The Other Half

Those of you who read this often know that you can often find the "other half of the story" at my husband's blog. So yesterday afternoon, we arrived home from our 3 day mini-vacation and Kevin sat down to write in that wonderfully verbose way he has. Darn. Now I have nothing to write about! Much of the trip is journaled, in detail, at his site, so if you're one of those people who doesn't like to hear the same story over and over, read no further. On the other hand, if you're looking for the same story from the female perspective, you've come to the right place.

We left Friday morning and drove up the back roads to The Inn at Vaucluse Spring, an INCREDIBLE bed and breakfast in Stephens City, Virginia. Seriously. If you need a romantic/recharge getaway, this place is it. The bed and breakfast actually consists of several buildings, our room was in the manor house. Restored about 15 years ago, stepping in the manor house is a little bit like stepping back in time. Huge fireplaces. Beautiful furniture. Heavy wood doors that go from ceiling to floor. Ornate hanging chandeliers. Our host greeted us at the door, offering coffee and cookies, and invited us into the parlor to chat with some other guests. We small-talked for a short time before our host took us to our room and left us to our own devices, assuring us that if we wanted suggestions for dinner, he would be upstairs and glad to help.

Our room had the original stone walls. The stone floor was cold, but the room was easily warmed by the fireplace, graced on either side by two reading chairs.

A shelf to the side of the fireplace contained books to enjoy during our stay. A large chest of drawers and old armoir had us feeling right at home. Stepping into the bathroom, with its plush towels, my excitement was elevated by the sunken jacuzzi tub.

We went into Strasburg and visited The Strasburg Emporium, a HUGE antique store. We spent probably close to 2 hours browsing. I fell in love with the furniture and Tiffany style lamps, but with a price tag between $3000-$8000, it was a little out of our budget. Beautiful, though. Dinner was at The Wayside Inn, which looks unassuming on the outside, but the dining was amazing.

The next day we started with breakfast at our B&B. Breakfast consisted of 3 courses: First, nut bread with apple cream cheese. Then orange wedges with a splash of triple sec. Finally, cheese grits topped with a poached egg, with Brie cheese melted on top, wrapped with Canadian bacon. It was at this point that I swore never to stay at a Best Western again.

We braved the freezing temps and drove to Shenandoah National Park, entering at the northernmost point in the park. We drove 50 miles south along Skyline Drive, stopping at one point to take a short hike. However, the cold and sharp wind convinced us that the scenery was best enjoyed from INSIDE the car. We left the park halfway along Skyline Drive and stopped at Luray Caverns before heading north again back to Stephens City. We made one final stop in Strasburg at Shenandoah Fine Chocolates, a smart decision on my dear husband's part, knowing that I have just a small weakness for chocolate. Keeing with our theme of self-indulgence, we selected an empty 1lb box and filled it with truffles, and chocolate covered cherries, and mints, and everything else we could fit. So much fun! We had made to have a "formal"dinner at the B&B, with a social hour beginning at 6:30. During the social hour, we chatted with other guests in the formal living room, while sipping on mulled wine. At 7:00, our host and hostess came to greet the gathered group and then seated everybody individually at intimate, white-linen covered, candlelit tables. Dinner began with a carrot soup, spiced with cinnamon and nutmeg. The salad course consisted of baby greens, with goat cheese and almonds, with an apple vinegarette. The main course was a rather large piece of salmon, on a bed of chinese noodles, accompanied by fresh green beans. Finally, a dessert of chocolate mousse, with fresh strawberries and chocolate sauce. The whole affair lasted about 2 hours.

The next morning found me sleeping in until the unheard hour of 8:00am when Kevin woke me for our last breakfast there. This time, our first course was bran muffins with apple-cinnamon butter, followed by a tropical fruit mix of pineapple, mango, and starfruit, and finally a cranberry soufffle with Canadian bacon on the side, and fresh maple syrup. I hated to leave, but we headed out soon afterwards, again taking the back roads home. Our final stop was at Veritas Winery. We had sampled a wine from this vineyard earlier this year, at the Virginia Wine Festival, but had not purchased any. We found that wine that we had enjoyed, as well as a wonderful iced wine, and bought a bottle of both to bring home with us.

Our final stop was to take a Charlottesville friend, Doug, to lunch. He picked a great local restaurant and we stayed for about 2 hours, before finally heading back to the road and driving the remainder of the trip home.

3 days. No computers. No televisions. Radios turned off. Cell phone connections sketchy. We returned feeling better connected to each other, tremendously pleased with our trip, and looking forward to the next time we can travel. Well worth every penny we spent.