On The Road To Our Family Vacation In Colonial Williamsburg, D.C., and Split Rock Resort in PA
After a busier than expected June, including some last minute visits to our clients in Jacksonville and Myrtle Beach, I arrived on Friday only to be packing for a vacation starting Saturday. Thanks to Delta, and of course my hours of flying, we had 3 of 4 of our tickets free and were on a wheels-up flight at 7:30am with the kids headed to Washington, DC, where we rented a car and headed straight to our first destination - Colonial Williamsburg, VA. Having had Historic Colonial Williamsburg as a client since 1991, I had always dreamed of one day bringing my own children there to experience American history firsthand right in one of the key places where it started. Now the time was perfect as they are both Middle Schoolers As a hotelier I have always been grateful for the courtesies extended by various clients and contacts. However the hospitality extended by my main contacts there at Colonial Williamsburg Hotels was extraordinary to experience and I am very grateful. Perry Goodbar, their V.P. of Hotel Sales personally toured the suites with their General Manager of the Williamsburg Lodge, Margie Tate, to find me the best available suite for my needs during these high demand dates. Best of all, they both left me personalized, sincere handwritten notes and checked on me during our stay.
It was a wonderful visit. The kids were amazed by the actor historians interpreting their roles in period costume and character. Anyone who just walks through without buying the admission ticket is doing themselves an injustice, as the tours are very interesting and engaging. This was especially proven since the kids are 12 and 13 and too often more interested in their iPod Touch or texting. Here are a few of the many great pictures we took at Historic Colonial Williamsburg. The kids met General Washington but I think they liked his Stallion better.
r Cathy and Julia wanted to go on the Historic Tavern Ghost tour. Adam and I instead decided to tour the Williamsburg Inn.
The kids really loved watching the march of the Militia and the British armies, including the firing of the cannons.
Here is the kids picture with Thomas Jefferson:
After a wonderful vacation thanks to Perry and Margie, we headed back to Washington DC. Thanks to my wife Cathy being a Marriott Corporate office associate, we had a wonderful stay at the Courtyard Marriott in Springfield, VA. The kids loved riding the Metro into the Mall area. We did the Smithsonian, which ever since the Night At The Museum II movie the kids wanted to see more than anything. We did the Air and Space Museum, Natural History, and American History museums all in one day. It was very hot and when the museums closed not many food choices for tourists. But the kids really wanted to see the White House. Julia spotted a streetside cafe and they served us very graciously despite our casual attire right on the patio. Then we were only a short block to the White House. The kids remember this more than anything on the trip, even the roller coasters at Busch Gardens.
Next we made a mad dash to visit Cathy's family at her farm in Drums, PA. We were welcomed with a cook-out by her sister and the whole family was there. Fresh corn and potatoes right out of the farm, nothing like it. The weather was cooler there. The kids loved all the animals especially the pets. Here's a picture of Cathy with the kids at her farm:
After a few days at the farm we headed on over to Split Rock Resort. It was yet another lesson for me in relationships as all I had to do was place a call to my friends Chuck Dickinson and Sam Arnett, and they extended us the most welcoming experience. We were in one of their all suites sections, which I highly recommend, although staying in the Galleria building is also nice and the kids might have liked that better as they loved having the freedom to roam the whole recreational area on their own. Best of all we had a full day set aside to spend at their new indoor H2oooh waterpark, which was a fun and relaxing day for all.
Julia was the only one in the family daring enough to try to Flow-Rider, but it looked really fun:
It was very strange to be out of the office that long for both Cathy and I. But we were both able to schedule-in periods of work. Thanks to Mobile Internet, we took turns working in the car while the kids were watching a movie and made it all work for our July 4th vacation. The last night topped it all of for me, as we drove back to D.C. to catch a flight home the next day. Our last scheduled stop was the Lincoln Memorial, which I have always found to be a moving experience to visit. Despite many visits it had been at least 15 years and here I was going up the steps with my own children. The Gettysburg Address was one of my two favorite speeches ever, with the first being the Martin Luther King "I Have A Dream" speech. I even got to stand on the marker on the steps where they say his feet stood while delivering that historic speech.
Comments