Had trouble finding a place to stay in Tarrytown last night. Roads are crazy around here after dark and they don't mark streets well in this part of the U.S. They never list the cross streets so you can't tell exactly where you are. Frustrating. Plus last night they had closed the major bridge we had planned to cross because of major accident with a truck loaded with watermelon. Sounds funny, but it wasn't -- at least one person was killed. Lots of accidents today too on our way into Pennsylvania. We always try to say a special prayer before we embark for safe travels each day. The Lord has been very good to us -- watching over two roaming travelers who don't know the roads in this part of our country.
This was the view we woke up to out of our hotel room. Beautiful hotel - we ended up at a Doubletree in Tarrytown. Tarrytown is a gem of a city nestled along the banks of the Hudson River. Many gorgeous estates along the Hudson. We would love to come back and see some of the others sometime.
Really enjoyed our visit to Washington Irving's Sunnyside estate this morning. I had originally thought about skipping this stop because we are kind of "museumed" out. Glad we didn't do that. I had forgotten how important a figure in early American literature Washington Irving was. He was actually the first American to make his living as a writer. He pubished over 40 books and was a best-selling author in Europe before his reputation in America was established. Our guide said he was such an eligible bachelor that Mary Shelley (widow of Percy Bysshe Shelley & author of Frankenstein) chased him all over Europe trying to catch his eye. (Headless horseman & Frankenstein's monster - scary combination!)
He didn't actually settle at Sunnyside until he was 52. Before that he had spent much of life in Europe. He pretty much single-handedly showed the European cultural community that there was hope for "those brash, wild Americans." His estate is embodiment of the Romantic ideals and his house was a pleasure to tour. Not a big fancy house -- even though it did have 10 bedrooms. (He was a bachelor, but took in his five unmarried nieces and his brother Ebenezer!)
Sadly, no photography was allowed inside, but you can get an idea from the photos of the grounds what a wonderful place it was.
Here's a picture of me resting on Irving's piazza.
And here's a photo of Joyce enjoying a stop in one of Sunnyside's shady copses...can you see the little waterfall in the background. All these beautiful shots from Sunnyside are planned to look natural, but were actually designed by Irving to look natural -- the ideal of Romanticism.
Click here for my Irving's Sunnyside web album.
It started as an 11 acre farm and later expanded to 26 acres. He designed the home himself and it shows the influence of his visit to Scotland to visit Sir Walter Scott (the best-selling novelist of the time -- writer of Ivanhoe). It also includes French, Italian, Swiss, Dutch, and Spanish elements. We loved sitting on his piazza and listening to the birds singing. During his time, the railroad put a line right through his property - it still is there today.
Irving was friends with 6 presidents and served as America's ambassador to Spain under a 7th president - Martin Van Buren, a man he had talked into running for president! Our tour guide was excellent and knowledgeable. He pointed out that both literary and political greats were frequent visitors to this house. Presidents along with Napoleon, Charles Dickens, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Edgar Allan Poe, and many others were guests at what he originally planned as his summer cottage.
One final note on Sunnyside - we found this little token of home on our way out. I hope you can read what it says... Neenah Foundry!
After Sunnyside, it was time to hit the road again. We traveled out of New York, through New Jersey, and into Pennsylvania. Having never been to NJ, we were really surprised by its mountains and rural look. Pennsylvania, too, is filled with beautiful mountain vistas. We stopped at a Days Inn in Jonestown, PA. It's about 20 minutes away from Hershey - a stop Joyce wanted to make before we worked our way home.
Blessings to you all!
Dave
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