9 posts tagged “vacation”

The 'light snow' forecast turned into a snowstorm on our drive to the Canyon.

Winter wonderland

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When we finally made it up the hill, visibility was 0.4 mile and we couldn't tell if the canyon even existed. Thankfully, the fog disappeared overnight, and the canyon came into view, as breathtaking as promised.

DSC_0171

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DSC_0095

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The snow made our planned hike all but impossible. We hiked a short distance on the rim trail that had been cleared of the snow and were rewarded with gorgeous views of the forest on one side and the canyon on the other.

DSC_0170

I'd thought seeing the Grand Canyon once would be enough. Now I am already planning our next trip. :) 

We stayed in the 1916 farm house, a classic Craftsman bungalow with lovely views of the Olympic Mountains.

The last WWII Aircraft Lookout Tower in the United States once stood on this property.

Pretty in Pink

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Lying down in the grass

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The post

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The view

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Dusk- Olympic mountains

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I could have stayed there forever.

We're back in Seattle now, and spent the morning today at Pike's Place market. What a wonderful place..the sight, the sounds, the smells. People everywhere. It was fun, but there was a nagging sense of unease, of feeling alone in the huge crowd. I hope it goes away soon.

Sol Duc Falls, Olympic National Park, Washington. Sol Duc is a corruption of the Quileute word "so is dak qu," which means "the people living at the place of the clear sparkling water."

Sol Duc Falls- 1

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Sol Duc Falls- 2

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Sol Duc Falls- 3

Rain Forest

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Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia is the world's largest living history museum, with a carefully restored 301 acre historic area. This is where we just spent our Christmas vacation, and it was the most amazing vacation I've had in the US. The historic downtown has several original buildings and others that have been carefully restored. Actors, dressed in period costumes , roam the city and man the shops and taverns, orienting people to various places and customs, answering questions, and teaching more history than I ever learned in a year at school!  You can find more information here and here, me, I'm just going to post pictures. We started with the Governor's palace.

Your carriage awaits!

The palace kitchen

The Colonial Christmas table

After the Governor's palace, we listened to Thomas Jefferson speak in the palace gardens. These speeches are one of the most popular events in CW. The speakers are very knowledgeable, stay in character no matter what questions you ask, and have a great sense of humor. Quote Thomas Jefferson - 'This is the year 07 [1807, that is]), and next year we must suffer another presidential election. ' The crowds loved that.

The trade shops were super cool.

The silversmith

The tailor

The shoe maker

The saddle maker

The blacksmith

The apothecary

At night, there was the Grand Illumination for Christmas, accompanied by firing of the muskets and the famous Fife and Drums, the musical corps made up of 10 - 18 year olds from the community. It was an unforgettable performance.

Fife and Drums

There were so many wonderful things, and so much I want to share its hard to organize. The Christmas decorations in CW are done in the traditional style. Even though the colonials themselves hardly decorated, the citizens of CW reached a compromise with the restoration project fifty years ago, and what you see are the results of that compromise, wreaths with fresh fruit and flowers, sometimes depicting the trader's work, but always elegant and relatively sober.

We also visited the Dewitt Wallace museum of arts, which is now housing a collection of children's toys and dollhouses!

He likes!

 

I like!