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ALL TYPES OF TREASURES
Colonial Williamsburg
Learning a lesson about yourself, too
Author: By David L. Marcus, Globe Staff
Date: SUNDAY, April 26, 1998
Page: M1
Section: Travel
WILLIAMSBURG, Va. -- Often the must-see sites turn out to be the biggest
disappointments. Plymouth Rock is a plain old stone that benefited from
history and hype. Cancun is Miami Beach without the charm. The Hard Rock Cafe
in Los Angeles is just as mediocre as the one in London.
Then there's Colonial Williamsburg. For some reason, when I finished
college in Rhode Island and drove to a job in Miami 15 years ago, I had a list
of spots that I felt compelled to visit up and down the East Coast. Most were
within 30 miles of Interstate 95. One of them was Williamsburg; I'd heard
about it several times, always with the word ``charming.''
And so when I arrived on a Saturday early in summer 1982, I found tour
buses and hordes of parents with babies in tow and charge cards and cameras
poised for action. They surrounded me, they smothered me with their inane
comments, and ``look at the cow!'' shrieks and ever-changing rolls of film and
public F-stop diagnoses and compulsive shopping. Everywhere I walked, I was
mortified.
Of course. I was 21 years old, newly unshackled from academia and looking
for adventure. The United States was in the process of becoming homogenized
and malled and overrun by baby boomers on the move. With its perfect gardens
and neat benches and family-friendly atmosphere, Williamsburg wasn't raw
enough for me.
I hit the road and continued south. Colonial Williamsburg was the last
place I expected to return. (Well, at least until I came to the overhyped
``South of the Border'' cluster of food courts and motels).
But I did return a few weeks ago, with a lot less hair and a few more
pounds and a wife and a slightly less cynical attitude. We had a toddler in
tow, as well as a video camera and a still camera. It was a weekday in late
fall and -- I might as well admit it -- I found Colonial Williamsburg quite
pretty. And relaxing. Almost charming, in fact.
This time I walked back and forth on the long greens, and poked into the
old brick buildings (about three quarters of the buildings really do date to
the 18th century, and others, such as the Governor's Palace, are convincing
replicas). I eavesdropped on the guides who explained farming techniques and
gaped at horses with my son, who had never seen and smelled a horse up close.
Williamsburg was the capital of Virginia for most of the 18th century,
and then it was virtually abandoned for Richmond. Fortunately, John D.
Rockefeller had the vision to preserve the city.
My son was not impressed by ``Furniture of the American South,'' the
exhibit at the DeWitt Wallace Gallery that dares to show antiques in less than
pristine condition. But he did approve of the hearty buffet at the
Williamsburg Inn. And he liked seeing actors dressed up in tricorner hats
talking about life in the not-so-good old days. We chanced into Patrick Henry
and Thomas Jefferson, and judging by the exchanges we overheard, my
20-month-old child knew as much about them as most of the 20-year-old
tourists.
We even ventured to the shopping zone, called Merchants Square, where we
poked around a bookstore and a toy shop. Was that the same shopping area I
found so tacky back in the summer of '82? This time, I had to admit that the
stores -- all with different sizes and layouts arrayed around a
pedestrian-only street -- were inviting.
Yes, the toys were overpriced, but this time I chalked it up to high
rents instead of tourist-gouging.
Something about this scares me. I talked to shop clerks and the tourist
office and found out that Colonial Williamsburg has changed over the years.
It added a tavern and geegaw stores and become more handicapped-accessible and
added a bunch more hotels on the periphery. And yet it's essentially the same
place. That means that I have changed, that the places that once repulsed me
are now the ones I find inviting.
As they say, come to Colonial Williamsburg and you'll learn something.
Come back and you'll learn something else.
SIDEBAR:
IF YOU GO . . .
Colonial Williamsburg is open year round, but many of the nearby hotels
offer steep discounts in the winter (which is often quite mild). Williamsburg
is a three-hour drive south of Washington, D.C. The nonprofit foundation
offers evening programs, tours for girls, and special weekend activities.
Don't be put off if hotels quote high rates; if you keep asking, you'll
often find discounted rooms, especially if you're willing to stay on the edge
of Williamsburg.
For information, call 800-HISTORY. For Virginia tourism information, call
800-847-4882. A good summary of programs, lodging, golf packages, and other
details is available on the World Wide Web: www.history.org.
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