Sunday, April 5, 2009

The Loveliness of Virginia

I just returned from a two-day whirlwind trip to Charlottesville, Virginia, which I believe I can now safely say is my favorite place in the entire world. (Heads up: intense gushing will now ensue. Read if you dare.) My ancestors must have lived in Virginia at some point - its green rolling hills and peaceful beauty touches my soul, and I feel in my bones that I'm truly home every time I visit.

Of course, being a huge history geek I also adore it because of its historical importance. It's intensely moving for me to walk the paths and visit the homes of the founders of our country - Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, George Washington (just to name a few) - and get even a small sense of what inspired them to create this great nation with such care and reverence.

And finally, the people of Virginia are simply wonderful. The originators of Southern hospitality at its finest, they are charming, gracious and proud of their beloved state's place in history. And the accents - oh, those slow, smooth-as-honey accents just knock my socks off. Even people who haven't lived there long enough to acquire the accent seem to instantly embrace the hospitality. My friend Marijean is a prime example.

Not that she wasn't hospitable before transplanting from the 'Lou to C'ville - she definitely was, but it's even deeper and more personal now. Marjiean not only took time out from her family (sick daughter included) to drive me all over town - including two driving tours through the stunning Jefferson-designed University of Virginia campus - but she also managed to squeeze into our schedule a tour of Montpelier, James Madison's recently restored home (you can check out my photos here). This was in response to my request to just "drive me by something historic while I'm in Charlottesville!" - yep, this would be Southern hospitality at its finest!

Thank you, Mj, for your kindness and time - this trip is now on my all-time favorite "business" trip list (we actually did spend most of our time doing some fascinating work with a great C'ville client - readers, make sure to fly straight into Charlottesville the next time you go - and Montpelier, please call us. We are dying to work with you!). I can't wait to visit again - mostly to catch Mj doing more sneaking into the basements of historic homes. Heh heh.


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