road trip USA

week 2 - colonial virginia and west virginia

Fort Frederick State Park is hosting a colonial re-enactment weekend. The locals really enter into the spirit of things, and I guess 50% have dressed up in period costume. Many of these intrepid folk have displayed the true pioneering spirit - they have been camping through the thunderstorms.

Mike, his wife and sister are drying their hand-knitted woollen socks in front of a fire. He tells me a small river flowed through their lower tent last night, but is philosphical about the experience - it's all part of the realism of re-enacting their ancestors' efforts to build their country.

Colin the Militiaman (below right) explains to me why the Union Flag looks different - it has no irish component. He talks animatedly about his service life with "The Brits", whom he likes a lot.

He was a US Marine attached to 3 Commando in 1982, and was all set to serve in the Falklands with his British buddies until the day before they sailed, when orders came through from Mrs T (the other Mrs T) barring US servicemen from the action. He was hugely disappointed, but understood the political imperative.

This sort of community activity is something the Americans seem to do particularly well - more people join in the spirit of things, and there is less cynicism about such activities than (regrettably) seems to be the case on our side of the Atlantic. (The same thought strikes me when I visit a School Carnival later in the week.)

News from the home front.

Tripper Nipper 2, aka Fireman Dave is entering (with some of his crew buddies) the Fittest Fireman In The Universe Contest. Laura please note that accommodation in the Cardiff area is filling up fast. And in response to my early blogs, Gwyn Schoolma'am (Ret'd) observed to Mrs T that I seemed only to visit Dead People. There is some truth in that, although in mitigation I point out that my visit to George Washington and Abe Lincoln were only because Dubya was busy. 3 cemetaries, 2 battlefields, monuments to 4 deceased presidents, tens of miles walked, and a very loud night of blues - I think Mrs Tripper would have been underwhelmed.

STOP PRESS: great news from the Aztecs - Jonny ClubSec emailed me to say that the Cobras have trounced Camberley Old Pros in the semis (which makes up for our own - cough - narrow loss to the Old Pros). Better still, the Cobras are in the Final, making it 3 Aztecs teams at Finals Day - another Club Record. Go Cobras - Go Rage - Go Jags...

An email has flooded in, asking if I am intentionally quoting lines and titles from songs. This is a very perceptive question, as I intend to offer a prize (probably a quantity of Mrs Tripper's cava store) to the person who gets closest to the total number of song quotes contained in the blog. Rules of the competition are simple: a single word title (eg Help, Feel, America) does not count: and I am allowed modest misquoting of a lyric if the context demands it. By way of a clue, there are 3 contained in the previous page ("Weather").

Two weeks on, I realise that one thing I am missing (one of many, I hasten to add!) is the Blonde Moments. I know from experience that they are happening regularly: but knowing they are happening is not the same as being there to witness and enjoy them. So if any readers do spot one, please share the moment with me (in complete confidence...)

Williamsburg

A portion of the town of Williamsburg, Virginia, has been preserved in aspic, so to speak. Buildings have been lovingly preserved and restored, and a large workforce dresses, acts and works in 18th century costume, style and language. This makes for a really interesting day (and not everyone is dead, Gwyn!)

On to Norfolk, where I check in to America's Best Value Inn with the Miracle Temple of Deliverance. Intriguing that in England we tend towards a few largish (although shrinking) churches, whereas every church I pass here seems to be of a slightly different flavour. However, church life does still seem to be growing in the USA.

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