I'm sure everyone saw the news clips today of President Bush getting heckled at the ceremony for new citizens at Monticello, the home of Thomas Jefferson in Charlottesville, Virginia...
When I first visited Monticello a few years ago I arrived expecting a nice old house and a fun historical visit. Then I saw the building in person. Forget about Thomas Jefferson the third President and author of the Declaration of Independence. Jefferson was also a great architect. I am convinced that there is no greater building anywhere than Monticello.
You can spend all day walking around this building and looking at it from different angles. It's like a painting in a museum that keeps drawing you back. It has a classical perfection similar to a Mozart Symphony. Jefferson also designed the original buildings of the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, and the State Capitol of Virginia in Richmond.
For anyone who has not visited Charlottesville to see Monticello, it is worth the trip.
Happy Fourth of July!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monticello