Fairfield Inn By Marriott Charlottesville

... Everything was spotlessly clean. And the breakfast was even better. Broiled grapefruit (a little brown sugar, cinnamon and raisins on top), creme brulee french toast, bacon, fantastic coffee and orange juice. Sharon (the innkeeper) is just as helpful and sweet as can be. She is sending us on our way with wine tasting coupons into a dark and stormy day.<br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br ><br>

... have been really struck by the pride, passion and almost reverence that Americans appear to have for their historical sites &#8211; the guides we have had have always managed to impart their interest in and love for the places we have visited and this was no exception. <br><br>Monticello provided a fascinating insight into life in late 18th Century America and into the man who built it. A self-taught architect, Jefferson was very much the Renaissance man ...

... food, especially breakfast. Got some salmon hash that came like eggs benedict. IT WAS AMAZING!!!! First night we went to Fellini's and had a bottle of wine. It was really nice!! Definitely partied hard with these guys, although I could not really keep up. Had a blast. On the way down to Duck we stopped by his friend Stephen's. <br>

<br>As we left Albany driving towards Charlottesville, i kept thinking how absurd it is that I have yet to ramble in my own backyard. I've lived in New York for years and yet, I've never traveled south of Philadelphia! Our first stop was Shepardstown, a beautiful college town with

... there. But other, more pressing issues needed my attention at that time, such as dorm parties and the quest to find the perfect brand of beer. I always dreamed of returning someday and "doing it right," i.e. spending more than 10 hours in any one location and visiting multiple countries. After the children were born, I dreamed of &#8220;doing it right&#8221; and, at the same time, showing them why I love Europe so much. <br><br>Fast forward to ...

... on display. Jefferson used Monticello as his personal laboratory and throughout the day we learned just how his thirst for knowledge and his brilliantly inventive mind has left a remarkable legacy. <br> <br><br><br>We had checked on the website for details about opening hours etc and chose not to buy tickets on line, thinking that it shouldn&#8217;t be too busy. Although it is school holidays here, we thought if we got there fairly early ...

... Right after we'd made that realization, a truck carrying the round tracks for some sort of fair ride tried to go under the bridge and well, it was about 12 feet high...it scrapped the roof of the bridge and twisted and bent the ride rails on the truck to a very unnatural shape. The truck made it through but just barely and the carnies running the make-shift fair/circus in the next town will have quite a bit of work on their hands to get those rails rounded again ...

... selected a delcious bottle of their 2007 Viognier.  <br> <br>When we left the vineyard we drove around the area a bit and drove past some great walking trails and Monticello, which looked like a great place to visit.  We also happened upon a cute "village" where we checked out a gift shop filled with all sorts of fun area related items.  Then it was off to our friends for the night!  <br><br><br><br><br><br>

... before resetting back to Sunday. The Book room contained all the books that Thomas Jefferson had in his possess. Due to the financial situation, the family sold most of the original books except one shelf-full. The rest of the books were collected by the historically society and are the same edition that Thomas Jefferson would have had in his library. Along the walls were silhouettes of Native American chiefs encountered by ...

Well, I have about 5 days until I leave and still no travel plans or ticket or any info at all. I'm going to start packing and hope that the good people at Carnival don't forget to fly my down to Miami. I will be on a more interesting route this time, traveling to both east and west Caribbean and even going as far ...