This would be my final day in the Washington, D.C. area. One of the reasons I wanted to visit this city so badly was to see the actual historical context of the people who lived during those times. In doing so, I knew I had to visit Colonial Williamsburg and Jamestown. To do that, I had to rent a car! It was the only time I would drive a car while on this trip!

Jamestown Settlement

My first stop would be Jamestown Settlement. This was first on my list because it best represented the period when people lived, as accurately as possible, through replication.

I paid for several site passes ($119). Although I wouldn’t necessarily recommend this, it worked for me. As a teacher, I wanted to bring back as much information as I could into my classes or my peers’ classes.

Walking in, they did a fabulous job replicating the buildings, jobs, and boats of the time. Everything was sized to the period. They dressed in the 1600s and 1700s. They were extremely informative and included many hands-on activities.

Historic Jamestowne

Historic Jamestowne is the site of the original settlement. This was probably the best visit to date. Although much of the history has been torn down, broken down, etc., archaeologists were there digging and finding new artifacts. We were able to walk through original graves, churches, homes, and more. It felt very surreal walking the same grounds as those from history books, knowing the struggles they had during that period.

Colonial Williamsburg

Colonial Williamsburg was probably one of the sites I was most excited about seeing, but it ended up being the most disappointing part of my visit. It was so disappointing that I left after just a couple of sites. I do not recommend this site at all, which is why I do not recommend the big, expensive site pass.

When I visit places like this, I expect to see history. When I arrived, they said this was a real town built around a historic one. They supposedly had a ton of historical elements within the town. As I walked around, though, almost nothing was historical. What was historical was replicated and not original. It was a bunch of people playing dress up while regurgitating information we learned in history class. I wanted to see artifacts. I wanted to see historical markers. Instead, I saw modern cars driving through town, hotels, and other modern things that took away from the love of history.

Overall, it was a nice visit, but I wouldn’t say Washington, D.C., was my favorite. Follow up for another posting for some reviews or tips if you plan to visit!