney is the backside of the Hard
Rock Cafe and Barnes & Noble buildings.
Rounding out our little tour was a brief stop in
the lighthouse, now serving as a gift shop, that had previously been on a
rock out in the bay.
Trip Odometer: 1288 miles.
By 6:00pm, it was time to head out of Baltimore and
start heading toward home in Michigan.
My goal for the last night was to get back into
Pennsylvania, closer to home than where we stayed the first night in
Chambersburg. This would make for a shorter ride home the next day.
Before our last turn north out of Maryland into
Pennsylvania, however, we made a quick turn south and headed into West
Virginia. We picked up a couple of Cappuccinos, and then headed back
north - stopping at Breezewood, Pennsylvania, again well after dark.
Word of warning, don't stay at the Breezewood Motel. But the Quiznos
subs were good.
Trip Odometer: 1434 miles
Finally, July 30, 2005 it was time to head home.
Just a long day of driving with plans to be in Ohio by noon (actual time,
12:02 or so), and back in Midland by about 5:00. We were hitting our
deadlines all day and arrived back in Midland, Michigan right on schedule.
