Visit to Charleston, SC (March 30-April 1, 2017)

 Great time during my visit to Charleston, South Carolina with my girlfriend Debbie during my vacation. We did not pick the best time to go, as there was a huge flower show in Summerville, South Carolina and also the Saturday morning bridge run which brought a great number of people there. We had to stay in nearby Moncks Corner at the Moncks Corner Inn. Great thing was that turned out to be a really good hotel and enjoyed it.
We did get out to the South Carolina Aquarium which is (as it has been been in past visits) nothing short of remarkable. It remains my favorite one to visit and we enjoyed it a great deal. The visit to the aquarium lasted almost three hours. It is a can't miss stop if you go to Charleston.
We attempted to go into Charleston to see some of the sights. Never have I seen the city so packed with people and cars. There was literally no places to park and just a huge mass of people there, We did drive around to see a few things and had hoped to take a carriage ride around town but the long lines made that something to do for another time in the future.

We did get out on the bridge which is a remarkable thing. Have ridden on it before but as always impressed and a huge change from what was there a few years prior. It is a beautiful bridge.

We did make a lunch trip to Shem Creek. Stopped at RB's which is a favorite stop of mine. Good fish and the service is really good as well as the view there. No dolphins were playing in the water this time, but a number of pelicans were and enjoyed watching them. While it was really busy there, it was not too awfully bad and after a short 25 minute wait we were able to get a table and enjoy some fish.
After that, headed back to Moncks Corner and visited with Debbie's Cousin and her family there. It was a wonderful time.

While the drive to Charleston was gray and gloomy the ride back was very nice. Made a stop at a Harley-Davidson dealer (Debbie was looking for some t-shirts) and as for myself really enjoyed the visit to North Carolina. Stopped at this rest area and checked out the art work there. It is called "Dive Bomber Duck" and was made by the late Vollis Simpson. Mr. Simpson is the official Folk Artist of North Carolina.
Trip was without problems on the road and we got back right around midnight of what I guess would be April 2. Looking forward to my next visit to this great city.  

Church Hill Irish Festival (March 25, 2017)

One of my favorite events is the Church Hill Irish Festival. I tend to go early, and catch the opening parade. Always a good time with a lot of good food, tasty beer, and you get to see guys and gals in kilts play bagpipes and beat on drums. Not the typical thing to do but a whole lot of fun.
Weather was perfect for the festival..t shirt weather for the rest of us, and not a cloud in the shy. Even had a bit of Irish dancing at the festival as well as some really good bands.  

Nearby is St. John's Church. In the graveyard is the mother of Edgar Allen Poe and one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence.
The church is famous for the speech given by Patrick Henry just before the Revolutionary War which ended with the epic line "Give me Liberty or Give me Death". Learned a few things including that the church is much bigger than it was back then, but it is still the original building which has survived as long as America...and then some.

The Valentine and the Poe Museums (March 12, 2017)

 Got out for a while today and got to see for the first time The Valentine Museum. I read that it is either the first or one of the first museums in Richmond, VA. It was founded in 1898, I enjoyed checking it out, and there were many interesting things inside the museum which is focused on the history of Richmond, VA. Nice first visit and plan to return in the future to check out some more of it. There are also other parts of it scattered around the city.  

As for the Poe Museum, I have been there a number of times. It focuses on the life of Edgar Allen Poe, one of my favorite authors. Of note, he spent most of his life and wrote most of his books in the city of Richmond. The house the museum is situated in was never a residence of his but is the oldest surviving house in the City of Richmond. It is a very interesting museum which tells the story of a very interesting man. Well worth a visit if you are ever in Richmond, VA.

A Walk in Manchester (March 11, 2017)

 Warmer day then expected..not warm enough to really enjoy a motorcycle ride, but got in the car and rode to Manchester. Forget the British flag, this is a suburb of Richmond...though Richmond itself was once British property...hence I think the name. Took this photo from Legend Brewing which is both local in my case and my favorite brewery in Richmond. I go to a lot of them in the region, but this is my go to pub for lack of a better term. This view is from the beer deck.

I purchased by current ride at Scoot Richmond which is a 2016 Triumph Speedmaster. Yeah, that is a British motorcycle. This is another British motorcycle, a 2017 Triumph Bobber. A few months ago I went to a special showing of this motorcycle, and now they have one for sale (believe they have another). I had traded in my 2005 Kawasaki Vulcan Classic and had learned it had been sold. Stopped by the shop to see the Bobber and to hear about that.  

This bridge is a nice walk. Opened a few months ago and runs from Manchester to downtown Richmond; specifically Tredegar Iron Works which was the big armory for the Confederate States of America in the Civil War. While much of Richmond got burned down when the Union troops took it over, Tredegar largely survived. Walking on this bridge you get to see some of the bridges that were burned back in the day (some of the stone work remains) and a nice river view.    

This is at Tredegar and that is yours truely standing by a Civil War cannon. I really enjoy visiting this place which just drips with history. Also near there is The Virginia War Memorial and Belle Island. Both of those have been visited and will be many times in the future by me, in the past. Nice living close to these areas and also enjoy visiting Hollywood Cemetery which is the home to "two and a half US Presidents" as I like to say and the Oregon Hill neighborhood.
There is a lot of things to do in this area and on a rather cool day in Richmond this was really a fine day to spend it doing some exploring. There is always something new to see here.    

On the way back across the bridge, got a photo of this bird which I had seen flying around for a while. Neat thing is to see all the nature along the James River as well as people enjoying all the nature along the James River.
Made after the walk a quick stop at Legend Brewing as noted. Did not eat but the food is pretty good too, though my favorite thing is the beer. They have been doing this for a long time and it is first rate.
Spent a few pleasant hours there and look forward to future stops in that neighborhood. It has had a lot of nice changes and development over the years and is one of the fastest growing areas of the city here on the Southside of Richmond, VA  .  

Visiting Apollo 11 (March 5, 2017)

Drove today to the Steven Udvar-Hazy Center, the "annex" to the National Air and Space Museum. The main museum is in downtown Washington, DC, this is located in Chantilly, VA. Amazing collection there, and this is my third visit to the museum which is one of my favorite places in Virginia. All sorts of planes there, such as this WWI aircraft. German in this case, and was typical of planes of that era. Wood, wire can canvas. No parachutes for the pilots either. It was a very tough way to fly and to fight and the toll in that war was high on planes and pilots. Another one of the planes in the WW2 collection, again this is a German aircraft. There are many though from all eras of flying including some rare Japanese aircraft, some British and some amazing American aircraft.

Big reason for this trip was to see Apollo 11 which is getting cleaned up for an upcoming four city tour during the next couple of years. This is the Command Module from the first crew to land on, and walk on the moon.
The very vast majority of aircraft and space craft are the planes and spaceships that made history. There are all sorts of things to see, as well as rockets, and personal items from many of the pilots and the era. I always have enjoyed my visits and certainly am looking forward to the next one.

Seen here is a later day WWII Navy plane, and an F-100 from the early Vietnam era. The museum is open most days and admission is free though parking is $15. The museum is located near Dulles Airport, which came in handy when the Space Shuttle Discovery landed on the back of its 747 carrier aircraft a few years ago. I have posted photos of that amazing spacecraft in previous posts on visits to this museum.

Belle Isle February 19, 2017)

On a very and amazingly warm Sunday in Richmond took a walk to Belle Isle. Course I drove there, but parking was quite an adventure. Seems on a day with a high in the 70's a whole bunch of people came up with the very same idea.
Still, got there and took a walk across the bridge (there is also another). Seen here is a view of Richmond from there, and the remains in the river of a former bridge.    

Belle Isle is remarkable. This is a view across the James with Hollywood Cemetery seen in the background (also a remarkable place). Over the years the island has been a, or the site of...a rock quarry, Indian campground, a Civil War prison, a iron plant, a metal factory, a power plant, and even a defensive gun emplacement again during the Civil War. Amazing bit of history and beautiful sights.    

Now used by bikers (bicycles), hikers and just people enjoying the sights and all that the Island has to offer. On this day it was a really full of people and I had a great time getting a good walk in, and exploring some of the places there.
I have been there many times in the past and hopefully will be again in the future.
It is one of the great treasures of Richmond and is one of the things that makes this city so much fun.  

An Afternoon in Ashland, VA (February 18, 2017)

Motorcycle ride to Ashland, one of my favorite local cities on a 70 degree day. First stop was a return visit to Hanover County Airport which is in (or very near) to Ashland, VA. Why you ask? Cause I love aircraft that's why!

 Down in Ashland which was named for Henry Clay's house in Kentucky. In fact that is the Henry Clay Inn in yellow in the photo (named for him, he never owned it), and to the right is the old Train Station which is now a Museum/Visitor Center. Fun place to explore and to see both some very cool historic items and information on very cool things to see in the area and the state. Plus from time to time you get to see a train fly by.

Trains are a big park of the city, these tracks run right down the center of town. Ashland is concerned about upcoming plans to run three tracks down the street. The third track would be for high speed rail.
The train would significantly shorten the time it takes to get North or South but would for sure impact the town.
Will be interesting to see what happens and how that goes.  

Took a walk around the campus of Randolph-Macon University while I was there. Beautiful old school with a mix of old and new buildings and a real nice athletic facility. Had not wandered around there but enjoyed it a great deal. I also had lunch at Suzanne's in Ashland and that was really fantastic. I will be back to eat there again on a future visit.

Finally made a stop at "Center of the Universe Brewing" which is also near the airport (part of the reason I went to the airport was also to find this place which opened later in the day). Nice place with some very fine beer, as well as some very fun pinball machines. They also have a very nice outdoor area as you can see here. Had a great time there and like Suzanne's I will be back.
For that matter will be back to Ashland, a town I have visited many times in the past and will again many times in the future. Nice town with some very friendly people and many interesting things to see and do.