TJ's Monticello
Trip Start
Jun 03, 2009
1
7
23
Trip End
Sep 18, 2009
Charlottesville, Virginia
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Monticello!
Monticello was Thomas Jefferson's estate in the late 18th/early 19th century, located about 15 minutes from the UVA campus. We parked our cars in the parking lot below a ski lodge-looking place. Guests can either hike up to the property or take a shuttle. We bought our tour tickets around 11am but had to kill another 2 hours because the earliest tour we could get was at 12:45pm. The ski lodge-looking place, with its gift shop, cafe, and small museum, helped kill time. We watched a brief movie about Thomas Jefferson and Monticello. It ended with an impressionable montage of historical independences around the world since America's in 1776. Then I got a turkey apple panini from the cafe, and wow, I didn't know apples in a sandwich would taste soo good!
We then took the shuttle up to Monticello... still a little early, so we walked around the garden area and took pictures around the observatory. And finally the 30-minute tour of the house began. Much of the historical background I already knew, but it was still cool to see the French influences in architectures, some of Jefferson's books, wine elevator, etc. All the rooms seemed very ergonomic.
I unfortunately could not snap pictures inside the house, and honestly, I didn't care much to. Others said our tour guide seemed a little crazy. I didn't particularly think so... he just seemed like a nice, retired old man in a club house attire.
Anyway, Monticello is definitely worth a visit for families, for couples, for college students. One little disappointing fact was that there were no acres of vineyards and wine tasting tours as I had imagined.
Comments
Monticello - vineyards
Actually if you look past the vegetable garden, you can see a vineyard of Sangiovese grapes. The wine made from this vineyard is tasted and sold once a year I believe.
egoodell
Hello
Thanks for the info! I went back and looked at the map- and yes, it's there! Also, there seem to be a couple wine tasting tours around that area, so I will have to check them out :)