A Blast from the Past...Two Weeks in Norfolk, VA

My first, no make that my only previous time spent in Virginia has been a two week period around 1983. I got into the Naval Reserve to make some extra money. Having spent four years in the Navy back in the late 70's, it was a job that I could do, and I had some fun experiences from those days. I had somewhat forgotten what it was like to actually be back in the Navy....in fact shortly after the trip to Virginia I resigned from the reserves (could do that as I had filled all of my Naval service requirements prior to that period. Virginia though was not the problem at all. In fact, overall (other than the military part of it) I had a very good time there. I took the photo at left at the Naval Base. As I remember it was April and the weather was wild. I can remember it being very cold some days and wore heavy coats, I also had a few days with t-shirts and shorts. The base was remarkable, easily the largest Naval base I had ever been on. The "pier" seemed to go on forever, and there were ships of all types along its huge length. Massive buildings (I worked in the Naval Supply Center which was also huge) and a great area from the pier to the main gate. It was a very cool place.

I made some good friends there, had a buddy named "Converse" and another named Jim (thats Jim in the photo below). Jim was from of all places, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. He thought it was a great place to live and work. I on the other hand worked in Louisville, Kentucky, and at the time....well, lets just say the part time job in the Reserve was not out of a sense of fun. Anyhow, we went to Virginia Beach (where the second photo was taken) and had a good time there. It was an interesting town, very crowded on the main streets, but we liked the beaches. Due to the weather that day there were very few in the water.
I also remember going to (what I believe was called) the Azalia Festival. That was cool, had a German Naval Ship there, a Renaissance Festival, and they had a huge airshow (on a hot day) at the Naval Air Station. The planes put on a remarkable display, and could really do some flying over the Atlantic Ocean. We also (being sailors of a sort) some exploring of the local nightlife. I remember a few places we went to, but they were largely the normal rock and roll dives of the period. Listened to some music, and enjoyed some of the local beverages that the locals offered to sell us (for a nominal fee). As far as fun things to do, I think we got in more than our share.

My early impressions of Virginia were that it was a fun and interesting place. I did not return for a long time; really until I came back here. When going to Louisville via Charlotte there are two routes; one is through Tennessee, the other is via Virginia and West Virginia to Louisville. I can go up I-77 into West Virginia and pick up I-64 which runs into Louisville, Kentucky. It is a little longer than the I-40 route, requires the payment of tolls, but is a easier drive. Funny thing about I-64, not only does it run into Louisville, Kentucky, but taken in the other direction it runs straight into....Richmond, VA.

Some notes on Richmond, VA

A very productive day yesterday, in that I got my actual address of the apartment which will be home for the next three years. With that,

will be able to get the power changed over (though not yet, people living there now) and also was able to find what internet providers provide service as an exact address is needed. Much like the Charlotte move, the internet has been a real good tool. I have been able to get a great deal of information on many necessary things from the web. Great sources of information are the local newspapers (always good for many points of information), various web sites (some good and some not so good) and for this transfer bloggers. I have gotten a real feel for parts of the city by reading blogs. Of course some are shall we say "artistic" to a point that its difficult to figure out what they are actually about, but even some of those are pretty informative. The web is a great tool though once again as it has been in the past. Back in the Navy days, different places were learned about via asking people who had been there, and of course books. All those are still important, and have been lucky to get information from those sources as well.

Of course, while all that is good, nothing beats actually being there. This photo above was another taken during the November 8-9 trip, and is of downtown Richmond. It was interesting to me in that the two large buildings are Bank of America in the center, and Wachovia to its left. Funny, in that the two largest buildings (or at least Bank of America is) are those same banks.

Charlotte is a town I have really enjoyed exploring....one which calls itself the city of the "New South." Constantly growing and adding to itself, the skyline of Charlotte is dotted with overhead cranes and new construction. Charlotte looks at an old building and sees a condo, or a NASCAR Hall of Fame (opening soon) or a new arena. Going to Charlotte after a few weeks, one is struck with the changes you discover. Charlotte is like a thing alive, constantly changing.

Richmond on the other hand, seems to change much slower. Both Charlotte and Richmond are older cities; both have history dating back to the American Revolution (though Richmond is much older I believe). Richmond though uses its old buildings in new ways. There are few old things in Charlotte that one can point too, but Richmond has a great many old buildings. That gives the city a certain charm I am used to. Louisville, Kentucky where I am from has a lot of older buildings as well. I often visit Louisville, and am sure to have some photos of that city on my Flickr page. You can also see some photos of Charlotte there as well on my page, in addition to many of the Richmond photos.

My next visit to Richmond will be the first weekend in February. That is also when I will be moving into the apartment; before that have to get some items for "the second household" and also of course will be doing more research. More on that in an upcoming post.

Countdown To Richmond (January 1,2009)

Took this photo in McAdenville, NC; have been in Concord for ten years but have never driven to see the lights in "Christmas Town, USA". Got to say it was well worth the ride. Have had (still a few more days off) a very fine break from work over the holidays; got in some good motorcycling, had a nice Christmas with my wife, son and two border collies, and have been able to do some serious research on the upcoming move.

I spend a bit of time every day reading The Richmond-Times Dispatch on line....getting as much of a feel for the local Richmond region as possible. I have been getting some information on a small truck to move the things I will be taking there, and also have been looking some at things I will need to get to make life better there. Having just made a move from Louisville, KY to Concord, NC 10 years ago, I do have some idea of what all will be involved in the move. Doing this is never easy.....a great deal of unknowns will happen along the way. I did enjoy the trip there in mid-December, and the company gave me a good book full of information on the job which will be a huge help while I am there. Got to say, they are doing a much better job than they did 10 years ago. That move really was a mystery.

Richmond looks to be a really interesting place. I did read this week that parts of an old hotel downtown fell onto the street (just a few bricks). A blogger noted that the hotel was built in 1929, and was one of downtown's "newer" hotels. For sure to be the age of the city is certainly part of its charm. I do like older towns; spent some time on the motorcycle this week in Salisbury, NC an old town in North Carolina (dating back to the 1700's, heavily damaged in the Civil War) and fun to see the older areas. I like to explore and am looking forward to doing some of that in Richmond, which appears to have a lot to see.

I will be there in six weeks from today. There is a lot to do in that time, and will be working to get things ready for the transfer. Will be more difficult this time as my family is staying here, and I will be doing this solo....but will be home on (hopefully most) weekends. Patty and I though do have plans for her to make some trips there, and together we will also do some exploring of the Richmond area. It ought to be a lot of fun, hopefully the three years I will be spending there will be just that!