Today was a tourist day. A breakfast out at the Island Cafe and then tours of The Victory Center and the National battlefield. Mid-afternoon and the rains that had threatened all day came in earnest as we retreated to Cbay for quiet time.
Breakfast aboard Cbay is nearly always onboard. We have had some really fine big breakfasts that would rival any restaurant, thus today was only the third time on this journey that we have eaten out in the morning since leaving Joe Wheeler State Park. The first was in Carabelle, the second in Elizabeth City and now in Yorktown. Jan had regular fried eggs, grits and toast but you know me. I ventured out with a Barbados omelet with olives, onions, bell pepper, jalopena bacon and feta cheese. Quite tasty smothered in Texas Pete hot sauce. Alex would have loved it.
There is a free trolley system here but it did not start until 1100 so we took off hiking to The Victory Center at the far end of town. This is a wonderful venue with a gallery tracing the birth of this nation from early colonies through the American Revolution. Then you go out into a typical military encampment where there are living demonstrations such as cannon firing and a lecture on battlefield medical care. It is a miracle any of them survived things like the bloody flux.
There was a farmstead where crops were grown and all the chores of farm life were in progress. And guess what we ran into? The answer to the duck taco question I posed two days ago. Here is a picture of those Muscovy ducks and many other farm creatures.
As a child, after my mother died, my father’s parents moved into our home to care for me while he worked. My Grandpa Carlisle began to teach me about farm animals by raising them in our yard. You could get away with that in Columbus in those days.
We had bantam chickens, geese, Guinea fowl, and even a goat. Those were good times for a little boy.
We added another shot glass to the growing row behind the sofa. I am thinking that I will have to come up with some way to display them when we get home. (As of 2013 they are still on the boat.)
The trolley finally came by and took us to the National Park Visitors Center where we learned more details on the surrender of Cornwalis to Washington at Yorktown. It seems that the French Fleet and French troops on land had far more to do with securing the surrender than did the Continental Army. Next time I hear someone say the French won’t fight I will remember this.
The rain started in earnest after 3pm but by then we were back aboard and a nap called to me so I tried to catch up on lost sleep. They say you never actually catch up no matter how long you sleep but it’s worth a try.
Whether we will try to travel tomorrow is dependent on the weather. Right now it is wait and see. I am going to run out of blood pressure medication tomorrow night and the new supply is being sent General Delivery to the Post Office in Urbanna, a day’s journey away. Luckily I have an offer of help from one of our devoted readers. We shall see if I need to take them up on the offer. As of this afternoon the medication had not made it to Urbanna. My fault for waiting to order. I am not yet used to getting drugs through the mail since my insurance changed and forced us to do this. Our entire medical system is teetering on the brink of collapse. Get out and vote your conscious in November.
