First, we want to ask for your prayers for our friend. She is a dear, dear friend to us. She has had a very tough year. After tons of health issues, she has battled back. She unfortunately contracted pneumonia again and is back in the hospital. She is a faithful reader of this blog, and we want her to know that EVERYONE reading this blog is praying for her, along with us! We love you! Keep relying on God sister.
Jamestowne, the first successful English Colony in the the new world. This was the adventure we had today. It was really a two-part adventure. The first part we visited Jamestowne the National Park. This is the park that preserves the original location. The second part is Jamestown Settlement. This is where a company has re-created Jamestown, the Indian fort, and the three ships that brought the settlers to America (Susan Constance, Discovery, and Godspeed).
Our first stop of Historic Jamestowne was awesome. They have preserved this area very well. You are right on the James River. The drive there is awesome. You drive right through swamp land. You start off with a great video (my daughter loved), and you head out for a great walk up to the site. You can't be anything but humbled by being in this spot. This is where America all began. Roanoke was the first English settlement, but mysteriously disappeared. You walk up and see the partially completed Palisades surrounding the site. Archaeology is continuous. They found a few years ago the original post holes for the wood wall (palisades) surrounding the site. So they cut the wood and did it exactly the same. They also have found the original church where Pocahontas and John Rolfe married. My wife and I loved it because it was super authentic and peaceful. My daughter loved it because she could run around as much as she wanted. It was a great experience.
We then headed over to the Jamestown Settlement, where they have recreated Jamestown. It was amazing. Definitely more crowded than the previous site. This is the Jamestown equivalent to Plymouth Plantation up in Massachusetts. The Indian village was cool. The James Fort was cool. We were able to put on the armor, watch an early 1600's gun being fired (I didn't know how the fired them!), and walk in the buildings. The highlight was definitely the ships. FULL-SIZE replicas of the three ships that brought the settlers. The only ship that stayed with the setters was the Discovery, the other two were rented and returned. We spent a long time crawling around these ships. These ships were definitely not made for a 6'2 man. I was hunched over the entire time. These two sites were fantastic. The way we did it was the key. The original and then the re-creation. It made it much more understandable.
We came home, took a nap (lots of walking makes you tired), and went to the playground. We hope you are doing well!
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