It is with no small amount of head hanging that I ‘pick up my pen’ once again.  I am hugely ashamed to admit that it has been just over 3 months since I posted on the blog.  Time just seemed to speed up and we were having too much fun to sit at my laptop.  I did however continue to take notes.  So despite it being a very very long time ago now, I do at least know where we were and what we did.  So I will try to ‘catch up’ with the account of our travels; not because I think you are all sat at home desperately awaiting the next instalment but because I want us to have a complete record of our Educational Family Adventure to look back on.  So here goes…

 

Way back on Wednesday 22^nd April we drove into Virginia.  I’m not sure we knew what to expect but we all agreed it was truly beautiful.  Green and lovely with rolling hills.  We had thought to do a quick stopover en route so possibly a Walmart..  but couldn’t resist the name of a State Park signed off the road called Hungry Mother, in Marion, Virginia.  It turned out to be another corker!!  Set on a beautiful lake surrounded by tress covered in blossom.  We had a quiet night with the boys reading us their favourite stories from their Oh Ranger books (brilliant tales from National Park Rangers and their adventures from rescuing bear cubs from the side of the road to climbing mountains).  These State Parks and their facilities are incredible.  This one had a brilliant Discovery Centre, full of stuffed animals complete with rubber scat.  Who doesn’t love a display of animal droppings!!

 

Back on the road we were falling in love with the countryside; so very green, rural and generally lovely.  Of course the sun shining probably helped.  We came off Route 81 at the town of Bedford.  We had seen signs for the National D Day memorial and thought we’d have a look. But having driven round the pretty town for a while and not found it we then tried Googling it (turns out they have the museum here as per capita Bedford lost the most soldiers on D Day – 18 of them!).

 

On one of our loops around town we saw a sign for an NPS Historic Site.  Nothing pleases me more than those arrowhead shaped signs and their promise of beautiful, interesting and historic sites – oh and of course their fabulously educational Junior Ranger programs and that all important badge!!   So we decided to follow the signs for that instead.  It was in the totally opposite direction than we were headed but the sun was shining and the road was very pretty so we headed there thinking we’d have a quick look and have some lunch there then get back on the road fairly sharpish.

 

What a find!!  It was a farm set in the most beautiful of country side all lovingly restored and preserved in memory of Booker T Washington.  He was a slave who was born and then freed here when emancipation came in 1865 when he was 9 years old.  He went on to achieve great things.  He fought hard to get an education then ended up being a teacher and founder of the Tuskegee Institute. The kids did the Junior Ranger programe and we watched the film – was actually very interesting – then hung out at the farm and wandered the grounds for ages.  A very unexpected and lovely find!!

        

We drove on to the campsite John had booked in Appomattox; another State Park called Holliday Lake, which we arrived to just as it was getting dark.  So did little more than have a campfire and BBQ and sleep.   On Friday 24^th we woke in what was a lovely campsite.  Blossom on the trees, birds singing, all around a very pretty lake.  We would dearly love to have stayed for the weekend.  But we had tickets for Nascar for Saturday in Richmond, Virginia so we had to leave.  (Little did we realise how great a contrast it would be between where we woke up and where we went to sleep that day).

 

We had planned to visit Appomattox Court House on our way to Richmond that day.  This was the first of our Civil War destinations and we started with some very hard Junior Ranger Programs; no word searches here!!  Also the Park Rangers were very very serious about their work and didn’t seem to think we could just miss out a question or get any help with anything.  So it was very Educational for us all!!

 

So long story short was that this little town was the location of the surrender of the Confederates in April 1865.  This year being their 150th anniversary.  It was actually in the Mclean house (in their parlour) that the terms of surrender were written out and signed. The terms of the surrender “With malice toward none” were, at President Lincoln’s insistence.  Determined that the south would not be humiliated or ‘punished’ the parole passes were printed here for the confederate soldiers.  22,000 infantry handed in their weapons but were allowed to keep their horses with which to travel home.  So here it was that the ‘Union’ was preserved.  Five days after the surrender Lincoln was shot. But emancipation came and in December of 1865 slavery was outlawed. Now I thought that the kids would look back on our visit there as somewhat boring.  But William informs me that it was actually ‘very cool’.  So there you have it!

  

Later that afternoon we drove to Richmond International Raceway.  This was another one for John’s US Bucket List and I must confess he was more excited than the rest of us – well me certainly.  The RV camp park that we had been told NEVER fills up had a sign outside saying FULL.  Great.  We were not especially in the nicest part of town and as my main knowledge of Richmond is from Kay Scarpetta books that mainly tell of psychopath killers I wasn’t very comfortable with the alternatives on offer.  So wedrove in anyway and used the old ‘we’re English and have come a long way’ story which somehow worked and they found us a spot.  At $120 to park squeezed in so tightly amongst the other 1000 odd RV’s this was far and away the ‘worst’ campsite of the trip.

 

But it seemed the party already started.  Fire pits, disco lights, loud music and generators blaring and everyone outside their ‘rigs’ clutching a red plastic beaker of something.  Quite a contrast to where we woke up.  Within 2 mins of parking up we had been invaded by our neighbours who had obviously been parked up there since it opened on Thursday afternoon.  We suspected they may have been drinking.  They were very excitable and kept insisting we “Come over for cocktails!!”

 

However, we had been told that due to the rain forecast for tomorrow there was every chance the race would be cancelled on Saturday so the nice man who found us a parking space suggested we head over and see the race taking place that evening as the only way to guarantee “seeing some Nascar this weekend”.

 

So we hopped on the tram and got over there.  Only ¼ of the stadium was open but it felt so crowded we couldn’t imagine what it would be like when it was full.  We got ourselves a $60 burger dinner which was cold then found a seat.  Oh my god the noise!!  It was unbelievable.  And it never let up!  The track is only ¾ mile long and obviously just one loop so there is never a second when one of 40 cars aren’t zooming past you.  We bought ear plugs which were not really up to much in terms of blocking out the deafening roar.    The race was 240 laps and we sadly only got there in time to see 150 of them!!

I can’t actually claim to know much about what went on but there was a fire which gave a few minutes excitement.  A couple of cautions when they slowed down for a while.  But I didn’t really glean much more than that.  Charlie picked the race leader as his man and he went on to win so he was happy. Will and John went with their lucky numbers.  But as they all came in to the top 5 they were all happy.  I was just happy when the noise stopped!!

We headed back to the van on the tram with some very jolly people and some very very interesting characters.  I had read that West Virginia has the highest number of toothlessness in any US state (40.5%) and I would say a fair few of them had snuck on over to Virginia and were at Nascar that weekend.  There was a full blown rave going on at the campsite when we got back.  Honestly the loudest music I have ever heard (which was at least some easy going country music but loud nonetheless).  The sheer volume of generators running was making the ground shake.  We ran back to the van the long way round so our neighbours wouldn’t see us and jump us again.  Back into the van, shutters down and lights out – ear plugs still in we tried to go to sleep ready for the big day tomorrow!!

  

We woke to torrential rain. So we sat in the van and watched the huge queue for the $5 showers.   Considering we were in a field it was well organized.  There were police cars everywhere patrolling the site.  Bins every 3 sites (which you don’t get in most campsites) so it was very tidy.  We saw the people opposite us drinking beer at 9am and the party getting going once again while we all waited for news on whether the race would go ahead.  We passed the time with the longest most competitive game of Monopoly.  It was actually a very good business lesson for the kids about the difference between whether you are buying or selling and therefore what the value of things is!!

 

The nice man who runs the RV field who found us a space yesterday came by on his golf buggy to see how we were doing so John passed an hour or so chatting to him.  Finally, at 6pm they announced the race would be on 1pm on Sunday!!!  There was a knock on our door at 8pm as we were setting up for a game of Uno from the Crazy’s (that’s the kids name for the very loud party people behind us) asking us over for cocktails – we said we’d just play with the kids then be right over.  So we pulled blinds and hid again.

 

On Sunday the rain had stopped and the sun came out. After a chorus of “God bless America” then a Prayer then the National Anthem the race began.  Considering that when we sing the National Anthem at home at a rugby or football match you are lucky if ½ the crowd partake we were very impressed that absolutely every single one of the 60,000 spectators stood absolutely still.  Hats off. Totally still. Impressive!

 

As I’d said the crowd at Nascar is for the most part perhaps not the best of America on display.  At the risk of causing offence, I would say they epitomise everyone’s worst idea of American’s.  Not at all representative of the vast majority of the people we have met on our travels.  So we were quite relieved that there were a couple of empty seats around us.  A feeling that quickly disappeared as we saw what can only be described as 3 hairy fat hillbillies headed our way.

          

This race was 400 times round the track!!  Armed with a second pair of ear defenders it was much better.  I would even go so far as to say that as no one in my family could talk to me for the whole 3 hours the peace and quiet was fabulous.  I read my book and sunbathed!!

 

Charlie and I did communicate by writing messages to each other on my phone.  See below;

 

• If it was the match on Friday it would so nearly be over by now.

• It’s not a match. It’s a race.

• 270 laps to go.

• I was about to say that

• Not that many then!!! It’s fun though isn’t it?

• Oh yeah. The MOST fun.

• I wasn’t joking when I said it was fun because it’s a tiny bit fun.

• I’m glad you are enjoying it. But it’s not really my thing. Still I’m enjoying sitting in the sunshine and watching you guys enjoying it. My books good too.

• What are you reading?

• A song for Issy Bradley. It’s about a Mormon family whose daughter died age 4. Quite sad but with lots of funny bits too.

• Which racer are you supporting?

• Number 11…..

• Ok if your supporting him what’s his name?

• Denny Hamlyn.

• Yes but that’s not how you spell his second name

• It’s the fault of spell check.

• Guess how you spell it

• Don’t know. Don’t care.

• Ohh your just afraid that you’ll get it wrong

• Yeah ok. You’re right.

• My sprite got knocked over because of you

• It was under your foot when I found it

• Please can we get some dip n dots. Please mummy if you let us I won’t be weird I’ll be epic.

• How will you change your whole personality?

• Haha very funny. Are we allowed?

• Yes, if you leave me alone.

Pretty exciting stuff eh?

          

Everyone had said it would be carnage getting out but the trams (well trailers with seats on) were really quick and we waited only 10 mins before we were out of the track and back to the campsite.  We couldn’t hang around any longer so we headed out.  What a feeling to drive out of that field – it felt like we had been there for years!!

 

We headed straight to Pocohontas State Park.  Phew!!  And relax!!  Such bliss to be in a peaceful spacious woodland surrounded by only the noise of birds in the trees!!

We woke late on Monday 27^th, relishing the peace.  Another fantastic campsite – Virginia voted as having the nations best state parks which was certainly true from what we had seen.  Some of us were just happy to sit in the sun and enjoy the peace, but we saw that the park had some well known mountain bike trails so we couldn’t really pass those up.  Charlie and I opted for the easy 5-mile loop with not too much up or down hill.  But not content with that Will and John connected to a much harder ‘red loop’ and came back full of tales of corners and downhill jumps etc.

 

Tuesday was another beautiful day.  But we didn’t hang around.  Looking back now I don’t know why?!  But maybe that is because I am writing this as we drive along a very dull highway in the pouring rain so the idea of deliberately leaving a sunny pretty State Park seems like insanity.  I suppose the same is true of lots of the places we did or didn’t decide to visit over the last year.  Very hard to remember why we decided to move on or stay, so much of it dependent on our mood, what supplies we might need, the weather, the challenges that Frankie might have thrown at us that particular day by way of repairs etc.

 

Anyway.  We left and went to Petersburg National Battlefield.  In hindsight NOT a stop we would make again.  Basically a lot of immaculately kept, rather beautiful fields where battles took place a long time ago.  In order to qualify for the all important badge, the boys were forced to complete another very hard junior ranger program.  The docent there was a total ‘jobsworth’.  Total history buff who I’m sure dresses up and takes part in reenactments whenever possible.  Saddo!!

    

Long story short here was the Battle of the Crater – supposedly the best idea of the Civil War that didn’t quite work out.  Grant had this idea to tunnel under Lee’s fortification and blow them up.  What actually happened was the explosion created a huge crater that his soldiers all then ran into and died!  So not a great success all told!!

 

We left, with our Ranger Badges in hand, and drove down through Portsmouth, which looks very like our Portsmouth into Norfolk.  We did a drive by of the USS Wisconsin an enormous thing which we decided we had to actually visit properly. So we headed to the nearest State Park called First Landing where the British landed in 1607 and found a lovely pitch on the beach just in time to see the sun set.

Wednesday 29^th we woke up and took a walk onto the beach and checked out the visitor centre before heading back the way we had come the night before into Norfolk.  We parked at Harbour Park stadium and caught the light railway 2 stops in to town.  As we were waiting for the train we got distracted by a man handing out lollypops for Safety Day so we didn’t get a ticket before the train arrived and thought we could get one on the train itself.  Next thing we know a not too friendly security man comes round demanding to see our tickets.  We asked to buy tickets and he started getting all twitchy and excited and informs us that we ‘Can’t buy tickets on the train’ and calls us ‘fare dodgers’.    He asks us to accompany him off the train at the next stop (which was actually the stop at which we planned to disembark anyway) which of course we agree to.  In the meantime, obviously terrified we will do a runner he insists on taking my driving license as ID and holding onto it until we are safely on the platform and buying our tickets.  John and I thought this was hilarious but the kids were mortified!!

 

Excitement over we headed to the Nauticus museum, which is where USS Wisconsin is housed.  It is as big as a 17 storey building, with a crew in it’s time of over 2000.   It had 9 x 16-inch guns, which each fired a shell the same weight as a VW beetle.  Each of the 3 turrets weighed 2500 tones!  Despite all of this extra weight it was able to move at 38mph which was pretty impressive for something so very huge!!  It was launched on 7^th December 1943, 2 years to the day after the attack on Pearl Harbour. They built it in 39 months and it cost $100 million to build.  It served in WWII, the Korean War and then in Kuwait.  57 years after it was built it arrived here in Norfolk.

      

The Nauticus museum was great too.  Exhibits of Tug boats, Shipping containers and huge cranes for off loading said containers, sharks and other nautical stuff that the kids enjoyed and John absolutely loved!!  The last part of the ticket included a 2-hour boat cruise around the Naval Base (the largest in the world).  Bay after bay of ships which I don’t honestly remember.  All I do know is one type cost $5 billion and then they told us they own 10 of them!!  We’d already been told over 40% of US taxes go on defense – you can see how!!

        

We left that afternoon and drove out of the city on Chesapeake Bridge / Tunnel.  A brilliant design.  18 miles of bridge with 2 tunnel sections, so you are happily driving along the bridge checking out the view then suddenly you plummet down into the tunnel sections – so that the boats can pass by above you.  Clever eh?  Built in 1967 originally.  Such a fabulous idea. Why couldn’t we have done that over the Channel instead of that ridiculous tunnel / train thing??!?

Anyway it takes you over onto Virginia Eastern Shore.  We went straight to a State Park called Kiptopeke for the night.  It was completely empty but not as nice as others we’ve stayed at in Virginia.  We had a fire and the kids played football and frisbee for a while.

 

The next morning, Thursday 30^th we had a wander on the beach and checked out the

concrete ships.  Yes, truly – concrete ships.  Not sure I quite understood it all but something about a steel shortage so they made cargo ships for allied forces in Japan out of concrete??  1948 breakwater for ferry system that was there before Chesapeake Bridge??!?!  Sounds strange to me reading it back but honestly it was nearly 3 months ago now so I don’t know!!!

Anyway, that was that for Virginia (well for now anyway) so we carried on north into the Maryland section of Eastern shore.  More to come…. (I will try not to leave it 3 months till our next post!!)…