Long Overdue Visit - Ashland, VA (10/1-10/6/2023)

We headed out of Pennsylvania at around 8:30am.  Our objective was to pass by Washington DC after morning rush hour, but before late afternoon.  The traffic began to build just after was crossed the Pennsylvania state line.  We were super lucky that the traffic kept flowing and we did not hit any long traffic jams along the way.  Mike did a great job, as always, navigating the incoming and departing vehicles along the way.  The campground was literally right off I-95 in Ashland, Virginia.   We drove on Sunday so it was important that we arrive in time to watch the Buffalo Bills game at 1pm.  We made it by early afternoon and got settled in.

We played a little pickleball while in the area but the main reason for stop in this area was to visit with my Aunt Phyllis and Uncle Jay.  We met up with them at their house near Richmond.  It had been several (too many) years since we had seen each.  We caught up for a bit before our hunger got the better of us and we went and grabbed some lunch nearby.  With so much to catch up on we talked straight through lunch. We continued the "catching up" conversation through a lovely little dessert at their house.  Challenging as it was to cover all of life's details in one afternoon, we did out best.  Not sure when we will see each other again but it was fun to catch up reminisce. 

We lived in Richmond, VA for about 6 months back in 1992ish.  We rented a small house in The Fan District of Richmond while there.  We moved so much over our lives, and that particular address was too old to be part of our digital history so we did not have it.  We drove up and down a couple of familiar streets, but nothing ever jumped out as the place.  It was a fun to remember our time there as we drove around and it led us to an amazing Mediterranean restaurant called Stella's for lunch, bonus!

We enjoyed the lovely weather, I got my guitar out a couple of times (finally) and Mike met up for dinner with a friend of his who lives in Northern Virginia.  We also enjoyed an interesting lunch at the historic Hanover Tavern which was near our campground. 

The campground was busily putting together it's Halloween decor while we were there which was quite inventive. 

It was a quick but enjoyable stop on our way back to FL.