Colonial Gardening

In May we flew to the east coast for the funeral of Chris' grandmother. Two days later we went to Williamsburg, Virginia to celebrate his parent's 50th wedding anniversary. His parents had taken the grand kids to Colonial Williamsburg on vacation years ago. They are alumni of the College of William & Mary which is located there, and after 50 years they still gush about this place.  If you're not familiar with it, it is an entire town, with re-enactment of colonial life just before the American Revolution. 

We stayed at the Williamsburg Inn for two nights. The hotel and restaurant were very luxurious, but we (bumpkins from the West) never felt like we didn't belong. Chris and I arrived before his parents, so we tried to get our sight seeing done in a day. Not really possible, especially in 93 degree heat. (If you are going, and I recommend it, then take a look at the website and get a grasp on the size of this place and all the walking you will do. Do what I did not, bring tennis shoes.)

Everything in Colonial Williamsburg has been recreated to be as close to the 18th Century town as possible. Three garden areas that I found interesting included the formal gardens of the Governor's Palace, the vegetable gardens at the Palace, and the Colonial Garden. We saw as much as we could in one day, so I didn't have time to fully explore one area. I had planned to go back to the Colonial Gardens, but it was hot, we were tired and we just ran out of time.

The Governor's Palace

Formal Gardens

Espaliered plants along a brick wall lined a gravel walk

Loved these sturdy trees on the perimeter of flower gardens

Detail of a shady arbor

The Governor's Palace

Vegetable Garden

Beds tiered on a slope near the pond

Facing away from the kitchen

the garden included a few flowers

The Colonial Garden

The Colonial Garden was more low key. I was immediately taken with it and snapped a few pictures as we passed it.

It's really a one-of-a-kind place and experience. While I may not be a history buff, I learned more about American political history on a tour there than I did in high school. If I were to go back I'd want to take as many tours as possible and spend time in the museums. I would definitely go back to the Williamsburg Inn and spend more time lounging on the patio and make daily trips to the spa.