The Trip Back to Richmond (November 25, 2017)

 On the way back from Virginia Beach made some stops in Hampton, VA. Here is Fort Monroe which is a very old and impressive fort which dates before the Civil War. During the Civil War Confederate President Jefferson Davis was imprisoned here. Spent a lot of time chained to his bed looking at an American Flag on display. It was also a site of additional fortifications during WW1 and WW2. Very neat place to visit. 

A favorite place of mine in Hampton is the Air Park, which has a number of very interesting planes and rockets. Some are very rare such as the Kestrel (forerunner of the Harrier) and a test rocket (the last remaining) for the Mercury Spacecraft program. Both the fort and the Air Park (which is a few short miles away) are free to visit and very interesting to check out. The Hampton area has a lot of things to see and visit and is well worth a trip. I have been a few times 

Got home just before dark but this house was a stop before I got to my front door. Many places light up here in Richmond, Virginia on Thanksgiving night and they certainly go all out when they do. Fun to see them and there will be many more to see in the days to come on this page!

Thanksgiving Virginia Beach (November 23-25, 2017)

Wonderful Thanksgiving at Virginia Beach. It was a nice day to travel though sure the day before would not have been...with everyone going to and from their various destinations. It was sunny during the whole trip; of course it was just warm during the last day. Did enjoy taking the night beach drive along the Boardwalk (which is now concrete) to see the Christmas light displays. Very nice and enjoyed it a great deal. 

Was fun to see people on the beach. Here are some people feeding sea gulls. Get some sort of chips or cheetos, throw them in the air and presto...instant friends.
Was great to eat there. Yeah they had turkey dinners on Thanksgiving but we enjoyed the fish. Richmond has some great food but not not a lot of great fish. Was told to get that, go to Virginia Beach. They got that right. We had a lot of dinners at Murphy's Irish Pub. It was one of the few places open due to the holiday, and fresh off the boat fish. It was outstanding! 

View from the room. We stayed at the Oceanfront Inn, and I highly recommend it. This is the 25th, Debbie and I got up to see the sunrise (did that both mornings we woke up there) and it was beautiful.
I like going during the off season. Lots of things to see and do, virtually everything is open (except as noted on Thanksgiving) and the crowds are so much less as are hotel room prices. It was a wonderful few days in a special place.