D.C. Trip ~ Day 5...Mount Vernon

Day 5:

I love history. Especially early American history, and I've always wanted to visit Mount Vernon. Today was the day, and let me tell you there weren't enough hours in the day to enjoy the place. I want to go back!


Maybe you already knew this, but I didn't, and thougth I'd share the tidbit of info I learned. George Washington's formal education ended when he was just 11 years old. However, he went on to invent, design, build, formulate, plan, conquer...he was an amazing man with a genius mind.


Mount Vernon actually has a "National Treasure 2 Tour", where you can learn a bit about how they filmed on the grounds for that movie and all the ins and outs of how they did it without damanging anything or interrupting the normal run of business there. It was really quite interesting...and as to whether or not there is a "secret passage"...well, I think I'll leave you guessing on that one! LOL

I'm pretty sure I could live here....This home was originally built by Washington's father.  GW added on to it 3 or 4 times over something like 20 years to make it what it is today...

The grainery, busy grinding corn into cornmeal...

Our costumed tour guide at the Grainery explained how the stones (thus stoneground wheat/corn, etc...) worked together to grind the grain...

It doesn't matter how grow up he gets, he still looks like a little boy when he gets cheese cracker residue on his mouth edges....precious! :)

Me and George Washingtons cows...OK, maybe they aren't his ORIGINAL cows...but they live there now!

His gardens were ENORMOUS!  This was not an "eating" garden, but a seed bed...grown only for the purpose of making seed.  He believed firmly that a man should only have to buy seed the first year he starts a garden!

I don't know if you can make this out much, but it was quite a funny scene to see.  At the top of the hill is where the house sits, we are standing on the edge of the Potomac River...he had a fantastic view.  This huge turkey was go nutso and chasing this sheep around, as the sheep ran off, so did a beaver that came out of the trees,...it was a pretty funny sight.

On the National Treasure 2 Tour...

Yes,...I'm quite CERTAIN I could happily live here...wow!

Does this door ring a bell?  Hmmm, guess you'd have to go watch the movie again.  It is actually the door to GW's ice house.  He loved ice cream and had two ice cream makers in there as well.  The design of this ice house was so incredible that he was known to have ice well into June!

Oh how I would LOVE to be the Tender of this garden....sigh...Do you see me hiding in there?

This is what I get when I ask my hubby to pose for me in the garden...

After a stern look from the "Momma Eye"...he "posed" for me,...LOLOL...oh my...

After Mt. Vernon, we freshened up a bit and met for dinner at the Macaroni Grill.  I think at this point in our trip, I was still doing "pretty" well on the healthy eating side of things.  I ordered an appetizer (Bruschetta) and a side salad (Ceaser with the dressing on the side).  My personal opinion?  A pretty place to eat, but the bruschetta was too chunky (basically grape tomatoes cut in half), and it appeared to be served with small slices of toasted mini sandwich bread...not really what I consider "true" bruschetta.  The salad was good. :)  We were seriously jonesing for sweet tea though...we are from the South ya'll....and they just don't believe in drinking Sweet Tea up there in Maryland...ugh!  "I'll have water with lemon, thank you"...


The next day would be our last day in D.C.  Cris begins his pre-deployment training, so Mike and will head downtown on our own to do some MORE sight-seeing...plus Arlington for the Changing of The Guards...