Rachael and Sarah Go To Washington - Day Three

This morning, Sarah and I woke early and headed back to the Capitol to pick up tickets. As we neared the Capitol, though, it became very obvious that we had not woken early enough. The line for tickets would have taken us at least an hour. We decided that we'd really rather see Monticello. So...we hit the road towards Charlottesville. We got stuck in some traffic for the UVA/USC game, but we weren't in any real hurry.

I'd never been to Monticello before, and I loved it. James Madison once said that there were few houses that exhibited their owner's personality so well as Monticello did Thomas Jefferson's. The house has many elements hinting at the time that Jefferson spent in France, as well as his love for science, books, gardening and architecture. Monticello is situated on a mountaintop near Charlottesville. The views are most likely the reason that Jefferson chose the location. In one direction, there is a magnificent view of the Blue Ridge mountains and in the opposite, the University of Virginia (which Jefferson founded in his retirement) can be seen.
After we finished the tour, we headed back to Washington, intending to stop at the Jefferson Memorial. We got back to DC at ten, though, already tired. When we discovered that we would have to walk a half-mile from our parking spot to the memorial, we decided to nix that plan for tonight.

So, tomorrow's plan is to visit Mount Vernon, Arlington Cemetery and the Jefferson Memorial. I'm very excited for all of this. I love Mount Vernon and I've never visited either of the other destinations. Should be another fun day!