On Saturday, Michael took us sightseeing. First, to the University of Virginia, whose main building and original landscaping were designed by Thomas Jefferson. Charlottesville is a funky college town, very comfortable, relaxed, and beautiful.
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Then on to Monticello, the home and plantation of Thomas Jefferson. He was such an interesting man--tall, redheaded, inquisitive, creative, innovative. He was open to new ideas, and, although he had the fame and magnetism of a rock star, he sought to make his home an educational and enlightening experience for all who would come, and his door was open to all. His taste was impeccable, his designs, both in landscaping and architecture were phenomenal.
 

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His creativity is manifest everywhere you turn in the house, from clocks he invented, to a dumbwaiter for bringing up wine, to a revolving set of shelves for serving food from the waiting area into the dining room. The place is mobbed with visitors, but is very well organized and run, and you never feel crowded.
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The guides are knowledgable, cultivated, and well-rounded, without being didactic--all Jeffersonian themselves.

An interesting sidelight was the Levy family. Jefferson was a spendthrift. He was wealthy, but had a fondness for French wine, had a French chef, and improved his property constantly. When he went bankrupt, Monticello was sold to the family of Commodore Uriah Levy. The property remained in the hands of the Levy family for decades, before it was sold to the Jefferson Foundation. And so, Jefferson, like his current day namesake, W. Jefferson Clinton, cavorted with African-Americans (the slave, Sally Hemmings) and Jews. The tomb of Rachel Levy is displayed here for the benefit of the IRS, to justify the tax deductibility of this trip by Dr. Carol K. Ingall of the JTSA.

In the evening, the Krepon-Savines (including Josh, who had arrived that day with his coterie of muscular friends), took us out for dinner at Hamilton's in Charlotte. Located on a charming downtown pedestrian mall, it is a lovely restaurant. We had a wonderful portabello mushroom tart, grilled tuna, smoked tenderloin of pork, lamb tenderloin, crabcakes, and tenderloin of beef, all with wonderful sauces and accompaniments. The wine was a '97 Sangiovese, All'omo di Vino. We returned home for dessert, Nepalese tea (in memory of the late lamented royal family), and a wonderful night's sleep.

Sunday morning, we hung out at the pool and had an easy drive back to Baltimore.

We are blessed with a wonderful family, and, of course, with each other.