Day 4 Sightseeing in Washington DC

Up and out nice and early. A cab picked us up from the campsite at 8.15, to take us to a metro station about 15 minutes drive away, jumped on the metro, direct to the museum area of DC. So easy, worked really well. Quick Starbucks then to the the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum. Lots of fun. Onwards for a stroll along The National Mall for a photo op at the US Capitol. Quick sarnnie before heading to the Smitnsonian National Museum of Natural History's Dinosaur and Fossil Room, Ancient Seas collection and Ocean Hall keeping everyone happy :) Back outside to the beautiful sunshine (65 degrees - perfect). Nice little walk up to the Washington Monument and glimpse of The White House. Sean had waterside dining on his mind so we jumped in a taxi to the waterfront area where we found the restaurant we'd planned on, was actually a floating fish market - kind of a fun alternative, the boys were in heaven looking at all the dead fish and live crabs!! There was a waterfront restaurant that we stopped for a drink and some shrimp on the patio overlooking some nice boats, but everything else was pretty much fried food so headed back downtown to Zaytinya's, a great recommendation from a friend. Then back to the campsite. Bed. Pheew!

Day 3 Falling Water - Washington

The two boys managed to have a half decent shower onboard, mine was enough to freshen but luke warm to cold water. Not ideal, but something at least. Sean decided to wait till the next camp site rather than have a cold one! Managed to get on the road nice and early, making a quick stop a few miles away for an unexpected look at a waterfall and small purchase in the grocery shop. Back on the road we passed through gorgeous countryside, really pretty, and from what I could tell very rural. We made our third fuel stop, total now up to $200!! The campsite (Lake Fairfax) was a huge surprise, right off a busy stretch with shopping etc. Turned out to be like a state park come recreational facility, which had a fishing lake, stream, soccer pitches, football etc. So, as soon as we parked up, we jumped on our bikes, seeing as it was about 80 degrees and headed out for a ride. What a beautiful day, managed to get our feet wet in the stream, gorgeous. So lovely to take the boys on the bikes in a really safe environment, Oliver was able to practice riding on the road, he loved it. Watched a few of the people fishing around the lake, not a lot being caught I don't think! After the mini adventure we headed back, the boys ate the left over pasta and we got a pizza delivered right to the door - brilliant! Popped back out for a quick kick about with the soccer ball before bed. At this point Sean gathered up the boys for a quick visit to the shower block, rather than attempt the onboard one, to discover they were not working! Bummer, and too late to complain to the information desk, what a pain. One lesson to learn about RVing is, on campsites, there are two different types (at least) of hook up. The previous campsite had full hook up, so you can plug the van in and have full electric power on board which powers to heater, water heater, air con etc, you had connection to a hose, so endless water supply and there was also a connection for the waste, so no dumping involved. All vey convenient! This campsite just has electric so not nearly as useful. Lets hope we don't run out of water in the meantime or the toilet begins to smell!.....

Day 2 Sightseeing at Falling Water

Rain - Rubbish! Quiet morning waiting for the rain to stop, of cereal and Lego's and re-planning our day as we were going to ride our bikes to Falling Water, not much fun in the rain! Turned out we were able to drive the RV right up to Falling Water which worked out perfectly. We were booked in for the family tour but had a bit of time before to explore the grounds before. What a beautiful spot, and the water was certainly falling! The inside of the house is just as spectacular as the outside, with beautifully designed and fitted furniture, way ahead of it's time. But then I guess if you had a famous architect working for you and as much money as the Kauffman's, it would be! Well worth the visit if you're thinking of venturing out that way, even the kids seemed to enjoy it. Glad we hadn't chanced the bikes, it really didn't stop raining much ALL day! We stopped back at the campsite for the boys to have a quick game of mini (crazy) golf, while mumma started a book (fell asleep 5 minutes in - nice!). We heard there was a nice restaurant 15 minutes drive away so decided to give it a try. Out of the Fire was the restaurant and it was surprisingly good, the kids got a nice healthy dinner, far better than the fried or cheesed alternatives on offer at the campsite and it was BYOB - bonus! So far, I have to say, camp life isn't too bad. Although I'll let you know once I've experienced the onboard showering!.....

The Reynolds All American Spring Vacation!

The Reynolds All American Spring Vacation! With the thought of not knowing how long we may have left in USA we decided we should really do some more exploring and embrace the American culture. So, with the knowledge that we definitely wanted to visit Falling Water and Washington DC and after a bit of map plotting, research and persuasion we decided to rent an RV for 6 days of the Spring Vacation (Easter Holidays for my friends in England!) I have to say, a vacation traveling around in a huge bus, showering in an area smaller than most peoples closet, having to cook and being in a confined space for 6 days does not really appeal but I've had nothing but excited reactions from my American buddies, and the boys (yes, including Sean) have spoken about nothing else since we booked it, so finally I actually have high hopes for our 'Reynolds Road Trip'. The most asked question has been "where are you going?", so I'm hoping to post a map..... And to all my British friends,"No, we are not driving across America in six days!" we'll be sticking to the East and passing through 5 states, Pensylvania, Virginia, Washington DC, New Jersey and New York. So day 1, we set off from Brooklyn, sun shining, coffees in hands, car loaded up with the bikes on top. First stop, Monmouth, New Jersey to pick up the Beast! After a lesson on every button, inlet and outlet from friendly Marco, we set up camp, unloading the 101 Ikea and cool bags. Two hours after leaving Brooklyn we were in our new home for the week and on our way! Eventually arrived at 'Yogi Bear's Campsite', Mill Run, Pensylvania around 6.30pm and 260 miles later. Sean and the boys went off to explore the camp while I rustled up some pasta for our very late tea. It turned out to be a really warm evening so was able to dine al fresco with a nice bottle of red, which made the long drive well worth it. Then to bed after a bit of excitement from the kids about their new bunk bed!

Day 3 by Oliver and Sidney!

We just came into virginia there are a few farms with big fields, there are no skyscrapers in sight. When we got to Lake Fairfax it was different from Yogi Bear's because there are not as many sites to camp on. There were no activities but it was still fun because there was a lot of space to run and play, and there were big fields with soccer nets in them. There was also a big stream.