Aroma's, Williamsburg, VA

This morning my friend, Lesa, and I went to the Williamsburg Farmer's Market and afterwards we went to Aroma's.

I recommend parking in the Prince George Street Garage (P1) for $1 per hour. Walk out the side doors and turn right--Aroma's is right there at 431 Prince George Street.

This is such a dog friendly place. There are water bowls along the patio--which is so nice on a summer day! Dogs are at almost every table on the patio. Of course, you still have to have an extra person to go inside and order for you.

We went for breakfast and had the Garden Veggie Scramble and Mimosas.  Delicious! But Aroma's also serves lunch and dinner--so you can go at any time! They roast their coffee in-house 7 days a week and have a huge menu of hot and cold drinks.

PG and Sammy laid under the table on their pads. PG was very close to the door so she had a good view of everyone going in and out. "Are those greyhounds? Are they rescues? They're beautiful!" was the refrain for the day!

Aroma's also has a location in Newport News at City Center near the fountain. It's also dog friendly but has a different ambiance and feel than the original location in Williamsburg.

Wish you were here!
Joyce
Sammy & PG

Kiptopeke State Park, Cape Charles, VA

Today I met up with some friends at Kiptopeke State Park. Kiptopeke is three miles from the northern end of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel on Route 13. Turn west on Route 704; the park entrance is within a half mile. There is a $12 charge to cross the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel one way; and $5 to return. Although one of the ladies in the toll booth does give seagull shaped dog cookies to you if she sees dogs in your vehicle!

There is also a $4 charge to park since it is a state park. Kiptopeke has lodges, yurts and a few trailers for rent; and  all are pet friendly for an additional $10 per night.

But of course, we were there to walk on the trails. The trails are level and easy to walk on. Take a trail map with you, though--there are 6 or 7 different trails and they don't all loop around back to the starting point.

There are more than four miles of trails. We walked through upland hardwood forest along Baywoods and Songbird Trails. People can also bike here. There are many, many birds here. This refuge is a stop on their migratory path.

Sammy did not want to stay on the trail; and he was covered in ticks by the end of the walk! He had at least one tick between each toe on all four feet; as well as several ticks on all four legs. Dozens of them! After the walk we sat under a shade tree and tried to get them all off of him.

We drove into Cape Charles, a few miles north of the park, after our walk to have a little picnic. We found a shady place to sit down and purchased a few sandwiches from Kelly's Pub as take out.

We also spent some time at the Cape Charles War Memorial to remember the men and women who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces because it was Memorial Day.

Wish you were here,
Joyce
Sammy & PG

Ball's Bluff Battlefield Regional Park, Leesburg, VA

Over the weekend we went north for the Grapehound Wine Tour. On Sunday, the greyhounds took a walk at the Ball's Bluff Battlefield Regional Park. To get there, take Route 7 west towards Leesburg, then Route 15 Bypass north. Turn right on Battlefield Parkway and left on Ball's Bluff Road. Travel through a housing plan and the park is located at the end of the street.

We were fortunate to have Jim Morgan, Chairman of the Friends of the Ball's Bluff Battlefield, give us a personal talk about the Civil War battle before the walk through the park.

There were about 20 greyhounds and their owners there for the walk.

PG and Sammy were ready to go! It was kind of chilly. And the pollen was miserable! Everyone's eyes were watering and sneezing all around. Even the dogs.

Finally the talk was over and we were on the trail! I am nowhere near as versed on the subject of this battle as Mr. Morgan--but I'll try to give you a rough overview. The battle at Ball's Bluff was one of the first battles of the Civil War and was an accident, not a planned attack. Union Brig. General Charles Stone took action against the Confederate troops because he was given faulty intelligence from a recon patrol. The recon patrol reported that a Confederate camp sat in a field but it was really just a row of trees. General Stone had his men maintain their position near Ball's Bluff; and he also ordered more troops across the Potomac River and put Colonel Edward Baker in command. The Confederate soldiers noticed the big troop movement--and this was also their back yard so they had a kind of home field advantage. The fighting began around 3pm on October 21, 1861 and raged almost non-stop until dark. The Confederate soldiers had a clear advantage and they pushed the Union Army back towards the bluff. 223 were killed, including Colonel Baker, who was a lifelong friend of Abraham Lincoln.

There is a tombstone at the spot where they think Colonel Baker was buried.  Colonel Baker was a US Senator from Oregon and was the only US Senator ever killed in battle.

The Union Army placed "mountain howitzers" on the knoll overlooking the field, but these were captured by the Confederate soldiers.

The cemetery at Ball's Bluff is a national cemetery, the third smallest national cemetery in the country. Although there are remains of 54 people in the cemetery, only one soldier was ever identified.

If you are interested in learning more about the battle, you can go to the Ball's Bluff Regional Park's website.

The park is a very pretty place to walk with views over the Potomac along the bluff. We enjoyed the interpretive walk with Mr. Morgan but now PG is ready to leave!

Wish you were here,
Joyce
Sammy & PG

Airborne Art Installation, Norfolk, VA

On April 25th, I took the dogs to downtown Norfolk to participate in an art installation, Airborne by Rafael Lozano-Hemmer. This was an interactive installation projected onto the wall of a parking garage; and it turned that wall into a shadow play that changed as we moved. As we moved, computerized monitors mapped our shadows into video projections of bellowing smoke. The smoke, in turn, rearranged projected poetry and turned it into vanishing clouds of text. I thought this would be a great venue for Sammy's dog dancing. In the end, PG joined us, too. You can watch a video of us here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fv8wC6f0fes

 All of the poems were about shadows or light. One of the poems from the wall, that were also read aloud as they vanished:

$$$Expensive Magic$$$

By Cedar Sigo

            I stumble down        around torn peaks

                          “Fit the right suit

                                                      to trick them all.”

                                         the questions fall

                                   around allure. Poems floated

                           from the hearth

                                                sparks

                                 out the mouth. I am wound up, bored

we are only strangers on our way

the hotel                turned slender to mind

                now written out (sloppy)

                                                to music

                dark brown wood

                                 gold mirrors

                             (tight)

                                 The drinking songs from upper stories

drag us to sleep                 a bend in the basement wall

             unexplained

                              scorched. pulling on clean clothes

                  I let myself out

                                                              walk up

                                                                       underground

                                        to a far off hill

                                                             smoke on top

“The orchestra of the

                           immense magnified

       inner life

                   is now prodigious.”

the strings sound down

             make the surface of a mirror

                                                    & hang the head

                           my forbidden past

                                        Rose & Silk

           the wine is young

                                  The brooks still hum

                                                               with melted snow

This was a fun time for us in downtown Norfolk!
Wish you were here,
Joyce
Sammy & PG

Matteson Trail, Hampton, VA

This afternoon we decided to take a walk close to home and went on the Matteson Trail. It's a 3 mile long paved walk around the Hamptons Golf Course.

Sammy sticks his head out of the car window on the way to the golf course.

It was a windy, spring day. Everything was so green. And plants were all in bloom! Dogwoods.

Although everything along the trail was very pretty--Sammy's behavior made the walk not so pleasant for me. He was in a "sniff and mark" mode. We would walk a few steps; and then he'd have to stop and mark. A few more steps, stop and mark. I thought we'd never get through the three miles! Sammy and some fleabane.

All along this trail, the trees have holes in the trunks. I'm always expecting to come across a gnome or fairy family living inside of one! Or maybe a squirrel!

  

 PG in the pretty, purple phlox. Matches her new collar!

 

Some plum blossoms. So many pretty colors on this walk. Yellows, purples, pinks!

The azaleas were especially beautiful in full bloom.

Wish you were here,
Joyce
Sammy & PG

James River Floodwall Park, Richmond, VA

This morning we joined our hound walking group, Around Town Hounds, for a walk along the James River Floodwall. We met by the Suntrust Building between 10th and 12th Streets--I believe this is the eastern portion of the floodwall. We walked under a highway bridge to get to the floodwall walk.

 Soon we came to a great view of the Richmond skyline.

And the rapids of the James River.

The sign explains all the wildlife you can see. We saw lots of cormorants and blue heron. This floodwall is one of the largest flood-protection systems in the nation and it opened miles of the James River to public access, with river walks, trails and scenic overlooks. The total length of the Floodwall is 3.2 miles of concrete, steel, earth and rock, with 1.2 miles on the north shore of the James River and 2 miles on the south bank.

This is a pretty easy walk. The path is gravel. Our group walked for about a mile or so.  Jade came along with us and took care of PG.

After walking along the floodwall, the group played like Jack and Jill--went up the hill to see the scenic overlook!

This is everyone at the overlook. There are lots of paths down to the river from this point--but all too steep for greyhounds to traverse!

The whole gang at the halfway point!

After the walk, Jade and I took the dogs to Ellwood Thompson Market and Cafe at 4 N. Thompson Street in Richmond's Carytown for lunch. Dogs are welcome on the patio.  They have a hot bar, sandwiches, bakery items, and a coffee and juice bar.

Wish you were here!
Joyce
Sammy & PG

Easter on Parade, Richmond, VA

Yesterday was Easter. We have a family tradition of volunteering to run the Pet Easter Bonnet Contest at Easter on Parade on Monument Boulevard in Richmond. Normally a very good time and thousands of people come out for it.

Unfortunately this year, the weather did not cooperate with us! It was pouring rain when we got to our area to set up our tent. Eric and Jade always come to help. The Richmond police did not allow us to set up our tent on the grass--where we usually have it--so we had to set up on the street.

After about an hour, it finally quit raining. But was still cold! The weather forecast it would be in the high 60s. I don't think we even got to 50!

Sammy and PG did put on their bonnets when the rain finally stopped. We wanted to walk around to keep from shivering!

We walked around a little bit and ran into local celebrities, Donald Allen and Bryan Rowland. They make these fantastic hats every year. This year their theme was "Las Vegas Easter!" Donald did win the People Easter Bonnet Contest!

Only 9 dogs registered for the bonnet contest. These two didn't even win--can you believe that? One of these dogs was named Lil Bit--but believe me--there was nothing little about her!

Wish you were here!
Joyce
Sammy & PG