Monticello

Our last guided tour was to visit Thomas Jefferson's home. The grounds are beautiful. We took a garden tour before the home tour. He was very knowledgeable in many things and plants was one of his specialties. The garderns who take care of his plants today have labeled most the heirloom plants for visitors. They even have TJ or LC on the stakes if they know that Thomas Jefferson in fact planted such plants and LC if they know that Lewis and Clark returned from the west with such seeds.

kitchen

garden

The president would sit in here. 

garden, 3 football fields long

Mount Vernon

We woke up early on Saturday and headed to Mount Vernon to see the home of our first president a place he really liked to be. With the audio tour in hand and a guidebook we were ready to take in stories about his home. The grounds were welcoming as I'm sure is how they felt 200 years ago as well. Lucien enjoyed seeing the blacksmith work on a metal strap for a wooden box.

Red Roof is the Kitchen

Circle Drive

Potomac River

Side of House

Back Porch 

The Capital

We were very excited to visit The Capital. We used Parking Panda to reserve a parking space in a garage because parking is impossible. We went to Lloyd Doggett's office to pick up our tickets for the tour and chambers. An intern walked us into the Visitors Center using connecting halls from the Cannon Building to the Capital. 

During our capital tour we visited the Dome room. The dome itself is being restored. The art found accounted important moments in the history of our country. 

Abraham Lincoln in Dome Room

 

Statuary Hall we learned is where the House of Representatives once used as their chamber. The whisper spot was a fun interactive moment during the tour. 

Independence

We took an AMTRAK from New York to Philadelphia on Saturday morning. Having studied history this was a place Steven has wanted to go for some time.

After lunch we headed into Liberty Square to visit Independence Hall.    

The flag flying is the the 13 star American Flag. This view looked amazing while looking up at the flag and clock.

 

Standing trial here would not of been much fun in this courthouse. You had to actually stand trail in front of your accusers.  

 

The painting on the wall is original.  

 

George Washington's Chair in the back is also original.   

Before going in Steven retold us of the sun setting, sun rising statement from Ben Franklin in regards to the sun on the back of this chair.

 

This is where the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were signed.  

 

Congress Hall is where Congress met until it was decided to make Washington D.C. the nations capital.  

This room was interesting to be in since the first House of Representatives met. It is amazing that here is where the 2nd President of the United States John Adams was sworn into office and President Washington walked away. 

The Liberty Bell was something Lucien was very excited to see after learning about it in Kindergarten.

 

 

The area had many small parks and statues. This one helps one to imagine the bravery these men had by standing up for what they felt was right and Declaring Independence followed by writing the Constitution. 

 

It was fun watching the drum and bugles play music and march in the park.  

 

These soldiers really worked as a team  

  

 

We then walked to Benjamin Franklin's grave. 

We then went to get some dinner and drive by the Philadelphia Museum of Art to see the steps from the Rocky Movie. We were rather full, so going up them was not an option.