Virginia - Richmond

Our first serious footprint in the goal to touch 50 states. Richmond is the capital of Virginia and rich in Civil War history = the war between the North and South about ending slavery which was ultimately an achievement of President Lincoln (13th Amendment) in Jan 1865. It was a 2 hr drive from DC so we got some driving practice too. The concierge girl at the hotel reminded me of Melissa McCarthy and was thrilled to find out we were Australians. She made me laugh.

We took a segway tour of the landmarks and while Deb was a master on the 2-wheel leaning machine, I managed to stack it towards the end of the tour. Quite a great stack really and I was on the ground laughing. Got the wheel caught on a kerb corner and was too busy looking at a building or clock or something. Anyway, not everyone can say they've stacked a segway. 

Took a tour of the Confederacy White House. Jefferson Davis was president of the confederacy (the secession of 13 southern states from the Union and caused the Civil War). He lived in this house during the 5 year war. The Museum behind the house provided history of the battles and hero's. There was an incredible loss of life and city infrastructure in this war. We weren't able to get out to the battlefield at nearby Petersburg - you need all day to drive around these sights. Interestingly, at the end of the war (won by the North), Davis was imprisoned for 2 years but lost his citizenship. The North and South seemed to move forward easily and were all glad the war was over. The movie Lincoln is about this war and I will definitely watch it again to see what I've learnt.

Another highlight of the weekend was sitting in Macca's on the highway going home and seeing a young guy walk in with a gun strapped to his waste, on clear show. Not sure it's legal to show arms but it was very unsettling. We opted to skip the sundae, leave and keep driving. 

It was nice weather back in DC when we returned so we drove to our new house for a look around and check out the area. It's a really nice area with this massive forest park at the end of the street. Lots of trails to run, ride and walk the dogs. Well, it's a busy week ahead as we move into our house, receive our stuff from home and get the dogs on Friday.