Williamsburg, VA

[Kcwhippet]

Well, we're back from Williamsburg. The first thing I'd say is it's a great area to visit, but a short weekend is not enough time. We'll definitely go back, but for a week next time. There's way too much to see and do. When we got there, we asked a few locals and visitors what to see and where to eat. Many recommended the Seafare Restaurant. Don't go. Production line food. I had a seafood casserole, and the lobster and shrimp appeared to be precooked and dried out. Judy had a great sounding steak but it was so tough the dog didn't want to eat the leftovers we brought home. Woke Sunday morning to a dank, chilly, overcast day. Checked the Weather Channel that said Back home in MA was sunny and warm. Bummer, but it sort of cleared later. Anyway, after church we sort of checked out the literature, drove around for awhile looking at the local scenery and ended up at Williamsburg Winery about lunch time. They have a restaurant and the lunch fare was actually very good, with some quite interesting (and delicious) sandwiches. Afterwards, we did the reserve and library tasting, because we figured, after the previous warnings, maybe the "regular" bottlings might not be all that good. Out of all the wines they make (tasted 14) three stood out. They were the Glebe Vineyard Chard, the Reserve Merlot and the Gabriel Archer (Bordeaux blend). They definitely wouldn't be able to compete fairly against Marcassin Chard, Grgich Hills Merlot or a Phelps Insignia, but they were quite nice for what they were. So, we got two each of those three WW wines for further research. Judy picked up a hand blown reproduction of a colonial era wine bottle for some friends out on the left coast who collect such things. Later, we went back and changed for dinner at the Trellis. Walked around the Market Square area and part of William and Mary before dinner - typical touristy shops; beautiful campus. Dinner at Trellis was as good as everyone said it would be. I'll post the menu and wines later if anyone's interested. After, we walked through Colonial Williamsburg - interesting to see. There are some neat architectural and construction techniques. Next day we drove down the Colonial Parkway to Jamestown. They wanted money to see anything, so we turned around and drove up to the Williamsburg Pottery because we like pottery. It turns out to be a huge assemblage of disparate buildings selling anything and everything and decent prices. Got a lemon tree, some water garden plant containers, some terra cotta pot feet, some S-hook plant hangers and a few other things. Saw a nice katana, but Judy said NO! After, we headed down through Roanoke, etc. and over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge just to do it. Drove up the Delmarva peninsula, up 95 (missed the entrance to the NJ Turnpike - darn), also missed the turn toward the Tappan Zee so went over the GWB and the Cross Bronx (which is an experience to be missed), and finally made it home about 10:45 pm Monday night. Nice trip - too short.