Shades of our Colonial Past

Today was again a little grey, but not depressingly. We were up and soon ready to roll. First, however, we had to reclaim the car and get hold of a luggage cart, complete with Bell Boy! The latter was now an old familiar to us, but his Southern drawl coupled with  the speed of his vocal delivery resulted in our being unable to understand more than forty percent of what he said. Nevertheless, it all worked out fine and we were soon heading for the Berkeley Plantation, near Charles City, along Route 5. Traffic was easy and the scenery very green, and we arrived at our destination early. We took the tour of this famous estate, founded after an English Adventurers party landed there in 1694 (and site of the very first Thanksgiving celebration) and were impressed by its historical links with the Civil War, Declaration of Independence, and line of US Presidents.

Tour over, we wandered the gardens, down to the James River and spotted a number of Red Cardinals (birds!) before taking-up the next leg of the day's journey. Continuing on Route 5 we arrived in Williamsburg around midday. The latter, together with Jamestown and Yorktown, form a triangle of early Colonial settlements, the character of which has been preserved by creating 'living museums', comprising buildings, costumed staff, and arts and crafts, styled in the period of the early English settlers. Definitely worth visiting! Mid-afternoon and we checked in the nearby Best Western and decided to do our first 'laundry' of the trip ....... mundane, but essential! Listening to the radio today,  as we rolled past green plantations and forested landscape, we figured that Ben E King's "Stand by me" was a good musical reminder of the day.