The Washington's Mansion in Mt. Vernon

This was not our first visit to the mansion. We had the mansion walkthrough visit few years back, but we thought of signing up for another same tour, but this time, more locations to visit included in our itinerary.

We started the mansion tour at 10:50AM and it was a fast paced tour because of a growing crowd! Most of the tour inside wasn't guided but just a quick-paced glimpse of the various rooms and kitchen.

This mansion became the beloved home of George and Martha Washington after they got married in 1759 until George Washington's death in 1799.

Did you know that in 1799, there were at least more than 300 men and women and children enslaved at Mt. Vernon? They were the ones who worked mostly within the estate including farmers, carpenters, cooks, and cleaners for the Washington family.

George Washington wasn't happy about the institution of slavery, so after the Revolutionary War, he had questioned it. Ultimately, he freed 123 slaves he owned outright! The rest still remained slaves including Martha Washington's descendants!

The tour is also a visit to more than a dozen outbuildings that includes slave quarters, kitchen, blacksmith shop and stables.

Also, the tomb of both George & Martha lies within the property near other family members in the tomb. It was completed in 1831. There is also an original burial vault located nearby (no photo, sorry).

Another place worth visiting is the distillery & gristmill close by, located 3 miles from the estate. You need transportation to visit the site if you are strictly on a scheduled trip.

The gristmill was built of a large stone built in 1771. It produced flour & cornmeal and was exported as high-quality products. In 1797, a distillery was built adjacent to the gristmill which became a successful producer of rye whiskey and other distilled products in 1799. Both buildings used technologies that were cutting edge in the late 1700's, and still fully functional and reconstructed.

An Afternoon Visit at The Palace of Fine Arts

One of the mostly recommended places to visit when you're in San Francisco is the Palace of Fine Arts in the marina district of San Francisco, California. It is specifically located on Baker St., at the eastern edge of the Presidio and at least 2.5 miles west of Fisherman's Wharf and 3 miles northwest of Union Square. It has a tranquil lagoon filled with variety of birds and even turtles.

It was originally erected for the Panama Pacific Exposition in 1915 for the purpose of artwork exhibits.

The palace is only one of the few surviving structures from the Exposition when the original palace was demolished in 1964.

One of the main reasons why it became one of the tourist's main attraction is its Greek-architectural style colonnades with soaring central rotunda which became as its most recognizable features, and mostly easily seen from San Francisco's northern skyline.

The place is even famous for wedding events and other special gatherings, so don't be surprised if there are ones you see while you're visiting. 😊

Also, another interesting thing to note is that the Palace of the Fine Arts has been locations of movie shoots from the year 1950's and later.

Up to this day, the palace has been San Francisco's favorite landmark to love! No wonder, it's got breath taking views you'll ever cherish after your visit.

The Magnificent Scenic Drive Along Avenue of the Giants

At last, as we reached California from our Oregon road trip, we got to experience sight seeing along this world famous scenic and magnificent 31-mile drive!

The good thing was, we took time enjoying these 51,222 acres of redwood groves by stopping over and took so many photos as much as we did!

Amazing! Our Creator deserves to be praised because of these majestic trees standing gallantly in the entire 500 mile redwood belt.

This scenic drive is about 200 miles north of San Francisco and 100 miles south of the Oregon boarder. It is a 31-mile country road that intersects Highway 101 and is easily accessible with convenient services provided along the way.

This location has also some picnic areas, camping, hiking, swimming, fishing, rafting, biking or just a place where you can enjoy and experience serenity amidst the cool hush of these ancient old growth forests.