since it was practically the same as Monticello. I think he just
wanted to save some money and see other DC sites, but the kids really
wanted to see George Washington's house. He is such a good dad that he
even sprung for the "National Treasure Tour" that took us behind the
scenes into Mount Vernon's cellar where Nicholas Cage kidnapped the
President. We also saw the bush where he emerged pretending to be a
waiter, the dock where his dad was fishing and the door where they
came out of the underground tunnel. If you don't know what I'm
referring to, you may need to watch the movie again. Coincidentally we
watched it at Sharon and Duane's so it was all fresh in our minds!
We also saw plenty of non-Hollywood history. We loved the brilliant
colors inside the rooms of the mansion, especially the Prussian blue.
Did you know that Martha preferred lighter colors and their bedroom
was off-white with light blue molding? The mansion has a lovely piazza
(back porch) with an incredible view of the Potomac and the Maryland
shoreline. After our tours, we all sat out there for awhile and just
relaxed!
Washington was an amazing farmer, landscaper and inventor. We loved
walking around a small part of the 8,000 acre estate. His 16-sided
threshing barn was a wonder!
In the museum we got to see Washington's annotated copy of the
Constitution and Bill of Rights that he used as a guide during his
presidency. It was recently purchased for 8 million dollars.
We ended our visit with a visit to "Lady Washington," a living
historian who played the role of Martha Washington very convincingly!
It really felt like we were there with the first First Lady herself.
When we finished at Mount Vernon we realized we had just enough time
to make it to the Kennedy Center for another concert. This time the
place was packed! We were lucky to get seats for Marianne and Evan
while John, Lavender and I got one of the last spots on the floor.
There was a huge group of people standing in the back. All the
excitement was for the (apparently very popular) six member Haitian
band, BeLO. These guys were incredible musicians who had the crowd
dancing, clapping and singing along. Lavender loved the music and
rocked out to the delight of everyone around us.
For our last night in DC, the kids wanted to go to the same spot. Evan
wanted to see the Lincoln Memorial and Marianne wanted one last view
of the Washington Monument in the mall's reflecting pool. Sadly, the
monument is closed for earthquake repairs, but we loved gazing at the
glistening white obelisk from the outside just as well. It is a
fitting tribute to the great man who was our first president.
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