The Race is On!

I'm back home now for a week before leaving on our church bus tour. Now, the race must really begin! I have so much to get accomplished before heading out with a bus load of 38 people, four of whom are young children, one under 3, and three youth. We range in age from age 2 to 80. That's okay because we are scheduled to have a great time! We have things planned for all generations and even some of the 80-year-olds are participating in the Sesame Place visit! I think that's grand! As escort, I have to plan fun-filled activities that will please almost everyone. Many love to play Bingo but I will attempt to plan something that will appeal to the younger group too.

Our trip with the sisters and brother turned out to be a good, relaxing trip with very little planned activities. We mainly went with the flow, sightseeing some and just messing around the beach area a lot as well. This was my first trip to Virginia Beach since 1956, when I went with my friend, Jackie and her brother, Ralph. The only thing I really remember about that trip was the heavy rains! In fact, the street flooded and I think I remember Ralph saying the brakes were so wet that they were not working properly. I'll have to ask my friend, Jackie, what she recalls about that trip.

The best part of Virginia Beach is the boardwalk; a 40-block cement walkway that is wider than a single traffic lane. Notice the statue of Neptune along the Boardwalk. You can also rent bicycles of all kinds: for example, we rented the bicycle built for four which has a top, a seat in front for smaller children, and looks a lot like "Chitty Chitty BangBang". It was fun for 2 hours but I was so tired when we quit at 11:00PM, I could hardly move my legs (great exercise however). One could also rent a smaller version of "Chitty" which only seats 2 plus the little ones in front, or regular bikes could be rented. I noticed that many bikers brought their own.

There really isn't a lot to do there that we found, not without driving a fairly good distance. We did cross the big bridge/tunnel to Chincoteague and Assauteague. That was quite interesting, especially when we went under the water and saw the ship going overhead! You just had to forget that something that big was over you and that you were quite a few feet underwater! That could make you lose it! Traffic was pretty busy; in fact, once we had to creep along for many miles. All in all, it was a good trip. It is one that I would recommend going with someone who would prefer to just lounge around the beach, perhaps ride the bicycles, enjoy the boardwalk (which I do love), watch the fireworks (see photo) and listen to the various bands along the walk.

We took the trolley along the Boardwalk and enjoyed the view. Here is a photo of the oldest hotel at Virginia Beach, the Cavalier; I understand that the costs to stay here is definitely out of my league! It is beautiful though. If you have never visited this area of Virginia, I do recommend it! Perhaps my friend, Jackie, and I can return there someday.