Archive for March, 2012

Too Blooming Early- The 2012 National Cherry Blossom Festival In Washington D.C.

Tuesday, March 27th, 2012

Cherry Blossom Pink

As it happily turned out,  instead of being at home on the Eastern Shore of Virginia  at 4 pm on March 17th, thinking about  getting ready for an excellent St. Paddy Day dinner at Kelly’s Gingernut Pub  in Cape Charles,  I was instead walking through  the magnificent grounds of the Washington Monument in Washington D.C.,  surrounded by  incredible beautiful blooming cherry trees.   A  postponement of a visit by a client left me with a few unscheduled days available and it took us all of  30 seconds to decide what to do with them.  Ever since our youthful days lived  in the Washington metro area,  about a thousand years ago,  my husband and I have always loved Spring there and the amazing cherry blossoms.   Earlier in the week I had  read  an article in  The Washington Post  which indicated that the record breaking warm weather this year  ( hello climate change)  was forcing the blossoms to open  very early,  almost 2 weeks earlier than usual.   Peak bloom, where  at least 70% of  the blossoms would be open, was forecast for March 20 – 24th.   So on Friday afternoon it was a quick call for a hotel reservation,  a dust-off of some sturdy walking shoes, a quick pack-pack and we were ready to set off early on Saturday morning.  Somehow, as often happens,  but I’m never sure how,  although dog feeding, watering and walking has something to do with it,  the planned  early  departure turned into a late 10:30 departure.   But finally we were on the road,  off  to the 2012 National Cherry Blossom Festival !    It was a gorgeous day,  a perfect day for a drive, the  ride  over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge offered sparkling blue waters and views of boaters out enjoying the warm and breezy day.   Fortunately, D.C.   is only a 4 1/2 hour drive from the Eastern Shore of Virginia, made somewhat longer but definitely more fun with a  lunch stop  at the famous Cheese Shop at Merchant’s Square in Williamsburg, VA  for a  luscious sandwich of  Virginia country ham and cheddar, piled high on a French baguette, slathered with their marvelous  house dressing,  accompanied by a glass of Williamsburg Winery’s  Chardonnay.

The Jefferson Monument- Never More Beautiful Than At Cherry Blossom Time

A word about the history of these beautiful cherry trees planted so profusely around the Tidal Basin and the National Mall.  According to Ann McClellan in her excellent book about the Festival,   ” The Cherry Blossom Festival Sakura Celebration“,  in 1909,  First Lady Nellie Taft, who had visited Japan and seen the cherry trees blossom there,  became interested in the new parks beautification  plan underway in  D.C.   Mrs. Taft  made known to the Superintendent of Public  Buildings her interest in seeing Japanese flowering cherry trees planted along the roads from the Tidal Basin to the  Park boundaries to create  continuous lines of  gorgeous spring color.  As her interest in the trees became known publicly, as a gesture of  friendship in 1909,  the city of  Tokyo, the capital of Japan, offered to send a gift of 2000 cherry trees to her sister city, the capital of the United States, Washington DC.  However, a friend of Mrs. Taft  assigned to travel to Japan to help select the trees  ignored the advice of  Fairchild  Nursery ( the nursery was to oversee the transportation of the trees to D.C.  from the port in Seattle where they were to  arrive) to select very young, small trees. Instead, hoping to get impressive blossoms very quickly, she instead selected mature trees whose roots and limbs had to be severely pruned.  This error made  it unlikely that the trees would survive once planted.  On top of all  that, once the trees had arrived in Washington D.C.,  the U.S. Dept.  of  Agriculture discovered that many of these  mature trees had infections and infestations and it was decided unfortunately necessary to burn them all, creating a diplomatic flurry of apologies and letters.

Peeking Through The Cherry Trees At The Washington Monument

But the city of Tokyo still very much wanted to fulfill its promise to gift these trees and  the Imperial Horticultural Experiment Station was selected to create a committee of experts to oversee  the propagation of 3000 young cherry trees.  By early 1912 these  trees were ready for shipment to Washington, arriving in March.  At a special ceremony at the  Tidal Basin in March 1912,  the Mrs. Taft  is said to have  planted the very first tree herself.   The rest. as they say, is history.   Word of the beauty of the blossoming trees quickly became known, bringing artists, photographers and thousands of  ordinary citizens to Washington to photograph, paint and generally celebrate the beautiful blooms, with the first  official  “Cherry Blossom Festival”  celebration taking place in 1935.  The 2012 Cherry Blossom Festival celebrates the 100th anniversary of the planting of the trees in March, 1912  and in the horticultural world  this is an especially exciting year,  the Cherry Blossom Centennial.

A Microcosm Of The World’s People Celebrating The Beautiful World Of Cherry Blossoms

As we gaily drove  over the Memorial Bridge,  it was clear that the early bloom  prognosticators were  right,  the trees were absolutely glorious,  blossoms waving in the  breeze, petals  floating gently to the ground like pink-tinted pixie dust, their sweet scent  perfuming the air.   People were everywhere,  enjoying this once yearly treat, hand-in-hand, parents, youngsters, oldsters, tweensters, toddlers, lovers, photographers,  walking,  jogging, snapping photos with cameras, iPhones, Droids,  you name it,  sitting on the grass,  laying on blankets,  under the shade of these magnificant trees or in the golden sunlight between them. Spring was in the air, temps were in the mid-70’s  and everyone was there to celebrate this truly glorious Spring  day,  tourists and residents, citizens and  foreign visitors,  folks with roots from all across the globe,  chattering happily in a multitude of languages.    English, Spanish, French, Japanese, Russian, German, Italian, you name it,   enthusiastic conversations wafted through the air,  everyone  basking in a beautiful dream world of  millions of gorgeous pink blossoms,  a world first envisioned by Nellie Taft  over one hundred years ago,  a vision of  a cultural coming together that  I imagine the Coca Cola folks could have had in mind in their “Real Thing”  ad  from the early 1970’s.

(Posted by Marlene Cree, licensed Virginia agent with Blue Heron Realty Co., 7134  Wilsonia Neck Dr., Machipongo, VA)

Unwind In This Romantic Lindal Style Cedar Beach Home For Sale On The Eastern Shore of Virginia

Thursday, March 22nd, 2012

What could be more relaxing than unwinding at sunset on the deck of your Chesapeake Bay beachfront home,  surrounded by rolling dunes and serenaded by the soothing sounds of waves lapping against the shoreline  and seabirds calling overhead ?   On Virginia’s Eastern Shore, a beach home is all about a sense of fun, of embracing a new way of life,  of  kicking back, breathing in the tangy salt air, listening to the seabirds call,   focusing on the spectacular views donated by Mother Nature !    Especially so in this Lindal  style cedar beachfront home offering the casual elegance and  real livability that  turns a mere house  into a  longed for retreat, one’s very own sand castle.   Nestled on about four acres of  sparkling sand dunes  dotted with sea oats waving in the breezes,  gnarled maritime pines and  striking  yucca plants,  this custom 5 bedroom, 4 1/2 bath  beachfront beauty is all about immersing in a nature-inspired lifestyle.  With over 2200 sq.ft. of balcony and multi-level open decking dedicated to outdoor living,  perfect for fresh air entertaining or just basking in the sun,  and a huge hot tub beckoning  star gazers or moon watchers at night,  folks  may never want to come inside !

But when they do finally decide come inside,  what dramatic beauty awaits.   Soaring cathedral ceilings, walls of windows,  an open and flowing floorplan.  With  the home’s  east-west orientation,  it’s easy to follow the sun all day.  From the soft light in the  breakfast room  at sunrise to mint juleps in the great room at sunset glow, this home is  light filled and airy.  The large great room focal point is a  towering two story floor- to- ceiling  fireplace and massive  hearth constructed of custom selected stone in  eye-pleasing  rose and grey hues.  The architectural design on the waterside consists of three “prows” , each of which creates a feel of a particular living space yet essentially  it is one large light-filled open living space,  a  “great room”  in every sense of the word, with a sitting- conversation area at one end and a dining area at the other.   An abundance of windows on each wall of  the prows and sliding glass doors leading to the decks bring the outdoors inside, the golden sunshine,  the dazzling views of  blue Chesapeake Bay waters,  the sparkling sand beach and the glorious skies at sunset,  sun slipping below the horizon,  painting the water in vibrant hues of reds and golds.

A  large master suite carries on the theme of high ceilings and  beautiful windows and also includes doors to the deck . Guest bedrooms are upstairs, with a central guest sitting area, individual balconies and great waterviews as well.  Beautiful library/music room/den off the great room, a  cozy space  for curling up with a good book, soft music in the background.   Downstairs,  a  full walk-out basement with it’s own patio and outdoor shower, a library area, media room &  pool room,  extra storage for bikes, kayaks, fishing gear and other essential toys, etc., etc.    Truly, this  is a beach home that doesn’t just look like a beachfront home,  it’s a beach home where you really feel the sense of  sand and  blue waters  everywhere,  an inspiration inside as well as outside !   Located in a tiny beach neighborhood offering private pool and tennis club for residents.    Only 10 minutes from the historic little waterfront town of Cape Charles, VA offering a wide variety of amenites including shops, restaurants, art galleries, theatre, cultural events,  Palmer and Nicklaus signature  golf courses  and two deep water marinas.   Atttractively priced at $1,595,000.  For more information and photos on this property, visit  www.blueheronva.com  and click on beachfront  under the “listings” menu on the top navigation bar.

                       

(Posted by Marlene Cree, licensed Virginia agent with Blue Heron Realty Co., 7134  Wilsonia Neck Dr., Machipongo, VA)

The Wearing O’ The Green- Four Great Eastern Shore Picks For Authentic Irish Food On St. Paddy’s Day

Monday, March 12th, 2012

Well, it’s rolling  around again- another St. Paddy’s Day celebration coming up.   Although my ancestors were primarily Norwegian and German,  I really love  Irish music and dancing.  And definitely enjoy some of the traditional Irish foods.   Fortunately, some authentic  Irish food is  served here on the Eastern Shore of Virginia.   When I was a girl, about 100 years ago,  my parents sometimes watched the Lawrence Welk show on Saturday evenings.  I would never have admitted it to my friends, it would have been soooo  not cool,  but I loved his Irish tenor, Joe Feeny,  who would often sing  beautiful Irish songs.  Joe could really hit those high notes !   My favorite was  his rendition of  “Danny Boy“,   which I hoped might find on YouTube, but no such luck.   So I’ll have to settle for Feeny’s  performance of Galway Bay   as  my official 2012 St. Patrick’s Day song.

Now that the music has been designated,  time to decide where to enjoy an authentic Irish dinner.   Fortunately,  Virginia’s Eastern Shore has  at least four excellent restaurant choices that I know of,  scattered geographically from Cape Charles VA  to Onancock, VA to partake of  foods traditional to the Emerald Isle.

Cape Charles:

Kelly’s  Gingernut Pub located at 133  Mason Avenue in the heart of the Cape Charles historic area.  Call for reservations at 757-331-3222.  As one may have guessed, the Kellys are Irish and there’s a big shebang every March 17th– big !  Irish music will be played all day long and there will be a live band starting about 9pm on the night.  Kelly’s will be serving among other traditional dishes,  corned beef and cabbage,  Sheppard’s Pie  as well as  Bangers and Mash with their delicious gravy.  Guinness of course, plus  Kelly’s also serves a very tasty Irish coffee,  the secret of which is to not stir after the heavy cream has been added.     SLA’INTE’     www.kellysgingernutpub.com

Nassawadox:

Machipongo Clam Shack–  Located at  6468  Lankford Hwy.,  Nassawadox, VA . Call 757-442-3800  for reservations. Even though the  name doesn’t sound too Irish  let’s not forget that the Irish have a lot of coastline and traditionally eat a lot of seafood- i.e., cockles and mussels, alive, alive-O.  And Machipongo Clam Shack’s chef  has a tradition of preparing traditional ethnic food for various holidays.   Definitely corned beef and cabbage will be on their menu and live music will be on their  stage from 6-8pm on St. Patrick’s Day.    SLA’INTE’  AGUS   TA’INTE’  !    www.thegreatmachipongoclamshack.com

Belle Haven:

The ESO Art’s Center in Belle Haven is sponsoring ” A St. Patrick’s Day Celebration”.   Located at  15293 King Street, Belle Haven. Call for reservations 757-442-3226.   A traditional corned beef and cabbage dinner will be served starting at 6pm.  Starting at 7:30 pm,  the Celtic Band, the Leigheas,  will be playing live Irish music.   www.esoartscenter.org Should be loads of fun for all ages !    GO   N-EIRI   AN   T-ADH  !

Onancock:

The Blarney Stone Pub– Located at 10 North Street, Onancock. Reservations at 757-302-0300.  Blarney Stone is a traditional Irish Pub and never more so than on St. Paddy’s Day.   Try a O’Caseydilla, a Great McGruff sandwich, an Emerald Isle salad, a  Pot O’ Gold  starter,  or maybe a Mick Burger or the Irish Fisherman dinner.  Definitely Bangers and Mash and Sheppard’s Pie on tap for St. Paddy’s Day.   CEAD  MILE  FA’ILTE     www.blarneystonepubonancock.com

(Posted by Marlene Cree, licensed Virginia agent with Blue Heron Realty Co., 7134  Wilsonia Neck Dr., Machipongo, VA)