We arrived in Colonial Williamsburg, VA, Christmas Day, about noon, and we tried to see as much as we could but it was pouring down rain! I mean raining cats and dogs as they would say in colonial days. We walked around as much as we could, but soon found ourselves eating at Huzzah's Restaurant on the property of The Woodlands Hotel where we are staying. A short first day, but a fun Christmas adventure and memory.Here's a picture of Summer and Kim in front of the Geddy House on Wednesday.
I'm not much of a tourist, but this place is not a tourist trap. It's living history, and I have become engaged in the complexity of Englishmen deciding to break away from their homeland. I wonder if I had become a Patriot or remained a Loyalist. It's scary because as a parish rector, I would have been appointed by the Governor who was appointed by the King. Part of me would have wanted to preach the revolutionary freedom of Jesus while wrestling with Paul's command to honor the king.
The center of town was the Governor's Palace. Check out its history, if you like. It was an ominous reminder of who ruled the British Colony of Virginia.
Here's the foyer of the palace in which only the most privileged passed through with an audience with the Governor. Check out the English influence of displaying your power by showing your armor. (The muskets and swords are kept ready to use at any given moment.)
The other significant building in town was the Capitol. This housed the Council (the landed gentry appointed by the King) and the House of Burgesses (elected by the landowners). Here are Summer and me in this august room. This was where in 1776 the disbanded House voted unanimously for independence from England.
We took time to see some of the craftsmen plying their trade in the town. Here I check out a wheelwright working with a vertical saw to eventually make spokes for a carriage wheel.
Here are Summer, Kim's mother, Frankye, and Kim. We have had a blast being together and seeing so much history. I'll give you more updates later.
Summer and I have gotten up each morning and run the little over four miles around the town. She's improving and doing better every day.
We ran through the campus of William and Mary today and returned later to tour the Wren Building, the main structure of the college from its beginning in 1693.