Final boarding

Final boarding call for Southwest flight 1740 to Orlando. Almost home.

Yorktown Victory Center

At Yorktown, the location of the final major battle of the Revolutionary War, where Cornwallis surrenders to Washington, we saw how members of the Continental Army lived and how midling (middle class) farmers lived. Now we are heading back to Norfolk airport.

Shirley Plantation

Established in 1615, having been owned by the same family for 11 generations and being a working farm all that time, Shirley Plantation is the oldest family owned business in America. The children are learning more games that were played during colonial times: close the box (a number game), crazy rights (a card game), jack straws (pick up sticks) and tanagrams (which was imported from China).

First

Today we were first down for breakfast, first to load our luggage and first on the bus. Maybe everyone is just a little anxious to get home. Remember pickup is 5:20pm. We are also prepared for rain. With any luck the brunt of the storms will pass while we are on the bus. 

Snack time

After a tough day of walking all over Williamsburg the boys earned a relatively early night with hot chocolate and popcorn.

Ghost stories

Several homes in Williamsburg have been reported to be haunted. Some of the stories are quite startling. Staying close together at night makes us feel safe.

Fall colors

Our group poses for a picture under a maple tree with vibrant colors in front of the post office, before doing some shopping. Dinner is after that and I think we've worked up a pretty good appetite. 

Game time

The children enjoyed playing one of the most popular games of colonial Williamsburg, which was played by children of all social strata: hoop and stick.

Lots of Walking

We walked for what seemed like many miles this morning but on the map it came out to just 1.5 miles, before stopping for lunch at Shields Tavern, the oldest one at Williamsburg.

Enlisted...

We awoke just in time for morning military drills. We must always be prepared for the British.

Dinner

The kids ate a hardy meal at the Golden Corral. They especially enjoyed the dessert options. The children now go to a witch trial while the chaperones go shopping.

Monticello

One student commented, "this is the coolest house ever," referring to Jefferson home and its many unique features... too many to list here. The architecture is Roman neoclassical and serves as the style for many other historical structures in America, including the White House, Capitol building, Virginia State House, and the original campus of University of Virginia. The last two being designed by Jefferson himself. As Monticello was constantly a work in progress, it took 40 years to complete construction, finishing in time for Jefferson to return to after serving as president. Now we are heading back to Williamsburg for dinner and then a witch trial.

Richmond

We witnessed a re-enactment of the second Virginia convention at Saint John's church in Richmond in March of 1775, where Patrick Henry proposed a resolution that would make provisions for an armed force to defend itself against an increasingly aggressive British army that had just instituted martial law in Boston following the Boston massacre and tea party. Henry convinced his reluctant fellow Virginians with his famous "give me liberty or give me death speech." The resolution narrowly passed by a margin of 5 votes out of 120 delegates, who include George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and other famous patriots. Just 3 weeks later shots were fired at Lexington and Concord and the Revolutionary War had begun! The boys saw how a representative government works and how eloquent arguments are made with regards to the use of force versus diplomacy... topics relevant in today's foreign policy debates. We are now on our way to Jefferson's home, Monticello.

Early start

All the children had a blast with colonial dance instruction last night. After the ball, we returned to the hotel at about 10pm. No time for popcorn or hot chocolate. The boys fell asleep within 2 minutes of hitting the bed and slept soundly all night. We are having a filling breakfast. Today we head out to Richmond and Monticello. The buses leave at 7:15am.

Costume Ball

After a full day of sightseeing and note-taking. We are now ready to have fun at the evening ball.

Jamestown Settlement

The Susan Constant was the largest of the three ships sent from London to settle Jamestown.

Glasshouse

We make a very quick stop at the glasshouse for a demo. The glass blower heats the glass to 2400 degrees to make it soft enough to shape.

Jamestown

The class explores the "rediscovered" fort of Jamestown, which is still an active archeological site.

Arrived

We just landed in Norfolk with two busses and boxed lunches waiting for us. Leaving for Jamestown soon.

Breakfast

A final snack before we depart.

Boarding

A sea of red (and pink) ready to board the plane.

Where do we go?

Mr. Courson is directing traffic, "this way to the gate everyone, and remember to stay with your chaperone."

At airport

The group arrived at the airport on time and with all their luggage.