Disney to DC - Trip Review
February 14, 2009
In three weeks we were able to see:
Four National Parks:
- Congaree- near Columbia, SC
- Shenandoah- west of Washington, DC
- Mammoth Caves- near Bowling Green, KY
- Hot Springs- Arkansas, west of Little Rock
UNESCO World Heritage Site:
- Monticello- Toured Jefferson's home near Charlottesville, VA
Ocala, FL
- Silver River State Park
- Silver Springs Ecotourism park
Walt Disney World:
- Magic Kingdom- Jazy's birthday
- Arabian Nights dinner show
- Campground fun- singalong and outdoor movie "The Little Mermaid", biking
Kennedy Space Center:
- U.S. Space history- Tour at all four bus stops
- Shuttle Launch Experience
- IMax movie
St. Augustine
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America's oldest city- tourmobile tour
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Flagler University- saw on tour
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America's oldest schoolhouse- bought wooden toys for gifts
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Old Spanish Fort
Jamestown:
- Jamestown Settlement- first permanent English settlement in America in 1607
- Jamestown Island- National Park Service museum, settlement recreation, archeaerium with skeletons, Pocahontas' statue
- Dinner with the Allens, wonderful Lazy Daze friends
Yorktown
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Historic Battlefield and cannons
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Yorktown Victory Center Museum and movie
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Tour of Fort of soldiers from the Revolutionary war, surgical equipment, and musket firing- tour
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Tour of Post-Revolutionary War homestead site
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Historic Parkway drive
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Bought location literature for the kids at the bookstore
Williamsburg:
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Dinner at Shields Tavern
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Walk (and drove!) through Historic Williamsburg Main Street
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Historic Capitol Building- Watched live actors play a scene of lawmakers in the
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Toured the church where George Washington and fellow famous early Americans discussed civic issues with the British Govenor
Washington DC:
- National Cathedral
- Kennedy Center for Performing Arts- Tour
- Bureau of Engraving and Printing $ - Tour
- Supreme Court- Tour
- Capitol Building - Tour
- Senate Gallery - watched the Senate discuss the Stimulus Bill on the night it finally passed
- Russell Senate Office Building- visited TX Senator Hutchison's office to get Senate passes- they were extremely helpful in touring Washington, in spite of being a loyal registered Democrat!
- National Cathedral
- National Zoo
- National Monuments: Washington, Lincoln
- National Memorials: Korean War, Vietnam Veterans, World War II
- Arlington National Cemetery: Changing of the Guards at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, gravesites of John F. Kennedy, Jackie K. Onassis, and Robert Kennedy
- Smithsonian Museums: The Castle main building, Air and Space Museum, Natural Science Museum, National History Museum
We also visited with many family members who we haven't seen in over a year!
Challenges:
- 3 sick kids with the stomach virus
- Cold Weather: The snow in Williamsburg and 26 degree high temperature in DC were tough for Texans
- Short Timeframe: Who knew we could do so much in 3 weeks?! But we planned the itinerary in advance, then cut things shorter than we wanted, but we got to do what was important to us.
Mileage for Part III: 4105 miles
Ciao Baby's Grand Tour Mileage - June 1 thru Feb 13: 28,000 miles
Ciao Baby's Total Mileage since bought on May 14, 2007, just 21 months ago: 40,000 miles!
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