More DC and Then Down the Road Again...

We experienced more great things in Washington DC.  By this picture, can you tell where we went?

In all of the times I have been to Washington DC, I have never visited Ford's Theater. I enjoyed the museum and tour of the theater to see the box where the assignation of Abraham Lincoln took place.  

Outside Ford's Theater...

After Lincoln was shot in the theater, he was still alive.  They carried him across the street to the Peterson house, where he later died several hours later.  We toured the house and saw the bed he died in...

Fun fact... He was so tall that they had to lie him diagonally in the bed with his feet hanging off.  

Later that afternoon, Quinn wanted to go to the National Gallery of Art one afternoon, so we all got to take in some art.

This painting is one of Ryan's late ancestors - Jasper Cropsey.  Pretty neat to see someone's artwork that you are related to in such a big, important art gallery.

The size of this piece was mammoth too.  The picture above doesn't quite depict that...

We also visited the Botanical Gardens, but no pictures were taken there.  It was a short trip and the heat and humidity were starting to cause crankiness in some of us (me included).  

Washington DC was filled with amazing things, but our time there ended and we headed down the road yet again.  This time we made it to a National Park...

The rain was coming in, and the weather was so hot that the park store was closed (no AC).  We didn't get to do a hike like we planned (which didn't upset some of us), but the drive through the park was absolutely beautiful.  

We also traveled down to road to Monticello and saw the home of Thomas Jefferson...

The house and grounds were neat to see, and had they not had record breaking heat that day, we likely would have spent more time on the grounds exploring and learning more.  

We all walked into their dining room and cringed at the sight of the color chosen...

Turns out that this yellow color was a sign of wealth, and to show others just how much money you had.  Apparently it was very expensive...who knew?!

The tour of the home was great and it was nice to hear about his life, his contributions to the country and to The University of Virginia, his time at Monticello, and his personal struggle with slavery (although not enough to not own slaves himself).