University of Virginia

What I Learned about Charlottesville, Virginia

Published February 15, 2016 | By Clark Norton

Monticello — Jefferson’s home, which appears on the U.S. nickel coin. Photo by Clark Norton

Dear Readers,

While I’m traveling in Antarctica for a few weeks I’ll be reprising some of my most popular posts from the past three years. This one (now slightly updated) originally ran in December of 2013.

On a recent family visit to Charlottesville, Virginia, I found it to be a very livable — and visit-able — city, which I highly recommend for baby boomer travelers.

Mostly I knew it as the home of the University of Virginia and Monticello, the home of Thomas Jefferson, both of which were designed by our third president. Those two sites alone would warrant a visit, but anyone interested in history, outdoor activities and good food would find a welcome respite in Charlottesville.

Now here are ten things I didn’t know about Charlottesville:

Montpelier, home of President James Madison. Photo by Lia Norton

Montpelier, home of… Continue reading →

Posted in Baby boomer travel, Cities, cultural travel, Hiking, History, museums | Tagged Appalachian Trail, Ash Lawn-Highland, Charlottesville, Crabtree Falls, James Madison, James Monroe, Monticello, Montpelier, Shenandoah National Park, Skyline Drive, Spudnuts, Thomas Jefferson, University of Virginia, Virginia | Leave a comment

Special April Fool’s Day Travel Quiz

Published April 1, 2015 | By Clark Norton

The Habsburg Empress Maria Theresa — did she name all her daughters after herself?

The usual April 1 routine among publications is to write up some ridiculous story and try to convince readers that it’s true. Today I’m going to reverse that.

All of these 12 trivia items have appeared in some form on my blog over the past two years or so. Only one of them is false.

See if you can figure out which one is strictly for April Fool’s Day:

* You can fly to Mongolia from Beijing, China, in less than two hours.

* Some of the most coveted and prestigious student residences at the University of Virginia have no bathrooms.

* Habsburg Empress Maria Theresa had 16 children; her 11 daughters were all named Maria or Marie.

* The small South Pacific island nation of Tuvalu has made millions… Continue reading →

Posted in Baby boomer travel, Blogging, Cities, Countries, Cruises, Marketing | Tagged Aranui 5, Bavaria, beer, Beijing, Empress Maria Theresa, Florida Keys, Ithaca, Lion World Travel, Mongolia, Museum of Broken Relationships, Rip Van Winkle, Roanoke, Super 8 Motel, Tuvalu, University of Virginia, VisitBritain, Zagreb | Leave a comment

5 More Things I Didn’t Know About Charlottesville, Virginia

Published October 14, 2014 | By Clark Norton

Monticello, Thomas Jefferson”s home, is just outside Charlottesville and can be reached by a hiking trail. Photo by Clark Norton

Last fall after a visit to Charlottesville, Virginia, I wrote about Ten Things I Didn’t Know about this lovely Virginia city where my daughter now lives.

And now, after a recent second visit, I’ve compiled a list of Five More Things I Didn’t Know About “C’Ville.” So I guess I’m learning. (Stay tuned next year for “One or Two More Things I Didn’t Know About Charlottesville?”)

You could call this the “sports and outdoor activities” edition of the things I didn’t know. It was warmer in October than it was last year in late November, so I got outside more, including to a University of Virginia night football game, a win over Pitt that came complete with exploding scoreboard every time UVA scored, enough cheerleaders and band members to… Continue reading →

Posted in Baby boomer travel, Cities, Hiking | Tagged Charlottesville, curling, Monticello, polo, Rivanna Trail, University of Virginia, Virginia, wahoos | 2 Comments

Ten Things I Didn’t Know About Charlottesville, Virginia

Published December 2, 2013 | By Clark Norton

Monticello — Jefferson’s home, which appears on the U.S. nickel coin. Photo by Clark Norton

I spent last week in Charlottesville, Virginia, visiting family over Thanksgiving, and found it to be a very livable — and visit-able — city, which I highly recommend for baby boomer travelers.

Mostly I knew it as the home of the University of Virginia and Monticello, the home of Thomas Jefferson, both of which were designed by our third president. Those two sites alone would warrant a visit, but anyone interested in history, outdoor activities and good food would find a welcome respite in Charlottesville.

Now here are ten things I didn’t know about Charlottesville:

Montpelier, home of President James Madison. Photo by Lia Norton

* Some of the most coveted and prestigious student residences at the University of Virginia have no bathrooms. These are historic ground-floor single rooms facing the Lawn, the long… Continue reading →