Pony Pasture Rapids: Take Two

After last week's failed trip to the Pony Pasture Rapids, I drove out again today to see if I could find a parking spot. Luck was with me and I arrived to find the parking lot half empty. I've just returned from spending the afternoon wading around Pony Pasture and am convinced that it is my favorite place in the city. I'm sure I'll be returning as long as the water stays warm, as pony pasture seems like a great place to de-stress and enjoy the river.

The part of the river that Pony Pasture is on is filled with huge flat rocks that look like giant turtles. Up close, the rocks look almost cantaloupe textured, and make wonderful sunbathing spots. Just sitting on a rock for ten minutes - water rushing all around me, breeze rustling the trees, sun overhead - is the most relaxing thing I've done in a long time. If I had brought a book and some suntan lotion, I would still be there.

Forget Windsor Farms, I'm moving to Riverside Drive.

Chimborazo Park

While searching for today's tourist adventure, I happened upon the VCU Back to School Guide. I live near the medical school, which has its own section of the site, and so I clicked on activities for med students. According to the VCU page, all the med students hang out at Chimborazo Park in Church Hill, sunning and relaxing, when they have time off. The site promised a beautiful view of almost the entire city, which I really wanted to see. And so, this afternoon I found myself driving up Broad Street further East than I've ever been to the 3200 block.

When I got to Chimborazo Park, I have to admit that my initial reaction was disappointment. While my trip convinced me that I need to spend more time getting acquainted with Church Hill, it didn't convince me to add Chimborazo Park to my list of must-visit-regularly sites. Where were all the lounging doctors? Where was the beautiful view of the city that I was promised?

To be a bit more positive, I can see the appeal of the park. It offered a wide expanse of grass high on the hilltop, a beautiful gazebo and a neat old neighborhood. For those interested in medical history, the park is also home to the Chimborazo medical museum. And to top it all off, the boy scouts have donated a miniature replica of the Statue of Liberty. Now we never have to leave Richmond to get the New York experience!

Overall, though, the view of the city was much less than promised, and the lack of trees made it one of the hotter places I could think of to be on a Richmond summer afternoon.

Pony Pasture Rapids: Take One

After coming to the surprising realization that people can swim in the James River (being from Chicago, swimming in rivers seems like not one of the smartest things to do), I became determined to find the best spot to try it myself. I had heard good things about Pony Pasture, so off I went. Apparently, though, I'm not the only one who thought that a day at Pony Pasture sounded like a good idea. After circling the parking lot for twenty minutes with no luck, I gave up and resolved to come back next week.

The whole trip was worth while though, because I found my new favorite advertisment at a flower shop near the rapids.

Byrd House Market

Through a message board at my office, I keep receiving notices that the Byrd House Market runs every Tuesday afternoon until 7:00. After several message board reminders, I finally took the hint today and visited the Market.

Though today was a bit rainy and grey, the market was still busy and several vendors came out. I spent about half an hour looking around, and found myself really enjoying the sense of companionship. Vendors chatted happily with their potential customers, friends chatted with each other. After walking once around the market, I chose some raw honey, a rosemary bush, three perfect yellow tomatoes and a pint of blackberries. A feast and a plant for $11! As I drove home munching on berries, I noticed that aside from being wonderfully sweet, they were the largest blackberries I had ever seen.

What a treat!

Canal Walk

Since yesterday's trip took me so far outside of the city, I decided that today was a day for a seriously close-to-home excursion. And so today I walked out of my apartment and and headed down to Canal Walk. I started at 14th Street and walked to Bell Isle, and it was a brilliantly sunny (and hot!) day. And now, Canal Walk in pictures:

Monticello

Today's Adventure took me out of Richmond and all the way to Charlottesville. I remember visiting Monticello as a little kid and know that it's one of my Mother's favorite places to tour, so I thought that it was time for another trip.

First of all, traveling alone has its pros and cons. I got in line around noon and was shocked to hear the volunteers say that anyone who didn't have a ticket would have to wait until at least 4:00 to see the house. I wasn't too disappointed since I had hoped to spend some time wandering around the gardens, but I was hoping for something earlier. When I got to the head of the line and said that I wanted to buy a ticket, the guy at the desk asked "just one?" I responded "yes," and he said "you're alone?" Once again, I said "yes," and once again he couldn't seem to wrap his head around my singleness, and said "by yourself?" I've been touring alone all summer, so I didn't think it was anything to be ashamed of, but I was definitely starting to feel a bit red at this point. However, right as I was preparing to be defensive about it, the ticket-taker said "well then I can get you in at 3:00!" Apparently I'm more sensitive about seeing our nation's great historic homes by myself than I thought...

It was more than a little bit warm out this afternoon, but the perfectly sunny day made the gardens of Monticello even more beautiful. During the time that Thomas Jefferson lived at Monticello, the gardens were a primary source of food for the plantation. In order to feed his many slaves and his family, Jefferson planted over 1000 feet of herbs and vegetables, all of which look towards the mountains in the distance. I am envious of the plants that they've been able to grow -- rows and rows of basil two feet tall, and huge rosemary bushes that were incredibly fragrant.

After spending some time in the herb garden, I walked around the outside of the house and saw the underground passageway, the stables and the kitchens. Jefferson had several innovative passages throughout the house, all meant to decrease time spent with people outside the family. Instead of having several slaves walking in and out of the room as meals were served, his passageways, revolving doors and dumbwaiters allowed for food and drinks to be brought up and be served by just one person.

At 3:00 I joined the line for the house tour. Thomas Jefferson had so many debts at the end of his life, his family was forced to sell the property and most of his personal items to pay his debts. Because everything was sold off much of the furniture in the house today is on loan, which means that there are no pictures allowed in the house. As our tour guide showed us around, I found myself feeling like I had been through the house just yesterday. Last time I was in the house I remember being captivated by the alcove beds. Seeing the house again was amazing, and I couldn't believe how much I remembered.

After touring the house, I walked around the flower garden in front. Like the Botanical Gardens, the flower gardens at Monticello made me wish that I could spend my life outdoors planting flowers. The variety and placement of plants was beautiful, and the gardens looked summery and perfect.

Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden

Today's excursion brought me to the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden, which I have been meaning to visit for quite a while. Growing up I lived very near to the Chicago Botanical Garden, and so we visited quite frequently. I was always partial to the Japanese gardens, as well as the miraculous one legged goose that I seemed to see every single time we visited.

While Richmond's Botanical Gardens can't boast a one legged goose - at least not that I could see - they do have a beautiful Asian garden among other things. Today was the perfect day to visit. It only got up to 85 degrees and was bright and sunny. I started by visiting the Four Seasons Garden, Healing Garden and Sunken Garden, all of which lead up to the Conservatory. As the website says, "the Conservatory is the 'Jewel of the Garden.'" While not imposing in any way, it's structure and the sheer amount of glass in the building make it quite awesome from a distance. I have always loved the earthy-sweet-green smell of conservatories, and that was the first thing to greet me as I walked in the door. There were two separate gardens in the building, one an English garden and the other more tropical. I could have spent all day soaking up the smell and bubbling-water sounds of the second garden.

After visiting the conservatory, I ditched my map and wandered aimlessly. I found myself noticing the uses of water in each garden. While I wouldn't go so far as to call it a theme, the garden planners have done a beautiful job incorporating different kinds of water into many of the gardens. Somehow everything seems more relaxing when standing next to a stream or on a bridge, I think. Walking around the gardens gave me a great urge to own my own home and spend every weekend gardening. There were many plants there that I don't think I could get to grow if my life depended on it, including the huge (bigger than my head) white water lily of some sort, which I fell in love with.

As soon I arrived home I decided to spend some time in my own fire escape herb garden. After transplanting two basil plants and a parsley, I realize that I will never have the time or the energy to have a garden with even one one-hundredth of the beauty of the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden. Perhaps this is a good thing to know early on. Perhaps this is why such gardens exist.