My visit to Colonial Williamsburg started with an orientation by a staff dressed in the era’s costume, providing the lay of the land of the area and giving us pointers to interesting things to see and programs to attend during the day. After the orientation, I continued with attending the first program of the day, a retelling of the history by a resident historian.

I was not expecting to attend a lecture, but listening to the historian providing the background about the events that led to the particular event we were commemorating (the battle of Yorktown) provided an excellent context to understand the historical event reenactments throughout the day.

One of the unique things you can do at Colonial Williamsburg is to locate an actor playing a historical character and interacting with him/her as if you were talking to the real character during the Colonial period. The actors not only dress up in periodic costume, but also talk like those from that era. They are also very knowledgeable about the historic character they represent, and can answer questions about the character that may not even be directly related to their relation to Williamsburg.

After the lecture, I went to one of the houses in the middle of the old town where the Continental generals spent time planning before their march to Yorktown. It was pretty neat to listen to a couple of actors who played the role of two prominent generals during the war, General Anthony Wayne and General Henry Knox, talking with each other and also interacting with a couple of visitors who seemed to know a lot about the history behind these two characters. They asked them some trivia questions about these characters’ personal lives, and the actors answered the questions with ease that you could have thought for a moment you were transported back in the history and listened to the real characters talking about themselves.

Here were the two generals sitting near a make shift discussion table and talking with audience about their plans to attack the British in Yorktown.

The area around Williamsburg is also known as the History Triangle as there are three places where important events in the American history happened. Jamestown is the site of the first British settlement in the new world. It was the first capital of the colony of Virginia until it was moved to Williamsburg. Williamsburg then served as the capital of the colony for several years. Yorktown entered the history due it’s strategic location from maritime perspective, and it was the place where the British troops surrendered that led to the end of the American Revolutionary War and the United Stated became gaining recognition as an independent nation.

Today history buffs can come to the area and spend some time to learn and relive history by visiting these three places. They are connected through a route called the Colonial Parkway, so you can easily drive between the places. Alternatively, you can also park your car at the Colonial Williamsburg Visitor Center, and take shuttle bus to visit the three places.

During my day trip to the area, I arrived at the Colonial Williamsburg Visitor Center right before it opened around 9 am in the morning. I considered trying to visit the other sites on the same day, but later I decided to just spend the day in Williamsburg and attend the special events that went on throughout the day as part of commemorating the siege of Yorktown.

The photo below was taken right at the heart of Colonial Williamsburg. You can see the governor’s palace at the end of the grassy area, and a reenacted encampment of the Continental Army to commemorate their stay in Williamsburg prior to going to Yorktown.

Williamsburg, Virginia, is a city located about 3.5 hour-drive away from Washington, DC. The city was the capital of the Colony of Virginia before it was moved to Richmond. It is the home of the second oldest college in the United States, the College of William and Mary. Part of the city is known as Colonial Williamsburg, where an area consisting around 50 buildings has been preserved from the Colonial era. It serves as a living interactive museum as life from that era is reenacted by actors daily.

I had heard of the Colonial Williamsburg since a long time ago, having lived in Virginia for several years. However, I had never visited the place until earlier this fall when I made a last minute trip on Saturday. I found out that during that particular weekend, they were going to commemorate the preparation before the American troops went on to nearby Yorktown to attack the British under General Cornwallis. The siege that happened in Yorktown was an important event during the American’s fight for its independence as it marked the surrender of the British troops during that war.

I did not grow up and go to primary or secondary school in the US, so I never really learned about the US history. During this visit to Colonial Williamsburg, I learned some interesting historical facts and about some important figures from that era. So in the next few posts I will write about that day trip to Williamsburg.

The photo below was taken in the Colonial Williamsburg area. You can see here the actors and volunteers reenacted the American troops marching into Williamsburg following General George Washington, on their way to Yorktown. For a moment, you can be transported to that era and feel that you are reliving the history.