COLONIAL WILLIAMSBURG!!!

Friday, February 24 / Williamsburg, Virginia

Since it was 80F+ with possible storms later and cool weather tomorrow, we thought we would take a stroll on the Duke of Gloucester Street in Colonial Williamsburg. (http://www.colonialwilliamsburg.com/)

Tim has been a good trooper and has done a lot of walking despite his pending knee surgery in March.  The Great Hopes Plantation in Colonial Williamsburg is closed AGAIN until summer and that was a huge disappointment to me. We have never seen the “farm” open, even though we watched it being built by hand through several years.  However, we can find plenty to do along the streets---eating our ginger cookies and cider at the Raleigh Bakery, tasting peanuts at The Peanut Shoppe, smelling the southern ham at Smithfield’s Shoppe, walking through the gardens at various colonial homes.  Blue, yellow, and white pansies are everywhere in Williamsburg. I found a bargain at the Colonial Williamsburg gift shop that made it possible to get another little gift for my favorite 4^th graders at Grover Cleveland.

a familiar sight in Williamsburg!

nurturing seedlings



those yellow daffodils!!

After a lot of walking, we decided to take a ride to the Williamsburg Pottery, another all-time favorite stop.  We soon found out that the Pottery is undergoing a $30 million makeover and it is closed until March. I was in shock.  Actually, this was a favorite stop because it had a huge series of warehouses----home décor items, salt glaze pottery (made right here), more silk flowers than anyone has ever seen in one place, in ROWS by color, ribbon, every kind of basket imaginable, outdoor garden pottery and statuary, spices, china dinnerware, a Christmas store, and so much more all at discounted prices. The new façade is beautiful and we were told that there would still be warehouses, only new and better arranged. I can sense another trip to Williamsburg in the near future.

Across the street from the Pottery, we spotted a new retirement community, Colonial Heritage, with open houses. We looked at several one-level homes with 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, obligatory gourmet granite countered kitchen, about 2000 sq. ft. that were very nice---I could live in Williamsburg! But, the homes we looked at were in the $289,000-$300,000 range. The taxes (school, county) were $1500 on such a home and the monthly fee was $250. That fee included everything—access to pools, fitness rooms, all exercise classes, clubs.  There are two restaurants and a 170-acre golf course designed Arthur Hills.  We made another appointment for tomorrow to see more of the community. Tim said if he were going to pay that kind of money, he would opt for Florida. On the other hand, I see a one-day trip from Erie. We certainly are becoming more knowledgeable about retirement communities!

Tim drove me to New Town, a “village” of shops, but we didn’t spend much time there. We are happy to see that Williamsburg is undergoing many improvements and new growth, a sign that this great area is doing well. I told Tim there are probably women all over the world wishing he was their husband for his willingness to go to shopping areas.

For dinner we headed to Captain George’s Seafood Restaurant, Tim’s all time favorite restaurant/buffet. (http://www.captaingeorges.com/)  The new décor is fabulous---colonial theme, new carpets, fireplaces, and colonial style oil paintings. Tim loves the snow crab legs. The fried scallops, the shrimp, prime rib, hush puppies, corn bread, and oysters Rockefeller are favorites, too. Desserts are especially spectacular---German chocolate cake, carrot cake, peach cobbler, baklava, bread pudding, etc. In the early 90s, the price was $18/per person. Today it was $32/per person. The restaurant is always full despite the cost, a testament to the good food!

 Tonight Williamsburg is experiencing a tornado watch. It is rainy and windy, signaling cooler weather tomorrow. This morning we took the time to find our winter clothes in the back of the truck’s bed that we have not seen since January 13. By tomorrow there may be no more capris, sandals, and short sleeved tops until June. Oh no!!