Began  with a lovely drive down Highway 5 and stopped off at Jamestown, the first permanent settlement. They were told to keep away from the coasts and settle in the interior so they wouldn’t be attacked by the Spanish but didn’t go quite far enough up the river. The water was brackish so there wasn’t enough drinking water.  Stories abound about their terrible winter and it’s finally been authenticated that at least one dead girl had been chopped into chops. There’s an archeological dig taking place and spoke with one middle school history teacher who volunteers regularly.

Williamsburg was terrific (and toasty).  Stayed with a great couple (and a kindred spirit).  She had followed the Lewis & Clark trail in her VW bug, camping along the way. Arrived in Colonial Williamsburg for the “storming of the Palace”.  Rev City stages scenes leading up to the reading of the Declaration of Independence throughout the day.  Sat in on the discussion by  a couple of actors who wanted to explain their association with the British.  Seems our Congress had outlawed theater so their livelihood (and food and protection) came with their travels with the Redcoats. It was followed by a conversation on the responsibilities of Congress and their wanderings into people’s personal decisions. Not much has changed.  

Also took part in a court hearing as one of the justices.  A 10 year old girl had petitioned to become a seamstress apprentice (a contract) and another woman was accused of buying produce from a landowner’s slave.  The proceedings were scripted and my perk was a cushioned seat at the front of the room. Next wandered over to the Governor’s Palace for a private tour.  I was the only one in line between two large groups.  The Governor was not well liked – a note he’d written to a friend about his disdain for the people of Williamsburg preceded his arrival and when his militia seized the city’s gunpowder (on orders from General Gage), his popularity took another drop. One night, he and his family slipped quietly out of town.

Wasted a huge chunk of my life passing and bypassing the exit to the Chesapeake Bay Bridge & Tunnel.  Remember when I was patting myself on the back about missing the Outer Banks southbound traffic?  Well, I got to revisit it again.  Made it to Dover and stayed with a lovely woman who had come to the countryside from New Jersey. Had our morning coffee on her back deck and watched the neighboring trotters make their way around the track.  Took a ride

up to the Bombay Hook Wildlife Refuge but it was so beastly hot, I only strayed from the car a couple of times.  Went thru historic Odessa and then back to the capital for a tour of the old State House. Delaware was once Lower PA but a very agreeable divorce took place and it became a state and the first to ratify the Constitution (a notation they put on their license plates).  Very lovely downtown and a beautiful art museum that was featuring Currier & Ives drawings depicting events of our history.  Much different from the sleigh scenes I’d come to expect. 

From Dover I drove over to Lewes to catch a ferry and meet an old and dear friend,Denise.  We had lunch at an old Victorian house (turned into a restaurant) and then heard the history of the early Dutch settlers (who were eventually bumped by the British) from a VERY enthusiastic volunteer at the museum. Henry Hudson was the original founder- although English- he was sailing for a  Dutch company. Their museum is a copy of one in the Netherlands, where the original settlers hailed from. We caught the ferry, then strolled around historic Cape May before having dinner and a drive back to her home in Stone Harbor.

The following day we climbed the interior of the world’s largest pachyderm.  Lucy has gone thru several incarnations and was even a summer home for a season.  She had to be moved a couple of blocks when a development company bought the land to build condos. She’s had a couple of contenders but remains the sole survivor. They say she’s blind in the left eye as the condo obstructs her view of the beach.Toured the Cape May County Historical Museum to learn about the early whalers, farmers and lumbermen who settled the area.  All of the artifacts in the museum house are from the original families. Stopped by the Wetlands Intitute where I got to hold a horseshoe crab and sea star (they’re not really fish).  The nicest thing you can do for a horseshoe is turn it over and point it toward the water.

Drove over Valley Forge from King of Prussia.  Luckily, George didn’t have to deal with Interstates.  Three of them intersect in the area & I kept getting on and off all of them. Back roads (when you land on them) were  beautiful - windy and enclosed in vegetation.

Took a Ranger tour and it turns out, it wasn’t as snowy and destitute as pictured.  Wet and muddy is more descriptive. Also, they built around 1100 cabins to house them thru the winter while they kept an eye on the British in Philly.  Hard slogging thru the mud with the logs, but fairly comfortable when done. French engineers directed the building of redoubts and trenches. The real turning point was the appearance of Baron Friedrich Wilhelm Augustus von Steuben who whipped  a 12,000 man army composed of soldiers (with a variety of training depending on the states they came from) into the cohesive Continental Army.  It was a different army the British faced after Valley Forge.  There’s also a drive you can take thru the various sites of the encampment.

Next is Philadelphia!