Colonial Williamsburg 2013, Day 2

Our second full day dawned sunny and cool, and found us in the Historic District almost all day.

Our first appointment of the day was a conversation with Thomas Jefferson on the Palace grounds, but since we arrived early, we decided to take a turn or two around the property.  There really are four girls strolling around the lagoon in this picture, even though you'll need a sharp eye to spot them all.

Several others joined us in our chat with President Jefferson in the year 1812, as he shared his views on religion and its relationship to the state.  Among other things, he made it clear that he envisions a wall of separation between church and state in that each has its own jurisdiction and the state shall not demand allegiance to any religion; he was incredulous that some would construe this to mean that morality based in religion should have no place in the affairs of the state.  Overall, the conversation was an interesting display of  Bill Barker's interpretation and portrayal of Jefferson's views on religion in general.

Equally interesting and always entertaining is Richard Schumann's portrayal of Patrick Henry.  Our engagement with Henry included a large audience in the Hennage Auditorium and addressed primarily affairs of state, which were strongly voiced.  Come to think of it, I can't remember Patrick Henry having anything but strong opinions on any subject!

Since spring is relatively late here, a few trees have flowered, although many are yet to bloom.  The bee harvesting in this blossom caught my eye and reminded me of beekeeper friends in Central Illinois.

A chat with the weavers is always instructive and entertaining as today we learned about bed rugs (a few samples displayed in the foreground) while the master weaver busied himself with the loom in the background.

An auction of Colonial Williamsburg wares was held in the Market Square this afternoon, and here Karen proudly displays the spoils of her victory with Kathryn and Gretel.

Although she was a temporary stand-in for the journeyman apothecaries, this interpreter did an excellent job of answering our questions.  Too much television in my childhood enabled me to follow her impersonation of Johnny Carson in her description of some the store's wares.

Although we had 20th century food for lunch, we managed to find ourselves back in the 18th century at dinnertime at the Kings Arms Tavern.

Here's our party ready to dive in to the delicious repast of several colonial favorites.  The Yen family from Northern Illinois has joined us this year for a celebration of all things colonial, in what promises to be an enjoyable week at our second home.