Non- trip report to Williamsburg
Oct 4th, 2005, 05:35 AM
#1
Non- trip report to Williamsburg
Sometimes, when you are stuck in town on a gorgeous weekend, you have to "pretend" you are a tourist and take advantage of what your hometown offers.
DH and 16 yo son had gone to Stone Harbor for the weekend and left 14 yo DD and me behind. DD had a game, practice etc which would not allow her to leave town so we were going to have a girls' weekend filled with fun.
We started with dinner at Maurizio's near Busch Gardens. Great food, casual family-type atmosphere. Many prefer Victor's on the other side of town, but I think Maurizio's is just as good. A good dinner with friends and a carafe of chianti soon made me forget we had been "abandoned".
Saturday morning found me at the new hot spot in Williamsburg, the DOG St. farmers market. Organic foods, pumpkins, flowers, live bluegrass music, chef demonstrations etc. attracted tourists, locals, and a bunch of dog owners. I just hope all those dogs were up to date on their bordetellas.
A tennis match at the gorgeous Kingsmill tennis complex reminded me how lucky we are to have these courts in our town. I have traveled to a lot of resorts and have never seen a tennis facility as nice as Kingsmill's. There was a men's tournament for over 50 yo's happening that day. I knew the boys were ogling some bikinis on the beach. Why couldn't there be a men's 20 yo tournament here this weekend?
Dinner that evening was at Soya, a Japanese restaurant on Rt. 5. Everything was good from the shrimp dumplings appetizer and the teriyaki salmon to the dancing shrimp children's plate.
The Occasion for the Arts on Sunday was fantastic. Artists and performance tents were spread over 6 blocks in the Historic area. I usually buy a piece of artwork every year and this year was not an exception. I justified it by saying that the boys had spent plenty on gas and ferry fees.
DD and I had to end the weekend with a bang so we traveled down to Norfolk for the evening performance of Hairspray. Great show!! Even the boys would have liked it.
We were able to park across the street for $4 and walk up to the ticket window to get 5th row just released tickets for around $50 each.
Forget Stone Harbor! DD and I both agreed that we had a better time staying home.
DH and 16 yo son had gone to Stone Harbor for the weekend and left 14 yo DD and me behind. DD had a game, practice etc which would not allow her to leave town so we were going to have a girls' weekend filled with fun.
We started with dinner at Maurizio's near Busch Gardens. Great food, casual family-type atmosphere. Many prefer Victor's on the other side of town, but I think Maurizio's is just as good. A good dinner with friends and a carafe of chianti soon made me forget we had been "abandoned".
Saturday morning found me at the new hot spot in Williamsburg, the DOG St. farmers market. Organic foods, pumpkins, flowers, live bluegrass music, chef demonstrations etc. attracted tourists, locals, and a bunch of dog owners. I just hope all those dogs were up to date on their bordetellas.
A tennis match at the gorgeous Kingsmill tennis complex reminded me how lucky we are to have these courts in our town. I have traveled to a lot of resorts and have never seen a tennis facility as nice as Kingsmill's. There was a men's tournament for over 50 yo's happening that day. I knew the boys were ogling some bikinis on the beach. Why couldn't there be a men's 20 yo tournament here this weekend?
Dinner that evening was at Soya, a Japanese restaurant on Rt. 5. Everything was good from the shrimp dumplings appetizer and the teriyaki salmon to the dancing shrimp children's plate.
The Occasion for the Arts on Sunday was fantastic. Artists and performance tents were spread over 6 blocks in the Historic area. I usually buy a piece of artwork every year and this year was not an exception. I justified it by saying that the boys had spent plenty on gas and ferry fees.
DD and I had to end the weekend with a bang so we traveled down to Norfolk for the evening performance of Hairspray. Great show!! Even the boys would have liked it.
We were able to park across the street for $4 and walk up to the ticket window to get 5th row just released tickets for around $50 each.
Forget Stone Harbor! DD and I both agreed that we had a better time staying home.
Oct 4th, 2005, 06:08 AM
#2
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Wow, Birdie, you sure made the most of the area! We lived in Hampton Roads for a couple of years and found it generally dull, but you've shown what a good attitude and energetic scheduling can accomplish. Glad you had such a good weekend!
Oct 4th, 2005, 06:26 AM
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Birdie - sounds like a great weekend. As you know we love Kingsmill and Williamsburg. When we were there this summer we ate at an Italian place in the little shopping area across from the entrance. I can't remember the name of it but it has some pictures of NYC firefighters in it. I believe the owner was a member of the department during Sept 11. The food was excellent and better than Victors by Sals. The place is very small. Is that Maurizio's?
Oct 4th, 2005, 06:57 AM
#4
That was probably Doraldo's in the Kingsmill shops. Maurizios is in the strip mall with AAA.
We used to go to Doraldo's a lot when it was managed by the original owners. Great pasta and garlic knot rolls. A few years ago it was sold. I thought the quality went down while the prices went up but others have continued to frequent it and are happy. The original owners of Doraldo's went on to open the Fox & the Hound out in Lanexa. By the way, the Kingsmill Doraldo's is moving to a larger spot in the same shopping area.
We used to go to Doraldo's a lot when it was managed by the original owners. Great pasta and garlic knot rolls. A few years ago it was sold. I thought the quality went down while the prices went up but others have continued to frequent it and are happy. The original owners of Doraldo's went on to open the Fox & the Hound out in Lanexa. By the way, the Kingsmill Doraldo's is moving to a larger spot in the same shopping area.
Oct 4th, 2005, 07:40 AM
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That was it Doraldo. We all thought it was pretty darn good but a little tight on space so a bigger spot will serve them well. So is Maurizio's even better?
More and more I am convinced that we'll be spending retirment down there. If only I could convince my daughters to go to William and Mary.
More and more I am convinced that we'll be spending retirment down there. If only I could convince my daughters to go to William and Mary.
Oct 4th, 2005, 08:26 AM
#7
Bennie - I would say that whether you like Sal's by Victor, Doraldo's, Maurizios, or Sals on Capitol Landing is all personal preference. You could talk to five different people and get 5 different favorites. I think Capitol Landing does the standards well. Their chicken Marsala is very good. Doraldo's has exceptional pasta in very good sauces. Both Maurizios and Victors have great pizza and phenomenal chicken dishes. Another great Italian place that is a tad bit more upscale than the others is Giuseppe's out by the outlets.
Oct 4th, 2005, 04:08 PM
#8
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Birdie, That was a great non-trip report. We are going to Williamsburg at Thanksgiving for a golf tournament at Kingsmill. Is there any place you would suggest staying other than the Kingsmill resort? I usually stay at Marriott hotels to rack up the points, but Tripadvisor doesn't give the greatest reviews really on any hotel. Lots of posts said the bathrooms were dirty. Are there any NEW hotels like Hampton, Hilton...etc that would probably be clean because they are new?? Or should I just pay the $200+ a night for Kingsmill? Is it worth it? I normally would not even flinch at the price, but with many more tournaments this winter along with hotels and airfare etc, I'm trying to find the best room for the money.
Oct 4th, 2005, 05:05 PM
#9
Is your junior playing the Plantation tour? Mine is doing the International. I am suprised to hear about the Marriott reviews. I also use their points and have never had a problem. The Marriott is just outside the Kingsmill gate. Also in that area is the Courtyard and a Days Inn. None are brand new, however. If you want new, there is a Hilton Garden on Richmond Rd. It will be about 10-15 min from Kingsmill. Not far unless you have an early tee time. If you do stay on Richmond Rd. post me for directions. There is construction further down Richmond Rd that you can Bypass (literally) if you know where to go. Also look at Wolf Lodge. It is brand new and has an indoor water park. You can just hop on I64 to get to Kingsmill in the same time it would take you from Richmond Rd.
Oct 5th, 2005, 05:17 AM
#11
LHG- I've heard good things about the Plantations Tour but I don't want to pay another large tour fee. We chose the International because the AJGA will use the individual tournaments of the IJGT for Performance Based Entry whereas it only looks at the PJGT championship. My son is a junior this year and has only recently decided to try for college golf so he needs to play AJGA if he can.
Oct 5th, 2005, 05:26 AM
#12
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Birdie,
I think we better do some more research. My son is also a junior and looking at college golf. The AJGA seems very confusing to me regarding entry to tournaments with qualifier rounds. Does that mean your son won't have to play a qualifier round to get into an AJGA tournament? His score from an IJGA tournament would be used for that?
I think we better do some more research. My son is also a junior and looking at college golf. The AJGA seems very confusing to me regarding entry to tournaments with qualifier rounds. Does that mean your son won't have to play a qualifier round to get into an AJGA tournament? His score from an IJGA tournament would be used for that?
Oct 5th, 2005, 06:29 AM
#13
You are right. The AJGA is totally confusing. From what I can gather, so far, is that you can get into a tournament on Performance Based or a qualifier. Don't take my word for it though. I may need to call them and talk to them.
Oct 5th, 2005, 07:35 AM
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Mine is a trip report, for the same weekend.
Original plans were to fly to BWI Friday night and drive down to WBG, but someone asked me if she could go too, "Sure", but then "Can xx come too?" and again I said "Sure", then "We can't get flights til Saturday morning".
So I stayed overnight at Comfort Inn BWI airport which was very nice with an attached restaurant "The Roses". Arrived too late for regular menu and ordered chicken salad & bacon-cheddar soup from late-night menu. Breakfast the next morning was the best "free" breakfast buffet I've had. Then to the airport to meet fellow travelers.
Since neither of them had ever been to DC, we took the B30 bus / Metro to DC, stowed our gear at Union Station and did the Tourmobile. Stopped at only a few of the sites. Picked up car at DCA but due to track work, several southbound trains stopped at Pentagon City, unloaded & returned north. It was getting late and REAL crowded on the platform, and people were getting perturbed, so we went up and found a taxi.
Stayed at Econolodge next to Red Lobster on Richmond Rd - I get a VERY good employee rate as I moonlight at a hotel. Friendly staff, the place is showing age a little, but nothing too serious ... like most, or all of Williamsburg hotels, safe, clean, quiet.
Sunday we enjoyed "Occassion for the Arts". When I saw it occupied only 1 block of Merchants Square I thought its size was shrinking from previous years, but found instead that it had grown considerably, as it now took up 3 blocks of Boundery Street. Some pretty good entertainment and some nice art too. I decided NOT to purchase a copy of this years prize winning entry as the picture of hats was nothing I'd display at my home or office.
They enjoyed Colonial Williamsburg a lot, one of them had been there a few times years ago. Evening shows Sunday sold out as we were attempting purchases. Saw "Grand Medley" Monday night, chose that over "Cry Witch", which two of us had seen before; I'd seen "Medley" before too, but the performances change with the audiences, so why not? Besides, I get my evening show tickets for fee.
We had one lunch at "Shields Tavern", now a coffee house. A "person of the day" stops by to converse with those seated, and the conversation was quite fun. We had dinner at the Chophouse, which was good, but nothing "to write home about". Monday we had lunch at Pierces and dinner at Sals by Victor.
As they had an early flight out of Norfolk Tuesday AM, we drove to ORF and I dropped them off at the Sleep Inn Lake Wright, went online to secure/print our Southwest boarding passes. It was strange to see 2 hotels (also a Quality Inn) sharing the same building, the 2 front desks back to back with only a glass divider. They were quite pleased with the Sleep Inn. I drove back to Wbg, went to CW in the morning to "meet" Patrick Henry in the Palace garden - very good; then started the drive back to DC or BWI after stopping for lunch at Pierces BBQ again.
Decided to drop car at DCA, too Metro up to Judiciary Sq where I visited the National Building Museum, one of my favorites in DC. They had 3 exhibits I've not seen before, but I only saw 2 before the museum closed. Took MARC train back to BWI.
A nice weekend, but I really enjoy it by myself a lot better. The weather was perfect. One of these trips I'm going to have to see if some of the Fodor locals would like to have lunch; maybe at the Cheese Shop or Shields.
Original plans were to fly to BWI Friday night and drive down to WBG, but someone asked me if she could go too, "Sure", but then "Can xx come too?" and again I said "Sure", then "We can't get flights til Saturday morning".
So I stayed overnight at Comfort Inn BWI airport which was very nice with an attached restaurant "The Roses". Arrived too late for regular menu and ordered chicken salad & bacon-cheddar soup from late-night menu. Breakfast the next morning was the best "free" breakfast buffet I've had. Then to the airport to meet fellow travelers.
Since neither of them had ever been to DC, we took the B30 bus / Metro to DC, stowed our gear at Union Station and did the Tourmobile. Stopped at only a few of the sites. Picked up car at DCA but due to track work, several southbound trains stopped at Pentagon City, unloaded & returned north. It was getting late and REAL crowded on the platform, and people were getting perturbed, so we went up and found a taxi.
Stayed at Econolodge next to Red Lobster on Richmond Rd - I get a VERY good employee rate as I moonlight at a hotel. Friendly staff, the place is showing age a little, but nothing too serious ... like most, or all of Williamsburg hotels, safe, clean, quiet.
Sunday we enjoyed "Occassion for the Arts". When I saw it occupied only 1 block of Merchants Square I thought its size was shrinking from previous years, but found instead that it had grown considerably, as it now took up 3 blocks of Boundery Street. Some pretty good entertainment and some nice art too. I decided NOT to purchase a copy of this years prize winning entry as the picture of hats was nothing I'd display at my home or office.
They enjoyed Colonial Williamsburg a lot, one of them had been there a few times years ago. Evening shows Sunday sold out as we were attempting purchases. Saw "Grand Medley" Monday night, chose that over "Cry Witch", which two of us had seen before; I'd seen "Medley" before too, but the performances change with the audiences, so why not? Besides, I get my evening show tickets for fee.
We had one lunch at "Shields Tavern", now a coffee house. A "person of the day" stops by to converse with those seated, and the conversation was quite fun. We had dinner at the Chophouse, which was good, but nothing "to write home about". Monday we had lunch at Pierces and dinner at Sals by Victor.
As they had an early flight out of Norfolk Tuesday AM, we drove to ORF and I dropped them off at the Sleep Inn Lake Wright, went online to secure/print our Southwest boarding passes. It was strange to see 2 hotels (also a Quality Inn) sharing the same building, the 2 front desks back to back with only a glass divider. They were quite pleased with the Sleep Inn. I drove back to Wbg, went to CW in the morning to "meet" Patrick Henry in the Palace garden - very good; then started the drive back to DC or BWI after stopping for lunch at Pierces BBQ again.
Decided to drop car at DCA, too Metro up to Judiciary Sq where I visited the National Building Museum, one of my favorites in DC. They had 3 exhibits I've not seen before, but I only saw 2 before the museum closed. Took MARC train back to BWI.
A nice weekend, but I really enjoy it by myself a lot better. The weather was perfect. One of these trips I'm going to have to see if some of the Fodor locals would like to have lunch; maybe at the Cheese Shop or Shields.
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