final, no more, last DC field trip

I remember back 30 years to my childhood trip to the National Zoo so we decided to spend Saturday using up our Metro card money by saying goodbye to the elephants and tigers. There was a deja vu feeling when we strolled up to see the elephants just as the trainers came out to start the daily show, just like last time we were here.

However, that time we only had 5 children and I was enormously pregnant with Julia Ellen. It was obvious how much she enjoyed seeing the animals, pointing at the elephants, trying to communicate her interest, "Hey, look at those strange creatures!"

She liked seeing the orangutan swinging above our heads as we were eating, but her favorite animal of all was the mallard duck who came over to beg some peanut butter and jelly crusts off of the children. She waved and smiled and giggled and seemed like they were best friends forever, until Mrs. Mallard decided the pickings might be better off at the next table.

Julia Ellen didn't care, at least not when she saw the prairie dogs. You could see her mind working, "These guys are cutie pies AND they don't try to steal your lunch."

saving the best for last

Yesterday was another beautiful day so the kids did a tiny bit of school, practiced the piano and I packed a picnic lunch before heading down the road to Annapolis. We squeezed our large van through the narrow streets, parked, bought tour tickets, and were escorted out the door in a very efficient manner (actually, before we even had time to go potty, but miraculously there were no accidents).

The children were very impressed by noon formation and asked lots of questions as the midshipmen paraded into lunch. As our tour progressed Will walked closer and closer to the guide to listen and ask his own questions about engineering courses and daily life at the Academy.

The little ones were a little on the hyper side, but they were quiet as mice inside the chapel and crypt. It was facinating to learn that it took many years to find John Paul Jones' grave in Paris and that he had been preserved so well that they could identify him visually.

We were disappointed that the usual Wednesday 4pm dress parade was a non-event, but we enjoyed the museum and visitor's center on campus, as well as wandering through the front of Bancroft Hall. Anyone interested in American naval history, the space program (52 astronauts are alumni), and French-style architecture would be impressed.

I relented in my usual mean-Mommy attitude toward gift shops and allowed them all to pick out 1 item and I bought Will and Mary each a shirt and a book. The Naval Academy Candidate Book explains how to prepare, get in, and survive. Will snuck it out of the bag last night after prayers and stayed up until 10pm reading it before I called, "Lights out!"

Mt. Vernon revisited

Is it a field trip if you don't bring your camera?

I realized just after we crossed the American Legion Bridge that I had wiped my memory card clean and checked the batteries, but promptly left the camera sitting next to the computer. But we did bring our annual passes and since Charlie was still under the age limit to get in free, we saw George Washington's farm for cheap. Yeah, we spent a goodly sum on ice cream and an ornament for our Christmas tree, but in all we got to enjoy the 80 F weather and immerse ourselves in 18th century farming.

It is always important to have every child go to the bathroom at the same time as we learned the hard way today. Mt. Vernon has a child-friendly room in the museum where they can dress up, do puzzles, fit together a pottery bowl... but they are very strict that all children (18 and below) must be accompanied by an adult at all times. Well, of course we had several urgent potty trips while we were there so I had to gather everyone up, make them take off the gear, go down the long crowded hall to the bathroom, wait for them to emerge, and attempt it again. Finally after the 3rd time that a little person said, "I have to go," I gave up and after a visit to the last public bathroom I want to see in a long time, we went to the gift shop and home.

Only 2 more field trips left on our list: a return to the National Zoo and the Naval Academy. I think on Wednesday afternoons there is a field parade at USNA starting next week, but for that trip I will triple check that my camera is in my purse.

National Archives

This morning with many errands begging to be completed, I packed up Julia Ellen and bribed the big kids into journeying downtown for our first field trip in over a month. While the little boys cajoled and whined, "I wanna go too! I'll be good," I resolutely shut the door behind us and drove away. They aren't old enough to remember seeing these famous documents and certainly not old enough to wait quietly without needing to use the facilities every 15 minutes.

First we stood in line for an hour outside and in amongst a huge crowd of unruly teenagers who had to be shushed several times by the burly guard. Finally it was our turn to look at pale sheets of paper under glass that men have fought and died for: the Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights, and the Constitution of the United States.

We pointed out the pale signatures of John Hancock and John Adams, and then looked closely for the name of the only Catholic to sign the Declaration of Independence, Charles Carroll of Carrollton. Unfortunately his signature has faded from sight on the original document, as have many others. While this wasn't the most thrilling of field trips for the children, I felt it was important for them to get a sense of the importance of these documents, especially at a time when some politicians feel that they should be discarded and ignored.

carnival of homeschooling

Janice Campbell is hosting this week's carnival. I'm feeling a little miffed because yet again I submitted a post and it didn't show up on the carnival. It is not that big a deal, because after all, there are millions of Americans without jobs, wives who are waiting anxiously by the phone to hear from their husbands in Afghanistan, and people sitting in the hospital hearing ,"Your loved one has cancer," and for me to complain about being overlooked on the internet is a bit silly.

The real reason I'm upset is that we are supposed to go on a field trip to the National Gallery of Art today with the local homeschool group and I don't know where or when we are meeting. I signed up weeks ago and emailed the lady in charge and I'm obviously getting snubbed. I feel like the new girl at the local elementary school who doesn't know where the cafeteria is. But I'll get over it and if she doesn't tell me we will go anyway and have a marvelous time. 'Cause I'm not 8 anymore and if I can't find the lunchroom, I'll just go to McDonalds. So there.

US Capitol

Yesterday we got up early and left the house at 8am heading downtown to a scheduled tour of the US Capitol (I wouldn't last long fighting this traffic every day). I packed extra clothes and nappies, a few Matchbox cars, and parked in front of our church near the closest Metro stop.

We arrived at Union Station with plenty of time before our tour so Will, Mary, Maggie, and I stayed and chatted for a bit with my cousin Ann who volunteered to watch the three little ones at her house before walking over to Senator Collins' office. After cooling our heels in the Dirkson Building for 20 minutes or so our tour guide escorted us on the little train that runs under Constitution Avenue into the basement of the Capitol. We wandered around the Rotunda looking at the statues and paintings, such as this rendering of the signing of the Constitution,

and the painting The Apotheosis of Washington, which was painted by Constantino Brumidi while suspended nearly 180 feet (55 m) in the air. It is said to be the first attempt by the United States to deify a founding father. Washington is depicted surrounded by 13 maidens representing the original colonies.

We wandered through Statuary Hall, featuring several American Catholics studied in Seton's first grade history such as Blessed Junipero Serra, who started 9 missions in California:

and the Crypt. We all rubbed our foot on the marble star that is the exact center of Washington, DC before peeking into the Old Supreme Court room

for a few minutes before our guide said that our tour was complete. "Won't we would be able to see the Senate and House chambers?" I asked. "Those need separate tickets, we can go back to the office and get them," she replied. Of course by then it was already lunchtime, Julia Ellen was likely getting very hungry, and my childless cousin was probably overwhelmed with the care of the boys. I wished that the staff member who I talked to on the phone had mentioned this to me last week, but I had to decline the too late offer.

Lunch resembled a quiz show with my cousin's husband grilling the children on their tour, schooling, and extra-curricular activities. His obvious disdain for our large family/homeschooling lifestyle, our politics, and our eating habits made it an uncomfortable experience so as soon as possible we took our leave. We finally arrived on our doorstep at 3pm, quite wiped out. It wasn't our best field trip to date, but at least I can check one more DC tourist spot off our master list.

back to the tourist list

Now that we have settled back into a routine, I called my Senator's office and scheduled a tour of the Capitol. With ballet class two evenings a week, dropping off children at piano lessons twice a week (Maggie goes on Monday and the big kids go on Tuesday), and Boy Scouts on yet another evening, the only day each week we have free is Wednesdays. I know by now that I cannot haul 6 kids downtown on the METRO and then expect any of us to function well afterwards. I also stipulated to the girl on Sen. Collins' staff that we have to be heading home well before rush hour so none of my children get lost or trampled in the subway station.

My original list of 23 "must-see" Washington, DC sites has been worked over and now only contains 7 places we haven't seen yet. There are a few that I want to revisit such as Mount Vernon (especially since I bought season passes) and the National Zoo. While I'm not as eager to jump on the METRO as I was last year (I don't have quite enough hands with another child in tow to feel safe), my sense of perseverance will require us to check off every last cultural/historical destination deemed educational. We still have 2 years left on this tour, but I'm the type who doesn't like to let commitments dangle, be it thank you notes, school assignments, or my own hastily scribbled "want to see while in DC" list.

please mr. postman...

is there a letter in your bag for me?

This week our field trip was a hop, skip, and a jump away from the Union Station Metro stop, the National Postal Museum. Tucked away inside the old DC Post Office, the museum is full of neat kid-friendly exhibits,

an example of every method of delivering the mail,

folk art mailboxes,

and Owney the dog who was the railway mail service mascot during the 1880's.

We learned about early mail routes between Boston and New York, early machines that manufactured envelopes, and direct mail (also known as junk mail). The children even got to sift through hundreds of stamps and start their own collection. Each picked a theme, Maggie chose birds, Mary chose people (including Louisa May Alcott, her favorite author this week), and Will selected 6 striking stamps from European countries.

On the train ride home we chatted with a nice man after Timmy accidentally whacked him and when we said goodbye, they asked the question that means a field trip was a success, "When can we go back?"

treasure trove

This morning we were supposed to go to the National Zoo with the American Heritage Girls, but like baseball earlier this week, it was cancelled due to rain. I think it has rained 10 out of the past 14 days, reminding me of this past summer in Maine when I almost went mad being shut up day after day in a very tiny apartment with 5 children.

Of course the kids were so looking forward to a field trip that when morning dawned and it wasn't actually raining yet... I said we could ride the Metro and go to the National Aquarium. I printed out my school group discount sheet off the internet and we hit the road. I had to wrangle for a minute or two with the ticket guy, "Are you discriminating against homeschoolers?" but it did shave $1 each off the kid's regular admission. The aquarium is pretty small, but we did like the piranhas, the alligators, the electric eels and this medium-sized snapping turtle.

After a quick snack/light lunch of Triscuits and blueberry muffin we headed over to the Mall on our way to the Botanic Gardens, but were waylaid by two huge tents full of exhibits by every government entity that exists. The kids filled up tote bags with balls, pencils, stickers, magnets, calenders, flashlights, tape measures, puzzles, and CDRoms. In the military tent they saw a dozen landmines (they were inert), a table full of guns to hold (no bullets), and talked to many soldiers and reservists. The paratroopers helped Will test out a parachute and explained how to jump out of an airplane.

We never made it to the Botanic Garden, instead visiting the very nice restrooms and lobby of the Smithsonian Castle before heading home to dump out the loot all over the living room floor.

the father of all field trips

Yesterday morning we woke up bright and early to strive with the Beltway commuters to visit Mount Vernon. This was the field trip that I wanted to do right, but was convinced that something horrible would go wrong as it combines the 3 big dangers: a long drive to get there, high admission fees, and a lot of irreplaceable historical artifacts. The night before I had nightmares that we would get lost, get a flat tire, lose a child, or they would break something. Luckily my fears were not realized and we pulled into the driveway 8 hours later with the same # of children with which we started.

It took me the entire drive to decide to splurge the extra $20 on annual passes, figuring that we will return in the fall after the children learn many useful facts about George Washington and amaze the socks off the docents. "Wow! Those kids know so much, they must be homeschoolers!" To accomplish this I let them dress up in colonial garb in the Hands-on-History room while I visited the Teacher Resource Room. I love the room for little ones (3-8 years) where they can piece together a pottery "artifact," pretend they are eating colonial food, do puzzles, and read stories about Washington. Diana Cordray, the Education Center manager seems to love homeschoolers and put together a huge packet for me of great material, chatted with the children, and oohed and aahed over Julia Ellen. She said the best times to visit were in October, January, and February for the smallest crowds and more interaction with the docents.

The kids really liked their own Adventure Maps which gave them puzzles to solve while we walked from the gardens to the blacksmith shop to the grave site of our first President.

Off the beaten path, but worth the walk was the farm exhibit with a replica of the 16-sided threashing barn that George Washington designed himself. We listened to the colonial-garbed ladies explain about all the animals raised on the farm, including many mules used for plowing and pulling carts like Kit and Kate shown here.

I think doing all the outside things first before returning after eating lunch was smart, but it still took an hour of waiting in a very long line... (this was only about 1/3 of it)

to walk through the house and see the bed where George and Martha Washington slept and the very ornate dining room where they ate dinner. All in all, it was a very long day, but well worth the traffic issues and having to say countless times, "Charlie, put the gravel down. NOW!"

what a beautiful day!

Well, with Julia Ellen being stuffed up and throwing up from coughing so hard we bailed on the Homeschooler Day at the National Portrait Gallery and took advantage of the first 70 degree day this spring to go to the National Arboretum. Free admission, free and ample parking and the opportunity for the kids to run made it a pretty easy choice over having to negotiate the Metro, an overtly politically-correct program, and a no-stroller policy at the museum.

Our first stop was the pond with giant carp which was such a huge hit with Timmy and Charlie that I was afraid they would fall right in.




Then we strolled through the Bonsai exhibit (after a firm don't-touch-anything warning).



Apparently they fascinated Mary so much that she asked me 5 times to buy her a little bonsai. I told her that she could read about their care at the library and then we could consider it. I want to encourage her to learn about plants, after all, I was a horticulture minor at VA Tech, but, I know the likelihood of it getting destroyed during the 10 hour trip to Maine is high.

We next walked around the herb garden and walked up to the columns which once graced the Capitol building.

The Arboretum is quite large (440+ acres) so we drove over to the Oriental gardens and the dwarf conifers before eating a picnic lunch. I plan to make this a regular Sunday afternoon expedition, especially with the opportunity to hike up a hill covered with 15,000 azaleas and a view of the Washington Monument and Capitol from the top. I highly recommend a trip to this tranquil spot filled with flowering apple trees, budding Japanese Maples, Virginia bluebells, and late blooming daffodils.

the best laid plans...

I have so many wonderful kid-friendly field trip ideas, but having 6 children tends to make carrying out those plans very difficult. Between softball/baseball, choir, piano, Boy Scouts, and American Heritage Girls we have very few free days available to go anywhere and those seems to be characterized by a child with a stuffy nose and a fever. If somehow we happen to all be well and our daily plans are cancelled, like Monday, something else prevents us from getting down to the Metro station such as waiting all morning for the plumber to replace the leaking kitchen faucet.

Today I wanted us to participate in one of the hundreds of TEA party protests, in which we would be standing with signs, "Obama is worse than King George III ever dreamed of!" and "Thomas Jefferson, my fellow right-wing terrorist!" Instead we will be doing school in the finished basement, nursing baby Julia Ellen (who's nose is a bit stuffy), and making brownies. Hopefully we will squeeze in some good field trips this month. Excellent destinations in the spring include the National Arboretum, Mount Vernon, the Naval Academy, and the National Zoo.

lots of cherry blossoms and people

For years I have heard people rave about the cherry trees blooming in Washington, DC, but have never managed to be here in April, so yesterday morning we decided to see what all the fuss was about. I didn't realize that the Japanese festival was taking place, the official parade was at 11am, that everybody and their brother was going to be downtown, but we soon found out when the Metro Center station was so crowded that we couldn't get on the train going to the Smithsonian and decided to walk. Then we stopped at a bookstore to use the potty and I tried to nurse Julia Ellen but was rewarded with milk upchucked all over my pants and her outfit. Only 15 minutes later did we run into problem #3 with the parade route cutting off our access to the National Mall and the view of all those famous trees.

After we finally got across the street, we wandered up to the Lincoln Memorial and took the elevator, bypassing all the stairs and then walked past the White House, not even attempting the closer Metro station.

Poor Charlie was so tired he fell asleep while I was giving him a piggy-back ride. Our bedraggled crew practically crawled into the house where Tim cooked up a triple batch of pancakes and renewed their energy enough to play outside. While I was pointing out flowering trees on the car ride home Mary said, "You mean we could have just seen the cherry trees on our block and NOT had to go through all that?"

It certainly would have been easier on all of us, that's for sure.

carnival of homeschooling

Janice Campbell is hosting the carnival this week with a Spring Fever edition. This week is the Cherry Blossom Festival in DC and we are going to try very hard to get the big kids downtown this weekend to see the riot of pink flowers. Maybe we will run into Michelle and her kids strolling around the Tidal Basin.

let the storm winds howl...

We are currently reading aloud The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder. This book in the Little House series is not particularly adventurous or entertaining, it is composed of many long chapters describing the endless blizzards of the winter of 1880-1881. The daily struggle of life with no contact with others, little food, no coal or wood for heat, and little entertainment was daunting to even this family used to many hardships. I reminded the children that the Ingalls family was luckier than most in that they were well educated and could entertain themselves with reading, reciting, and singing. Pa's fiddle music brought them much comfort when the howling winds threatened to drive them all mad.

I certainly can't compare living in DC in 2009 to surviving a 7 month winter with few supplies, but we have our own hardships to deal with. Tim must spend 2+ hours on the bus getting to and from work each day because he hasn't yet been issued a parking permit at his new command. This means that he leaves before we wake up and doesn't get home until 6pm, leaving enough time to eat, bathe the children, and read a story or two before it is time for prayers and bed. He is exhausted each day and the burden of all the household chores, errands, and activities on me leads to a constant feeling of being overwhelmed. The blessing we experienced last year of Gwen coming over every afternoon so I could go running has not been repeated this year. One babysitter calls regularly to say she is already late, cancelling for the day, or reducing her hours. Luckily the other girl (a homeschooler) is reliable, but only comes 2 hours on Fridays. Getting anywhere in DC means listening to the traffic report and groaning when the main road is blocked by an accident or finding out that a side road is blocked by storm damage. City living is not a good fit for our family and we long for the day when we move up to Maine for good and settle into a rural, more relaxed life.

However, the children have enjoyed riding the METRO. Yesterday Will drew a very elaborate train and road system on a roll of paper and all of them were playing happily (for the most part) for over an hour.

Hopefully, the years we will spend on our homestead will be filled with laughter, music, stories of our adventures in the big city, and an attitude that can triumph over the nastiest winter storm.

Museum of American History

The National Museum of American History has been closed for 2 years and just reopened in late November. With a free Saturday appearing on the calender I decided to take the big kids after breakfast and hop back on the field trip train. It had been a month since our last outing and boy, I noticed a big difference in my stamina. I can't imagine trying to go to work while 7-8 months pregnant since 5 hours walking around and riding the METRO wore me right out.

Both Will and Mary have been studying colonial history the past few months so we concentrated on looking at the Revolutionary War and life in colonial America exhibits, though we did hit a few of the other galleries.

George Washington's surveyor's equipment that he used to survey and resurvey Mt. Vernon and the box used to hold the papers from one of the Continental Congresses

Washington's camp stool and mess kit from the Revolutionary War

Washington's sword that he gave up at the end of the war

At dinner I asked each child what they liked the best about the museum. Will chose the C3PO costume from Return of the Jedi and the steam locomotive in the huge transportation exhibit. Mary picked the computerized world map that let her pinpoint where she, her parents, and grandparents were born. Maggie of course, chose the enormous dollhouse that makes our's look like a shack.

I finally pulled the children out the door after complaining that I couldn't walk another step, but promised another trip sometime soon. I recommend going as early in the morning as possible, as the afternoon wore on there were long lines for everything from the lockers to store coats to the very informational Star Spangled Banner exhibit. I want to add on a trip to Fort McHenry for the children to better understand the War of 1812.

May God bless America and help us teach our children much more of our nation's glorious history.

I would like to think...

that if we had been in that METRO station I would have had the kids sit in a circle around Joshua and just listen. A museum can wait, it will still be there next time, but to hear this is priceless.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnOPu0_YWhw

I don't know who wrote this, but it certainly made an impact on me:

A man sat at a metro station in Washington, DC and started to play the violin; it was a cold January morning. He played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, since it was rush hour, it was calculated that thousand of people went through the station, most of them on their way to work. Three minutes went by and a middle aged man noticed there was musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried up to meet his schedule. A minute later, the violinist received his first dollar tip: a woman threw the money in the till and without stopping continued to walk. A few minutes later, someone leaned against the wall to listen to him, but the man looked at his watch and started to walk again. Clearly he was late for work.
The one who paid the most attention was a 3 year old boy. His mother tugged him along, hurried but the kid stopped to look at the violinist. Finally the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk turning his head all the time. This action was repeated by several other children. All the parents, without exception, forced them to move on.
In the 45 minutes the musician played, only 6 people stopped and stayed for a while. About 20 gave him money but continued to walk their normal pace. He collected $32. When he finished playing and silence took over, no one noticed it. No one applauded, nor was there any recognition.
No one knew this but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the best musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written, with a violin worth 3.5 million dollars.
Two days before his playing in the subway, Joshua Bell sold out at a theater in Boston and the seats average $100.
This is a real story. Joshua Bell playing incognito in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of an social experiment about perception, taste and priorities of people. The outlines were: in a commonplace environment at an inappropriate hour: Do we perceive beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize the talent in an unexpected context?
One of the possible conclusions from this experience could be: If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world playing the best music ever written, how many other things are we missing?

I wasn't going anyway...

No strollers near the Capitol, ( and no diaper bags, no backpacks or no chairs) ...while many people say the inconvenience is a small price to pay to witness the swearing-in of the nation's first black president, others are scratching their heads, trying to figure out how they will sit, snack, carry diapers or transport tired tots.

Parenting blogs are abuzz with complaints about the less-than-kid-friendly restrictions. Thermoses, coolers and backpacks are out at both the Capitol and the parade route.
"Of course, they're not going to say, 'no children,'" said Sunny Chanel, a San Francisco-based contributor to Babble.com, a parenting Web site. "But they're definitely not making it easy for parents with smaller children to go."

...some people are worried about packed Metro trains now that officials are sounding warnings. Metro has said its bathrooms will be closed for security. The option left for parents wanting to change stinky diapers? Hundreds of portable toilets that the transit system and park officials are providing downtown.

Shrine of the Immaculate Conception

This morning the three big kids and I hopped on the METRO for another field trip, this time to the Basilica located on the campus of Catholic University. Since all the students were home for the holidays the cathedral was pretty quiet, which made it lovely to explore.

There are 60 chapels, almost all dedicated to Mary. The overall feeling is one of sacredness and majesty, especially in the two chapels containing tabernacles. There is an abundance of marble and mosaic as seen here in this tiny niche.

The nativity scene in the front of the upper church was very moving, especially since the staff laminated prayers on the kneelers in front. We prayed for my mother and lit a votive candle for the soul of my mother in the Our Lady of Guadalupe chapel. Then after asking directions from two people, we finally found the confessional where I took advantage of the sacrament.

I have to say that of the two Cathedrals we visited, this one is by far the prettier and holier building. I think it is entirely due to the fact that Jesus is truly present in this sacred place and the attitude of the visitors is one of pilgrim, rather than tourist. While I don't see us returning to the Episcopal Cathedral, we will certainly be back many times during our time here to visit and pray at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.

stone carvings and stained glass

We decided to take advantage of Tim's time off courtesy of POTUS and enjoy the Christmas decorations at Washington's National Cathedral. We only stuck with the tour guide for 10 minutes before we realized that the little ones were starting to get bored so we wandered off to see the high altar and the multitude of chapels. I had been on several field trips as a child to this church and even served once as an acolyte during my teen years. The guide,a middle age woman wearing purple "vestments" played up the ecumenical aspect of this Episcopal Cathedral. She mentioned that Muslims, Buddhists, and leaders from other religions have used the altar for their own worship. We pointed out to the children (after they asked) that since it is a Protestant building there is no Tabernacle and Jesus is not present.

This is the main altar which contains 100 carved figures. Tim's has told me several times about his sweet old landlady when he was in living in DC 20 years ago. Her husband had been an Italian stone carver who spent his entire adult life working on the National Cathedral. The workmanship we saw was equal in beauty to what we saw during our tours of churches in Italy.

This is the Space Window with a chunk of real moon rock from the Apollo 11 mission (it looks like an eye) presented by Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins. The other stained glass windows in the main sanctuary were very "artistic" which defeated one of the original purposes of these colorful pictures: to educate those gazing on them of the truths in the Bible. The very large Rose Window above the doors is supposed to represent the 7 days of Creation, but even the tour guide could not differentiate the days because the design was so modern.

This plaque is for Helen Keller and her companion Anne Sullivan who are both interred in the wall behind the Joseph of Arimathea chapel. Also downstairs was a collection of unique nativity scenes, most of which were very primitive, though I have to admit it would take a lot to impress me after seeing the exquisite and elaborate creches in Naples. The children had a much better time pretending they were jousting on the front lawn before we headed home for lunch and a much needed rest.