Best day ever!

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Today we had our first full day in West Virginia! We started the day at the flea market where there were all types of things from things from yard sale items such as used clothes to faux purses, to weapons. Of course, we had to try some out, as we drew swords and struck some poses. After a few hours, we browsed through all the vendors and bought some amazing stuff from jewelry to hand knit hats to Coach Purses. Everyone was friendly and helpful, letting us try their stuff, and demonstrating the proper ways to hold the swords.

Then we went to the Harper’s Ferry, where we explored the town. We walked up and down the main street, and saw ruins of John the Episcopal Church, and were able to go in and see the inside of it. We also climbed to Jefferson’s Rock where we were able to see where the Potomac and Shenandoah River met together. Jefferson described this place as a “scene is worth a voyage across the Atlantic.” It was definitely that, as we could see the humongous rocks hanging over the place where the rivers collided. After the long climb, we then saw the place where John Brown fought the Union soldiers as he tried to rebel against having slaves. The historical sites were everywhere, as the firehouse that was John Brown’s last stand was next the famous C&O railroad that still runs today. We also saw an obelisk that stood where the firehouse once stood.

After exploring all the historical landmarks that Harper’s Ferry offered, we decided to call it day. We came back, had a late lunch, and rested for the rest of the day. Later tonight, we had the first ever reflection of what we were expecting from this trip and from each other. Many of us seem to be coming from different backgrounds other than education. However, we came as we were all interested in rural education, and would like to get a better grasp of what is going on, As everyone seems to be seriously interested in this topic, I’m looking forward to this week, and what we are going to experience together. We then tried to start a fire in the fireplace, failed and called it quits for the night. I’m excited for this week.

- Donna