History, Speed and Food, Part One

 September 2024

We just returned from a five-day trip filled with fun and frolic, having visited Colin and Meagan at their home in Williamsburg, VA spending lots of time doing things we normally don’t do. We started with a marvelous dinner at the Fat Canary restaurant on Colin’s Birthday. This is an old standard in Williamsburg that is justifiably well known for its ambiance, food and drink. We started in their excellent retail wine cellar looking at wines for dinner and then sampling them before we went upstairs. We tried and very much enjoyed an un-oaked Chardonnay from South Africa; alas we had just consumed the last bottle!  It was a lovely long evening of celebration and song.

The next day we had a lovely drive on the Colonial Parkway from Williamsburg to Jamestown in glorious weather where we proceeded to experience the Jamestown Settlement. They have a great large indoor area that is filled with dioramas depicting the area as it was in 1607 as well as tracing the history of the region to the present day.  We really wanted to get outside so we skipped most of the films, lectures, and displays and dashed out to the entry of the old fort just in time to see a musket demonstration. All of the enactors were in period costumes and their knowledge of the period was encyclopedic. The young man doing the musket demo really knew a lot about all types of other weapons of the time and could, and did, trace the history of successful battles to improved armaments.  And he was humorous to boot; it was a very entertaining and interesting presentation.  We then wandered around the old fort and marveled at how they had to live with constant fear of the locals as well as the Spanish. Since they were the first English settlement, Spain was eager to get rid of them so they could claim the entire area. We saw infirmaries filled with the tools of the doctors of the day and demonstrated by an enactor who again knew his stuff!  The stories and tools were quite gruesome.

The highlight for me was outside the fort at the water’s edge where they had two replicas of the ships that brought the settlers from England. We boarded one of the ships and were amazed at how small they were to have carried 75 men and boys. The crew had some sleeping facilities, not pleasant but far better than the others who basically had to sit up most of the day and sleep on the planks when there was space. Quite the transatlantic crossing!  It was all great fun and so educational I almost forgot I was in a museum!

On the way home we stopped at a seafood place that was smack dab in the middle of a strip mall and had one of the best meals of the trip (among many). Fresh oysters several ways, crisp salads with seafood and icy cold Sancerre. A surprise and delight!  We did a little shopping for dinner and headed home for well deserved naps. 

That evening Colin produced a mammoth meal with the ease of an experienced caterer. Seafood kabobs, sausages, multi colored peppers, all grilled to perfection and served with fresh breads and greens.  Cindy had brought her famous cole slaw but we forgot to serve it since there was so much bounty on the table. We continued the celebration of Colin’s birthday with French sparking wines and Italian whites. 

On Saturday morning we walked through Colonial Williamsburg, marveling at the old homes and gardens (one of which has a huge old-fashioned windmill). It is a meticulously maintained town and at every turn there is something to catch the eye. The Farmer’s Market was in full swing and, like all such markets, filled with colors, aromas and people from all walks of life.  We were again blessed with spectacular weather, just perfect for wandering and sampling and enjoying being outside. 

In a surprise twist, we found ourselves heading to Busch Gardens, someplace I had heard a lot about but never visited. As we approached the entrance we became aware of the fact that we were not the only people who thought visiting here would be a good idea. It took about twenty minutes of inching forward before we got our pass. The kids have an annual pass which gives them priority parking so once in we headed for the uncrowded VIP area and were parked in minutes. It is a huge place, 425 acres to be precise, and filled with more rides, walks and restaurants than you could possibly handle in one day. We were assured that the best way to get familiar was to take the railroad train around the entire park. Oh my, what a delight!  I was like a little kid getting onto the train which is an genuine steam driven train with a colorful locomotive and coal car. The train engineers were in period dress and the whole thing was so authentic. We settled in and soon the train steam whistle blew and we were off at a brisk pace of 5 mph.

The train goes through all of the six countries that are part of the experience, much like EPCOT. We boarded in Scotland and went to Italy, Ireland, Old France, New France (Canada), England and Germany.  We crossed over a 90 foot bridge over a beautiful river with little river cruise boats taking passengers between amusements. It was a physically beautiful ride, with views of forest, fields, wildlife and flora galore. However, we did see some amusements!!  I shall never understand how something that takes you to the top of a two hundred foot structure and then plunges you straight down at sixty miles per hour can be considered an amusement. There were several of these and all of them packed so obviously I’m in the minority. It doesn’t have to do with age either, since I’ve never had an interest in carnival rides. The last one I enjoyed was outside a drugstore in Norwalk where I sat on one little wooden horse and my sister on the other and my dad put the nickel in the slot and we were off just like Roy and Dale Evans.  Now that was a ride!!

Much to my disappointment, we had to get off the train and walk through the countries we had just whizzed by. It was lots of fun and we enjoyed every moment. This time of year they do a scary Halloween thing that is a major attraction at night when it is dark and spooky but we did not stay for that. We had built up quite the appetite and ended up in Germany, the largest of the country areas.  (Since Adolpus Busch was from Germany, it makes sense.)  We entered the Octoberfest tent and grabbed some O'fest food and drink. Sausages, chicken, red cabbage, white cabbage, a variety of potatoes and lots of mustard and German beer hit the spot!  All too soon, we were on our way home for some well deserved nap time. 

That night Colin prepared Greek Grinders, at least that is what I called them. We had purchased some really good baguettes at the farmer’s market and he filled them with grilled chicken, tzatziki, tomatoes, peppers, onions and sausage - and oh my were they good. We had Cindy’s coleslaw alongside, and for dessert, Cindy’s Lemon Lime Satins topped with crême fraîche. We had a lovely evening just sitting around and talking about the day's excitement. We hit the beds early since we had a very early departure the next morning to go to Virginia Beach.

History, Speed and Food, Part Two

 September 2024

One of the other reasons for our visit to Williamsburg was the fact that Meagan had purchased four tickets for the Blue Angels Air Show in Virginia Beach and she invited us to come with them. Well, I had to think real hard about that one, who would want to go to a large airfield, filled with lots of planes you can walk around or through - as was the case of a C-4, right through the belly - and then sit and watch lots and lots of planes doing crazy things five hundred feet above you?  I felt mesmerized before we'd even left the house that morning! The night before we watched an awesome documentary on Prime Video called the Blue Angels and it really got us in the mood for the show and made it that much more enjoyable knowing all the background information. I highly recommend watching that show. 

We arrived after a lovely drive along lots of water and Naval ships and joined some of our 120,000 closest friends. The Oceana Naval Airbase is huge and it had to accommodate all these people. I must say, they did a remarkable job moving folks, parking cars and manning information areas. Once out of the car you could smell the jet fuel and it was better than breakfast!  Meagan had secured VIP space for us and we wandered around the static exhibits of planes both old and new until we arrived at our area, which was the equivalent of being on the fifty yard line at a football game.  We were given bracelets which allowed us access to everything, and found a table for all our stuff which included cameras, noise cancelling headsets, booklets, foul weather gear (which thankfully we didn’t need) - and headed back out to the static exhibits.  This link will give you a sample of what was there on the ground and this link for what was in the air!

We wandered for about an hour or so before the shows started.The Blue Angels weren’t scheduled until 3 pm and the shows started at 11 am so we saw a heaping helping of airplanes before the Angels took to the air. Our VIP area included lunch, beers, wines and soft drinks, as well as our own set of personal Porta Potties; did I mention free beer?!  The food was very good and everyone was in a party mode with lots of friendly chatter since we were all part of this special aviation community.  

There were some mighty impressive aerial displays for the next three hours as you can see from the links above, but none as impressive as the F-35C Lightning II demonstration . This is the Navy’s only fifth-generation stealth aircraft and it is remarkable. At one point in the demonstration it flew straight up and just hovered in the air, looking like it was holding a stationary point for what seemed like a minute, a feat that few aircraft of that power and weight can do. It also has a turn ratio that is much smaller than other aircraft of its caliber enabling it to excel in dog fights or close ground cover. Oh, and it is LOUD! Most of the planes are really loud but this one, operating so close to the ground, seemed really loud. We were all glad we had our headsets with us to protect our aging eardrums!

Finally, it was time for the big show and it did not disappoint. The precision of the Blue Angels is as crisp on the ground as it is in the air. The ground crews all have routines that are fun to watch and really important in order to maintain the safety of the crews and planes - it is actually choreographed as 2 people get ready for the pilot of each plane. This season they have - for the first time - a woman as a team member. She was part of the film by Amazon Prime and we got to know a lot about LCDR Amanda Lee. Every time the Angels were introduced, she received the most applause and cheers.  All of these Blue Angels have more than three thousand hours of flight time and I think most are also graduates of Top Gun training in Miramar. They are the elite of the elite and the hours of training, both mentally and physically, are grueling and do not allow for errors.

They do have ways to surprise the audience. One of their signature formations is the flying Delta, in which they fly in a delta pattern with only eight inches between the jets. They flew by the observation deck and everyone was watching as they slowly started to turn for another pass and then BAM! one of the two ‘extra’ planes came out of nowhere at 500 feet doing 800 miles an hour right above our heads!  It caught everyone by surprise and there were loud cheers once we realized what had happened, but oh my, it was loud and got the old ticker racing.  And before we knew it, it was over.

As you might suspect, it takes awhile to get 120,000 people out of a parking lot and onto one of two roads leading away from the air base. We used that time to talk about our favorite events and it was fun to talk about something we all enjoyed immensely.  By the time we got to the house we only had thirty minutes to ready ourselves for dinner but we all managed to be in the car at the right time and heading to the Blue Talon, a French Bistro in downtown Williamsburg. Once you enter, you leave the USA behind and are in the middle of an authentic Bistro, complete with stamped tin ceilings, cosy banquettes, caned chairs and marbled tables - and of course a long, lovely Zinc bar. We shared heaping platters of mussels in white wine with frites, bien sûr. Salmon rillettes, patés with cornichons and grilled bread, and a bottle of French Crémant, a lovely sparking wine that is just like Champagne but can't be called that because the grapes are grown slight out of the area. We got down to business after the openers and had Gran Mère’s roasted chicken, grilled shrimp, and Steak Frites, mon dieu, a grand feast with appropriate French red and whites to make it a special penultimate dinner with the kids. 

We were all exhausted and hit the hay by 9:30 since Meagan had to go to work early, Colin had appointments, and we had a road trip to Fredericksburg ahead of us. We took the slow road, which went through Yorktown, I mean Historic Yorktown. Over the big bridge and then off to smaller roads through rural Virginia. It was all rather spectacular scenery and the day was just perfect for meandering. In one of the small - they were all small - towns, we stopped at a funky coffee shop and had a surprisingly wonderful lunch. Cindy had a Gouda and red pepper soup and I had a chicken salad made with amazingly fresh and flavorful greens and well-seasoned grilled chicken. Everyone was addressed as hon, sweetie, sugar, darling and our wait person looked like someone out of central casting oozing southern charm. 

We got to Fredericksburg, I mean Historic Fredricksburg, in time to check in and take a quick nap. It had rained a bit but it was mostly over by the time we decided to take an exploratory walk. We had been here in 2011 but remembered almost nothing about the town or the hotel so for us it was all new.  Actually Cindy remembered one thing, the name and location of a tattoo parlor called "Sorry Mom Tattoos."  Still there! - and who could forget a name like that.

Fredericksburg really is a lovely town with lots of shops, bars, restaurants and historical placards all over the place. We returned to the hotel to get ready for our reservation and decided to have a drink in the bar, which looked lovely. This is the only bar I’ve ever been to in the USA that has Pinot Bianco from the Aldo Adige region of Italy, up near the Austrian border. It is really a delicious wine and it was served ice cold from a freshly opened bottle. I immediately liked the place. 

We dined at La Petite Auberge, which at 7:30 on a Monday was almost empty. We were shown to a lovely corner table and there was a bottle of the same French sparking wine we had enjoyed the night before, courtesy of Colin and Meagan. A nice surprise and an excellent way to start the evening. Our waitperson was young, talented and ever so professional. She made appropriate recommendations and never hurried us, which allowed us to order course by course depending on our hunger level. Roasted duck with scalloped potatoes, roasted halibut with the very best tasting vegetable melange and of course more wine. We did skip dessert since we were happy with our meal and nothing sweet would make it any better.

We woke up early the next morning and took a long wake-up walk down to the river. On the way I noticed a real barbershop with the lights on and the barber looking out the window. I motioned with my head and he opened the door to let us into a time warp. The place had six chairs and sinks that had been there since 1928 and one barber who looked like he might have originally opened the place. It turns out that Junior, that really is his name, is 77 years old and had been working at that place for more than fifty-five years. What he lacked in tonsorial skills he made up for in chatter. I mean nonstop, uninteresting chatter, but I was desperate for a haircut. Cindy, always quick to read a room, excused herself and continued her walk. JR, as I called him, would stop cutting my hair and show me photos of the shop as it looked way back then, which to me is the way it currently looked. This meant that a fifteen-minute haircut took thirty, but hey, I was in no hurry. 

We found a place that had real expresso, as it happened served by a German woman, and we were in heaven. The place smelled of fresh hot croissants and pastries.  Simply the nicest way to leave a city, which is what we did as soon as we had finished our breakfast. It was a most wonderful way to end our four days of excitement. 

Best to all, Cindy and William