San Jose : Winchester Mansion

Today we traveled to San Jose, about 30 miles away from where we are staying, and dropped Mike and the kids off at the Children’s  Discovery Museum. Unfortunately those pictures won’t be coming till we get home as we had to split the cameras, Mike took my dads and I, since my 3rd baby never leaves my hands, took my Canon with me. We were actual 40 minutes late leaving because I forgot to charge my battery, and had to wait to get enough juice to do the tour. There was NO way I was leaving her at home and taking my dads lesser camera, (yes lesser, he knows it, I know it, its just plain true)  I have been looking forward to seeing this house for months and wanted the best pics I could get.

So we dropped them off, an adventure in itself, and then tried to get to the house. We proceeded to get lost a total of 4 times, or shall I be more clear and say, headed the wrong way on the freeway, then just plain ol’ missed the dang turns. If *I* had been driving, I woulda made them. Ahem. Anyways, we did make it for the 12:10 tour, in my estimation a very excellent time to go. We had only 20 people in our group and it was the cafeteria that was packed, not our tour.

They start you off in the carriage house and proceed through the weirdest little staircase. Most of the stairs were extreme low-rise ones because of her arthirtis.Makes for very long,ramplike staircases. The rooms are really neat, the only  complaint I had is that there was no original furniture, it was all given to her niece and then I am sure, just auctioned and scattered across the country, possibly the globe. Mrs Winchester forgot, either on purpose or a reason unbeknowst to anyone, to mention the house in her will. So the state received it and acutioned it off to the highest bidder. The contents were left to the niece, and its too bad Winchester was so batty she couldn’t have left it all to her, intact.

It was all very cool, she loved the number 13 so there are lots of places that you find 13 items, (13 clothes hangers, 13 drainholes in a sink)  she also loved spiderweb motifs, also found throughout the house and very gorgeous as well. Its thought that the stairs into the ceilings and doors nowhere were to confuse the evil spirits she thought were cursing her, evil spirits killed by Winchester rifles.

My favorite was the 1 million dollar Tiffany stained glass window, (the valuation today) she actually put it on the north wall, so it doesn’t get any sun, she tried to remedy this by putting a skylight in, but you can’t ever see its full magnificance because the sun never shines through it, sad really! One million cool ones, and you don’t ever see its true beauty.

The stairs that just go to the roof.

This was amusing, the black door is the entrance to a bathroom, but the ONLY entrance. From the outside of the front of the house! She forgot (or I really think on purpose, to confuse those spirits) to put a way from the inside of the house.

Going into the basement, we did the behind-the-scenes tour as well, and its a must see I think, you go through the grounds with a guide as well as the basement and other areas that are really neat to see.

I don’t want to post many more pics, as it  kinda ruins it for those who will go one day, but I did take a lot, and you are encouraged to take as many as you want as well, which is also a bonus.I am really glad we went to see this, and the kids and Mike loved the kids museum as well, I guess it was awesome.

I have no idea what we are doing tomorrow, Mike has the start of his conference so its just Dad, the kids and I…zoo perhaps?