Location: Portsmouth, VA
We set out from Mobjack Bay and finally arrived in Newport News, actually we passed it and went to Portsmouth instead. Just before we entered the harbor we saw a pod of dolphins, the Lisa Frank girl in me will always be excited to see dolphins. Inside the harbor There were a variety of naval vessels. Battle ships, aircraft carriers, medical boats and more, it really makes you wonder how much of this stuff we really need. A few days ago we heard a military plane break the sound barrier, it sounded like our boat had collided with something. Dad and I scrambled up from the cabin to assess the damage only to find the boat secure on her anchor. It took us a couple minutes of us dumbly stating around to finally look up and find the source of the noise.
Anyway, we spent our first night in Portsmouth on the hook surrounded by a few other boats, all anchored as well. One of the other boats was a small sailboat. The boat looked as if it's captain set her there to anchor years before. The hull was a brownish green from the sea, the sail covers were tattered and worn, and all of the exposed metal on deck was green with corrosion. I expected to see a ghostly figure rise from the cabin at any moment. That wasn't the only unsettling thing about the small anchorage. Not 100 yards away laid two motor boats rafter together and sunk halfway into the sea. They weren't encouraging sites. Eager to move on, we had planned on traveling up the river farther to Bridgeton but the radio informed us that the locks were broken. The locks separate two canals, preventing them from free flowing into one another. When you get in between the two locks a valve pumps water in or out to match the water level of the next canal. This valve had failed. With the locks broken we would be stuck in Portsmouth until they were fixed. So in the morning we went ashore. Dad, always the curious cat, quickly found free dockage hidden behind a marina and the ferry port that goes across the river to Norfolk. Back to the boat we went to move it to the dock instead, putting us conviently located near the city's main attractions.
Dad and I toured the town, eventually running into our friends we met in Reedsville, Matt and Diane. It was great to see familiar faces. When most of your face to face interactions are with the same person everyday life can become a little mundane, even when that person has the character of my Dad. I try to keep him on his toes as much as possible, asking him questions that I've never asked before. For example, "if you could be an animal what would you be?" His answer, "a bear." But when the questions run out, leaving one's imagination to run wild for hours without end you begin to loose yourself or maybe it's the reverse and you find your true self - I'm not really sure. Either way we got Matt and Diane's email address to try and stay in touch with them.
While talking with Matt a man in period attaire introduced himself as William Crawford, the founded of Portsmouth. He stayed in character the entire conversation, accent and all. Crawford told us some of the history of Portsmouth but what interested Dad and I the most was his mention of the historical walking/biking tour of the city. We raced back to the boat to try out our bikes for the first time. Unfortunately the peddles that we had bought for my bicycle wouldn't screw on so we rode to the nearest bike shop. Dad got carried away and bought me new breaks, a new stem, chain oil, and new grips, as well as the peddles. In his former life Dad biked all the time, padded pants, spandex, and all so he knows his stuff. We set off, taking the tour and venturing a bit farther, though outside of the historic district there wasn't much else to see. Back at the boat we made a hasty late lunch and then set off for the movie theater in town, The Commodore. Inside the theater were small round tables with large comfy arm chairs, instead of the usual rows of creaky red seats. On each table was a telephone, small lamp, and a menu. Using the telephone a table could order dinner, desert, beer, wine, and of course popcorn. It was awesome. Dad and I shared desert, popcorn, and a pitcher of beer. The movie was Captain Phillips, which was very good. It made me think of all my friends who had asked "what about pirates?" when I had announced my intention to go on this trip. But we stayed out past our bed time and returned sleepily to the boat to crash. During the day you would never suspect it but Portsmouth isn't the kind of town you want to walk around at night.
What we ate: chicken wraps, bagel w/nova, brownie sundae, popcorn
No comments:
Post a Comment