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Actually, it's not a long way to Richmond from where we are at all.. and while we weren't actually heading north on 95, I still like that song and think of it every time I think of Richmond.
As I said before, we first traveled to Yorktown, VA – a very historical and colonial town set along the York River. While here we toured a huge boat, did some shopping, and a lot of walking. Where there is water, there is fish, and Joel took part in that activity as well.
York River behind us...
The Peacemaker
From Yorktown, we traveled west to Richmond – a short hour and 15 min drive on I-64. I have been saying for a long time now that I wanted to go to Richmond for a little weekend trip. Neither Joel nor I were familiar with this city at all, so we had to improvise. While we arrived there Saturday afternoon with plans to explore the city, unfortunately I got a really bad headache after checking in to the hotel and that ended the rest of my day. I also think that my body needed some rest after battling this sinus infection and I simply could not go any more. After getting some much needed R&R, Joel and I headed out early Sunday morning to start our expedition of Richmond. Our first stop was Starbucks of course! After that necessary pit stop, we headed up to the Virginia State Capitol building, which resembled the White House is many ways.
Joel is King of the Self-Timer
that is me! Gives you a good scale...
It was so quiet around the capitol, hardly a soul was there!
After that, we headed down Monument Row on our way to the University of Richmond.
Monument Row
I know several people who claim this school as their alma mater, and I wanted to check it out since we were near it. It was a really nice campus!
Joel graced the campus with his presence...
After UR, Joel and I headed back in to the city for our canal ride along the James River. En route downtown, we came upon this really cute town called Cary Town. It reminded me of College Avenue in State College – lots of little eccentric shops, including my FAVORITE – Ten Thousand Villages! If you EVER go to Richmond, I would HIGHLY recommend checking out Cary Town right on Cary Street. Virginia Commonwealth University separates it from downtown Richmond – it's really easy to get to!
Random dog car in Cary Town
After the mini shopping spree in Cary Town, we made our way back into the city to embark on our boat ride through the canal. For $5, this boat ride could not be beat! While it was not really scenic, the awesome guide made up for it! He was full of humor and great historical tales about Richmond – it was the perfect end to our overnight trip to Richmond.
Actually, the really perfect ending to our trip to Richmond was our stop at the Bass Pro Shop on our way home! Joel loves this place for obvious reasons, but I love it because it is just HUGE inside with so much to look at. Plus, I love shopping and this place really has it all from food to clothing (including women's) to fishing supplies to a gigantic fish tank with live fish to every taxidermy-ed animal you can think of.
I almost forgot! The REAL ending to our trip was actually a stop at the Charles Country Fair!
Petting the sheep :)
Our next trips will include falls trips to Ocean City, MD, a road trip to Pennsylvania to check out the pretty fall scenery, and potentially a New England trip – a part of the East Coast I have yet to see!
This weekend Joel & I decided to take a road trip down south. Our first stop was Yorktown, VA, part of the "colonial triangle" in southern VA - Jamestown, Yorktown and Williamsburg. We're currently in Richmond... anyhow - below is a pic from Yorktown - such a cute, little, historical VA town!
It's been 2 months since I've last posted – literally – July 15! But you've probably noticed that if you were even somewhat of a regular follower of Pritty Story to Tell. Summer has come and gone, and I'm actually happy about that for once. The heat, and combined humidity, in Maryland was the most intense I've ever experienced in the last 4 years of living here. Fall was a welcome change!
During the month of August and for the first few days in September I slowly made my way through Liz Gilbert's Eat, Pray, Love. It wasn't that I didn't enjoy the book. No, it was because the only chance I find time to read is during my evening commute home from work. And lately, I have been the one driving that commute, not Boss Man (my bus driver). Anyhow, I'll be short and to the point. I loved the Eat and Love sections, and the Pray part was only so-so for me. The book started off strong with her wit, and the ability to engross me in her life struggles. I just constantly found myself laughing out loud or smiling when reading Eat, which mostly took place in Italy. Pray was the longest section and the tone of the book completely changed. It was a more serious section and very intimately outlined her experience in India, which, in short, involved a lot of prayer! Then came Love… and unfortunately I did not complete the book before I went to see the movie with my book club, so the Love section (Bali, Indonesia) was partially ruined for me. By the time I got to Love, I was half-a$$ing it because I knew what was going to happen, and being that it took me so long to get through this book I wanted it to be done. On a 5 point scale, I would give this book a 3.5.
As for the movie, I really enjoyed it. I felt like they did a decent job at recreating the book, with a few notable differences. But just a few – Julia Roberts was great. Was it a blockbuster? No, but it was a great Sunday afternoon matinee.
Next on the reading list is The Help. I've had quite a major diversion from my 2010 Reading List, especially since I've read a lot of the book club books that I was not intending to read. However, I did plan on reading 22 books this year and I've only made it through 9. Don't think I'll be hitting that 22 mark!
Lastly, I never thought I would find myself saying that I am back in college again… but holy Moses I am! Last week was my first official week in Nursing school. I have 2 online classes this semester, and so far it is more than manageable. I'm actually really happy to be back in school again! Good thing I have this in writing, so in another approximately 3 years from now when I'm done with school I can re-read that statement for proof that I was actually happy….to be doing homework again.
I've read two books in the last two months that have really made me realize if you put your mind to anything, it can happen! The first of those two books was Three Cups of Tea, and the second is The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind. Here, we have a boy who lives in very poor conditions in Malawi, Africa. After having survived a famine during his early childhood and seeing the toll the lack of food put on his family and neighbors, he became determined to find a way to stop the suffering. Hence, this young man starts studying books at the library on how to create wind energy, and voila - the windmill! Of course, I'm leaving much of the details out here, but you get the idea. This kid was a pre-teen when he built this windmill, and also a child who lacked a lot of education that most of us are used to. The poor young man couldn't go to school b/c his family could not afford to make the tuition payments. But still, he pressed on and built this structure that ultimately gave his entire village a ray of hope!
When I found out what this book was about, I was a little concerned that a lot of time would be spent discussing the technical details of how energy is generated into electricity, etc etc. However, the majority of the book gave a really great background on the conditions that this young man faced, which I think was necessary to know in order to understand the magnitude that the windmill had on this village. There might have only been a chapter or two in the entire book that somewhat focused on the technical details, and even that wasn't that bad!
I enjoy books like these - they remind you to be grateful for what you have, and that fancy cars and houses and clothes and any other material things don't really matter so much in the grand scheme of things!
Last Kiss was an AllYou Magazine book club selection.Since I read all of those books, I had to read this one as well.The book was a quick read.It was about a country-music singer named Sheridan who loses her 19 year old son, Charlie, in a murder in New York City.Charlie’s girlfriend, Nell, hires a private investigator to find out what happened to him.The P.I. happens to be Sheridan’s ex-boyfriend from many years ago.And thus the romance/mystery novel begins.Gavin works to figure out what has happened to Charlie, while Nell tries to cope with the death of her one true love.Eventually they discover how Charlie has died – and they lived happily ever after….
I’ll give it 3/5 stars.It was ok – I’m more than ready to move on to the next book!The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind is the next book on my list – selected by the church book club.More on that to come soon!
In accordance with the new FTC guidelines regarding endorsements for blogging, it is safe to assume that any book I review has been purchased on my own, unless otherwise stated. I currently do NOT review books from publishers, or any other similar entity. I independently purchase my books, and MY thoughts and MY opinions for each review are given after I have read the entire book.
