Meh, Richmond is a shell of itself. It still hasn't gotten over the fact that it's basically irrelevant compared to Tidewater or NoVa anymore. We have all the money and jobs. It's kind of a hulk these days but there is still some interesting stuff. I wouldn't go out of my way for it.

Charlottesville is cool.

I would put the Blue Ridge Parkway pretty high on my list if I were you. It's one of the most scenic things going anywhere. Plus the Natural Bridge is close by, along with Luray Caverns, though I recommend the Grand Caverns, which are lesser known but bigger.

If you ever wanted to do the coast, let me know. I highly recommend it. Chincoteague is on the Eastern Shore, which is actually across a bridge tunnel, and it's awesome, but with the whole Chesapeake Bay Coast to see, you could spend weeks. I have literally been around the world several times, and there is nothing that beats the raw beauty of the Chesapeake. My wife and I are actually talking about heading up to Irvington on the Rappahannock for her birthday next month. I am not sure if you have any maritime inclinations, but taking a boat to St Michaels and Oxford are superb, and seeing Tangier Island is a must.

Last edited by oxford cloth button down (2014-08-20 05:51:24)

Oliver, you could eat in the cafeteria inside Mammoth Cave, in Kentucky.  Food is sub-par cafeteria style, but the experience of dining inside a huge cavern kind of makes up for it.

HAHA. 

Sorry... I really do sound like a bitter old codger.  "Dern kids these days!!"

Last edited by Oliver (2014-08-20 13:46:52)

Stan, did you ever have a chance to eat at The Caves??

It was a FLINTSTONES style subterranean cave restaurant with rock walls and stalagmites hanging from the cavernous ceilings right next to the Mai-Kai where the waittresses would all dress in animal pelts!

Man that place was such a gas for a ten year old kid!!

And then the MAI-KAI... I first went when I was 7 or 8 years old. Imagine driving up the I-95 at night, past all the cheap liquor stores, pawn shops, gas stations... and suddenly seeing the reflection from burning torches, cascading waterfalls, and colored lights guiding you over that rumbling wooden bridge (sounded like tropical thunder!) into what seemed like an authentic South Seas Polynesian village! My dad snuck me into the Molokai Bar and I still remember peering through the portholes and feeling like I had been transported to another world! I miss The Cave a lot (if anyone can tell me how a CAVE restaurant made out of stone can possibly burn down in a fire I'd like to know!) but thank god the Mai-Kai is still around. It's the last remaining vestige of the great post-war tiki lounges and one of the last supper clubs in the country. It shifted from childhood place of wonder to my regular 'date night' spot as I got older. I still have my old membership card somewhere...

Last edited by Oliver (2014-08-20 12:28:32)

Last edited by Oliver (2014-08-20 12:37:24)

Totally different experience but I'm excited anyhow.

The Wolf's Den (The Caves) was where Fred would've taken Wilma for their anniversary dinner while sneaking out to the Mai-Kai next door for the Water Buffalo convention!

Last edited by Oliver (2014-08-20 12:57:43)

Didn't know Islamorada was a chain but I remember the dockside dining and not much else; sounds like I should scratch that one off the list.

Bimini sounds gross!

I didn't list the Keys but I love The Fish House and Carribean Club in Key Largo, Louie's Backyard, Pepe's Café, Sloppy Joe's Bar, and B.O.'s Fish Wagon in Key West. Those are my favorites.

Newer places: Keys Fisheries Market & Marina in Marathon, The Buzzard's Roost in Key Largo, Blue Heaven, El Siboney, Half Shell Raw Bar, and McDuffy's (okay) in Key West.

Louie's Backyard is my favorite in the Keys. B.O.'s is a fantastic fish shack. Sloppy Joe's Bar was kind of disappointing. It's an old Hemingway hang out but it's a bit of a touristy dive with TVs over the bar and bad music. I still stop in for a drink off-hours when it's not full of obnoxious people but I remember being kind of let down the first time I vistied. I don't spend that much time in the Keys. I've taken a couple of roadtrips, but my folks have a beachfront apartment in Hallendale so that's usually where I stay. I took my wife for the first time last year and she had a blast... we went to Vizcaya Gardens, the Venetian Pool at Coral Gables, Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, Pinecrest (which is where the old Parrot Jungle gardens used to be), the Everglades around Big Cypress and those crazy Indian airboat rides, and she fell in love with South Beach and the Wolfsonian. My grandparents are in Aventura and Palm Beach now so we usually spend time with them as well.