Now that it's almost Christmas, we thought it was time to update the blog with what we did for Thanksgiving.
For Thanksgiving we headed off to Maryland to visit Christie's sister and brother in-law, Jenn & Tony. They live in Annapolis, MD which served as our headquarters as we explored the area. We don't want to bore you with too much detail, but if you'd like to view more pictures from our trip, there is a slide show just to the right.
Day 1 - We explored Annapolis by foot. We walked around some of the old State buildings as we made our way to the US Naval Academy. Jenn & Tony both went there so we had the best tour guides you could have. We walked along the water before checking out the new indoor athletic complex, Bankroft Hall, and then heading towards the Chapel where we went into the Crypt of John Paul Jones.
In Front of the Old Maryland Capital Building
Walking around the US Naval Academy
Day 2 - Exploring Baltimore. We visited Fort McHenry which came under attack during the War of 1812. This is where Francis Scott Key saw the American Flag flying and wrote the Star Spangled Banner. We also took a tour of Orioles Park at Cambden Yards and went on the USS Constellation.
Day 3 - First day in Washington DC. We took the Metro in and took a tour of the Capitol Building and checked out the National Archives and a few museums including the Air & Space, Art, Natural History, and American History. The original flag that was flown at Fort McHenry has been preserved and is currently at the American history museum.
Day 4 - Second day in DC but this day we drove in to the city because we had arranged for a White House tour. The rules for that tour said you could only bring your wallet, keys, and cell phone. We wouldn't feel like tourists without our cameras, so we left those in the car and retrieved them after the White House tour. Our tour was a bit delayed because they needed to "secure the area" which we believe coincided with the President pardoning the turkey. After the tour we headed to lunch and then to the Washington Monument. We purchased tickets in advance online so that we didn't have to get to the monument super early (tickets are given out on a first-come, first-served basis and go fast). We highly recommend going online to buy them - it's only $1.50 a ticket rather than being free. We enjoyed seeing the city from way up high. After the monument we headed to Mount Vernon to see where George Washington lived. We didn't have much time to visit, but still were able to make it around most of the property which was cool.
Day 5 - We celebrated Thanksgiving by hosting some of my sister's neighbors for breakfast. We made Danish aebleskiver which was a hit. Of course we made too many so we were able to enjoy leftovers the next day as well. The rest of the day we really didn't do much - I think we were exhausted from the previous 3 days of exploring. We did make a traditional Thanksgiving dinner including turkey, green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, and stuffing. Dessert was triple chocolate pecan pie and apple crisp. Everything was so delicious.
Day 6 - Black Friday shopping is always a must, but this year we didn't set any alarms so that we be at the stores when they opened. We woke up leisurely, ate breakfast and then headed out around 10:00. We actually were still able to get the stuff we wanted.
Day 7 - We decided to check out the Maryland wineries. They certainly don't make California quality wines (don't we sound like wine snobs) but the ones we tasted were surprisingly good. We enjoyed the scenic drive and time together. The day ended with a great meal of "small plates" and a little more wine.
We headed back home early the next day knowing we had a great time visiting Jenn & Tony and checking out the areas around Maryland and DC.
