"I am savage enough to prefer the woods, the wilds, and the independence of Monticello, to all the brilliant pleasures of this gay capital [Paris] . . . . for tho' there is less wealth there, there is more freedom, more ease, and less misery." - Thomas Jefferson (to Baron Geismar), 1785
The front of the house at Monticello (top right of the collage, below) looks a lot like the back of the house. The major differences are the drive in the front and the brick path in the back that winds around the West Lawn, a huge expanse of green. [read more...]
I have an announcement to make (quasi-proclamations are fun, you guys): I have been overthinking and putting off this post for too long. Seth and I took this trip back in August, when it was still unbearably hot here in Virginia. We didn't get to spend a lot of time in Charlottesville or at the Monticello plantation, so I had endeavored to make my way back there before posting anything. Or, at least, to do enough research to feel like I had an idea of what I was talking about. In the end, there is just so much to learn about Monticello and Jefferson and far too many interesting things to write about the man, his ideas and the times he lived in, to do justice to any of the above. Of course, since I also forgot my camera and had to use my cellphone for pictures, this isn't the ideal photojournal of the trip, either. Thus, I am resigned to just enjoy writing what I do know and sharing with you the few decent pictures I managed to take. I offer you a wealth of rainy-day cell-phone photos and my first impressions of/lingering thoughts about the places we saw, to start with. As time allows, I will definitely be going back to Monticello to explore and do the other tours (hopefully, with a decent camera next time). [read more...]
