THE CHEESE SHOP IN WILLIAMSBURG

 

We had a lovely time walking around Merchants' Square, but it was lunch time and we had not had breakfast.  We weren't looking for a sit-down restaurant.  It was parents' weekend for students from William and Mary College and the lines were long anyhow.  As we were walking by The Cheese Shop I thought it would be a place we could get something light.  It had a variety of sandwiches to choose from on their menu board.

I ordered the Egg Salad on wheat bread and Gregg the Prosciutto and Provolone on Foccacia bread.  Knowing we were in for another wonderful meal that night, we were happy that the portions were of a normal size, satisfying but not daunting.  The other treat we got was a Cream Soda which we only seem to purchase when traveling.

 

We will not hesitate to head to this place for lunch the next time we visit. Not getting any freebies for this bit of advertising.  I like to give credit where credit is due when visiting a place we enjoy. 

The wine cellar and restaurant is downstairs.  We will check them out the next time we visit.  In the meantime it was fun browsing through the shop and I was interested in what they had on sale, as you can see from the following photos.  I picked two small cans while Gregg was waiting for our order, one filled with trail mix (for me) and peppered peanuts (for Gregg).  My trail mix is below and it was excellent. He declared his peanuts a hit, he liked the peppery taste. He also said the peanuts were firmer and crunchier, and he didn't need that many in one sitting. We haven't seen this particular brand in our area. 

These pumpkins were at the top of the stairs which led down to the wine tasting area and the restaurant.  

  It looks like each person in this artwork was wearing a gourd for a hat, with a separate figure on the ledge giving a 3-D-ish effect.

We chose to sit outside and eat our lunch.  Not too many tables were being used.  We had just found one, sat down, started to take our sandwiches out of the bag, when who should turn up?  Our son with a big grin on his face.   He and our dear daughter-in-law had gone off to a pancake house earlier, and had their own walk around another area of Williamsburg.  They had returned to the hotel and daughter-in-law was having a rest in their room.  Son knew that we were walking around and would be getting a bite to eat.  He tracked us using our cell phones.  Yes, we are all connected and it comes in very useful for times such as these.  I was shocked at first as I didn't know who on earth was trying to sit right next to us at our table, until we were at eye level.  We had a good laugh when he told us how how he had found us (the feature isn’t used all the time and can be turned off.)  As no one seemed to need the table we stayed for almost an hour chatting.  Fun and unexpected as we didn't think we would be seeing him until it was time to meet up for the wedding ceremony.  

And that is about it for our walk around Williamsburg.

I hope you enjoyed your look inside The Cheese Shop.  It is another place I am looking forward to going back to when we go south again.

THIS MONTH'S QUIZ QUESTIONS - ANSWERS TOMORROW

A Happy First day of September everyone. 

A very nice display of dried flowers found in the hallway of one of the old buildings in Middleburg, Virginia, a few years ago.

1.  Who invented the Spinning Jenny?  What is it?

2.  Match the inventors.....

      Carrier         

Babbage  

        Nesmith          

     Birdseye       

    Gatling     

Fahrenheit 

with the inventions

Machine Gun
Mercury Thermometer

Air conditioning
 Correction fluid

  Frozen food (commercial)

  Calculating machine

3.  When was the zipper invented?



Thanks for joining in and enjoy your day.
Answers will be in tomorrow’s post. 

MORE FROM MIDDLEBURG, VIRGINIA

I will have to do another post on Middleburg sometime.  We will be going there again as it's a lovely little town, one that we have been to many, many times in the 29 years that we have lived in our present home.

Above shows Scruffy's Ice Cream Parlor.  I borrowed these photos from on line.  In the top photo the parlor is on the left hand side, and below the building is in the middle.  It also gives you a good idea of what the street looks like.  Dorothy, Pat, Gregg and I were passing by and it was suggested we get an ice-cream.  Great idea!

There is a thrift shop attached to the side, but unfortunately it was closed.  

The dog I showed you yesterday is still on duty, offering a drink with a sweet message for anyone who has adopted/rescued a four-legged friend. 

As we enter the store you are greeted with the faces of animal photos which cover all the walls.

There is also animal adoption information on display.  I enjoyed looking at all the wooden animals hanging from the ceiling.

I enjoyed our visit very much.  The shop sells Hershey Ice-Cream in 16 flavors.  I enjoyed my delicious scoop of Butter Pecan.  I read online and it is important to note that I didn't test this out myself so I really don't know, but it said that this is a cash only place, no credit cards unless it comes from a local bank, no out-of-town checks are accepted.  There is an ATM next door at the Sona Bank, and at Safeway down the road.  All that aside it is a great place to visit and I look forward to going back.  

On one of the walls is an artist's illustration of the front of the shop. 

I cropped the ceiling fixture as I liked the look of it.  It fits in nicely with its surroundings...

and it definitely fits in with my whimsical side...

and best of all?  

It not only serves delicious ice-cream, but they share the love of animals with their customers.  I will gladly make sure I have cash in pocket the next time we visit.  Hopefully the thrift shop will be open as I would like to take a look around.

CONTINUING OUR TIME WITH BLOGGING FRIENDS

(photo found online)

This is a continuation of our time with blogging friends Dorothy and Pat of The Frog and the Penguin.  After picking them up from their hotel, we headed to Middleburg and had lunch at Common Grounds. This has been our go-to place when we are in Middleburg, where we usually get a sandwich for lunch.  I forgot to take a photo of it but here is the menu.  Their website says it is under construction but they do have a Facebook page here.  

My sandwich was the Mosby: Black Forest Ham, Gruyer, Honey Mustard on a Jalapeno Cheddar Roll.  I have had it before and it is always excellent.  I didn't take note of what anyone else ordered as we were too busy chatting, but everyone seemed to enjoy their lunch.  

Most of the photos in my last post were either taken inside or out front of this place. After lunch we decided to take a walk around town, going down on one side of the street, and later walking back on the other side.  There are lots of shop windows to look in....

and this little lady was begging for me to take her home and add her to my collection, but I told her that though she was really lovely in her pretty pink frock and hat, I am trying to be good.  Me being a teddy bear lover since childhood, and a lover of costume, I felt the pull.  Where teddy bears are concerned, I have always stayed in touch with my inner child and am a bit weak-willed.  I stayed strong today and waved goodbye.  I just kept looking for the pretty flowers, and I found plenty.

Many pretty flowers which 'woman with camera' - in this case my iPhone - had to stop and take photos of.  What else is there to say except here are those pretty flowers?   

Dorothy and Pat, Gregg and I talked as we walked.

We stopped to say hello to this handsome chap.  He was in the front of an ice-cream shop where we got our dessert.  It was a really neat place and I think it deserves its own post, so more of that later.

We also found two fun shops to go into, the town's Christmas shop and a wonderful antique store. I admired an old grandfather clock in the second store.  It's not only teddy bears that I love.  It was a beautiful piece and Gregg pointed out with amusement that I needed to add another zero onto the price I gave him. When he asked how much it was and I told him, he did a double-take and looked for himself.  I really need to put my reading specs on when I look around these places.  Some things just look too good to be true.

Sorry I cut most of you off Dorothy and Pat, but I was also trying to get the shop into frame, and give you a sense of what the place looked like for your memory book.

It was time to move on and Gregg took us through pretty countryside on the way back to the hotel.  These three horses were enjoying the shade.

Not a very good photo but as I like to say, it's a memory, especially of our time with Dorothy and Pat.  

We went inside their hotel, sat down in the lounge area with a cup of coffee.  Chatted some more until it was time to go our separate ways.  Hopefully it won't be as long before we see each other again, as I am sure we will see each other again on one or the other's road trip.  

We had a great time getting together.  Thank you  to our dear friends from The Frog and the Penguin.  Happy travels as you head home.

 

MEETING BLOGGING FRIENDS....

We had a great visit with Beatrice and Grenville (aka Dorothy and Pat) from the Frog and the Penguin today.  We knew they were making their way up from Florida and would be passing through our area, and we arranged to meet and spend a few hours together.  We thought they would enjoy Middleburg, so after picking them up from their hotel we drove over and had lunch together.  Of course the car journey was wonderful too.  Here are our photos.

I think this was one of your photos Dorothy and Pat, so thank you for letting me share.  

This is the third time we have met up, the last time was five years' ago.  I was very surprised as I didn't realize it had been that long.  But as all good friendships are, we had so much fun it was like no time had passed.

After lunch we had a nice walk around Middleburg, and ventured into a couple of places.  

I will have more photos of Middleburg soon, but wanted to share these today.  It was splendid seeing you both again.  Here's to the next time!

Have a great weekend everyone, 

and happy travels Dorothy and Pat.  

A SHORT TRIP - MIDDLEBURG, VIRGINIA

(The Red Fox Inn, Middleburg, VA)

Last Friday we drove to Middleburg.  The last time we were there was two years ago with my brother-in-law.  He was visiting from Germany.  We took him to a favorite place, The Red Fox Inn. 

We had this in mind when we walked through the door, only to find out they no longer do lunch.  We were disappointed at first but while we waited for a person to get off the phone and seat us, or so we thought, I quietly took a few photos.  

Our first clue should have been that there were no other diners, but we were purposefully early just so that we would get a table before other customers arrived.  I had already picked out the table. I would ask to be seated right next to the fire.  I could feel its warmth and it felt wonderful! 

  Ah, the best laid plans of mice and men. We were shown the door, or so it felt.  Bye-bye table by the cozy fire, bye-bye peanut soup, no soup for you!

It has a lovely atmosphere and reminds me of an old English pub, but next time we will have to check on their hours.  Once outside we saw this right by the front door, but our focus was on getting inside.  I have been here many times since we moved to the area almost 27 years ago, always at lunchtime.  Ah well!

We walked up the street to Common Grounds, another favorite.  It was packed out, but we managed to find a table, and we enjoyed our sandwiches.  Below is a map showing where it is located, and also the surrounding area and then some.  Their website is being worked on, but they can be found on Facebook at this link.

Common Grounds is casual and comfy and friendly.  It took me a while for my eyes to adjust coming in from bright sunshine, and I almost tripped over a Golden Labrador, a service dog who was quietly minding her own business until I came along. She was adorable, lying at the side of one of the tables near the counter.  Our near collision caused her to look up momentarily,  and I really had a hard time not bending down to tickle her ears, to apologize.  She looked up but didn't budge an inch. She's working and I know we are not supposed to distract these very important helpers from their task, but it was hard and her lady smiled at me in understanding.  I kept my eye on her for some time as she settled back down and snoozed.  It was nice and warm inside here too, a welcome hug for those of us who had just come in from that chilly weather.

After we had eaten our sandwich we walked across the road.  The town was busy and there were no parking places nearby when we arrived, but we knew where there was a small parking lot behind the shops, and we had no problem getting a spot. 

It had also been cloudy, as you can see in the photo of the banner.  At every lamppost there was a holiday scene. 

A little later the sun was trying to peak out and the clouds were drifting away. We enjoyed looking in every window and I love the old buildings.  Many of them are made of stone.

I wanted to pop into a Christmas shop I knew, and it wasn't a long walk before we reached The Christmas Sleigh.  It is open throughout the year but I wait until the beginning of December before revisiting. The last time was with a group of friends, and we all treated ourselves to an ornament. The owner is from Germany. The shop has a German theme and its website advertises "America's Best 100% German Shop", but I noticed this time they are also selling White House ornaments.   

Though the space seems narrow, it extends back a long way.  There are racks of clothing in the last section, which I have enjoyed browsing through in years past.  Some of the ladies and gentlemen's outfits had tiny edelweiss embroidered on them, if I remember correctly. You can read an interesting story about this delicate little flower here, also more information here. When I entered the front door I saw lederhosen on display in the window, along with other very smart articles of clothing.  Added note: Since starting my post I found two very special teddy bears in my collection that have edelweiss on them. Part of my Christmas decorating includes teddy bears that I place around the house. I have collected them for years, but have slowed down considerably.  I still enjoy the ones I have, especially at this time of the year when I take them out of storage. Many are on display all year round in one of the bedrooms upstairs.  These have been gifts and have great sentimental value.  The two below were given to me by my family in Germany many years ago, and I realized that they have Edelweiss on their clothing, one embroidered and the other is a pin. 

These are two of those bears that have the greatest sentimental value.

Getting back to the shop, Gregg spotted a selection of German confectionary and he said to take a photo so that we could share it with our niece, but I already knew the rule and later he saw a sign with a few do's and don'ts and there it was, "no photos".  It was a fun browse and I could have spent another hour.  There were two ornaments purchased also, as you can see above and below the teddy bears. (I took these photos after I had added them to our Christmas tree.)

I detected a certain something in the air when connecting with the people we met, and I wondered about it. We learned at the Christmas Shop that it is Parade Day tomorrow. You can read all about that here.  We have never been to one, nor will we be going tomorrow.  Who knows, maybe next year.

For now I am enjoying all the decorations on the doors.

The child's sculpture was in front of a book store.

One last banner on our way back to the car.  This was my favorite.

Near the entrance of the parking lot we found our handsome dog. No danger of me tripping over this one.  

We also passed by holly bushes loaded with bright red berries.  

The last photo in Middleburg was from the parking lot.  

Earlier we had driven by an old abandoned house a little worse for wear.  We stopped on the way home.  

Always interested in these old places, it was sad to see it knowing how once it was someone's pride and joy.  I can still see the beauty of the home, with the old trees and weeds surrounding its walls, and imagined that a wrap-around porch with its rocking chairs had disappeared a long time ago.

One last stop at the coffee shop.  A latte for me and an iced tea for Gregg.  Not long after that we were home.  

Enjoy your day and thanks for stopping by.