We got an early start and drove out of Charlottesville to Monticello, the home that Thomas Jefferson spent so many years building and later renovating. We bought tickets after parking the car in the lot at the base of the 'little mountain', and then rode the shuttle to the house. (This works well to keep all the cars away from the house proper.) We had a few minutes before our tour was to begin so we walked along Mulberry Row where, in those days, slaves worked at blacksmithing, weaving, cabinet making, etc. Not much is left now but a few foundations, but we walked to the vegetable garden where Jefferson experimented with new and unusual plants, watching some recreations of activities that took place there at the turn of the 19th Century.

    The house tour was very interesting, but we were disappointed that we were allowed only to see the first floor, not the second and third floors. The stairways are so narrow that, according to today's fire regulations, they are considered to be a fire exit hazard and the public is not allowed upstairs. But we did see the other rooms including Jefferson's private quarters, where he died in his bed, on July 4, 1826.

    As we returned to the car, rather than taking the shuttle we went to Jefferson's grave site, which is on the grounds, and then walked back to the car on a very pleasant path. All in all, we had what proved to be a nice visit to Monticello, the home of a key figure in America's history.

    We then went to James Monroe's house Ash Lawn/Highland and took the tour there. It was a much more modest house, but interesting all the same.