PORTSMOUTH, VIRGINIA

Welcome to the Portsmouth/Norfolk area.

Well, we are currently anchored in front of the town of Hampton, Virginia.  Originally, we had planned to go to Jamestown Island, way up the James River to visit the earliest English settlement.  Well, it was nearly 100 degrees and getting hotter as we cruised up the river so we consulted the cruising guides and found that we can rent a car in Hampton and get to Jamestown, Yorktown, and Williamsburg just as easily from Hampton.  So, here we are.  Another thing is that our Ideal Windlass motor quit on us.  So, this means pulling the anchor by hand until I can get the company to repair it for me.  I have sent them an email and hope to hear from them today.  We are going to keep moving however and try to anchor in as shallow water as possible to keep the amount of chain I have to pull manually to a minimum without sacrificing safety.  Pain in the ass, but that's cruising.

We had a nice time in Portsmouth.  We stayed in a marina for a couple nights since we had to fill up on fuel, water, and empty the holding tank, and wanted to have a base place for a couple nights while we figured out what to do next. 

So, as usual, we took off walking and tried to figure out what the place was all about.  Portsmouth was founded after Jamestown, but not that long after Jamestown by a guy named Crawford who was looking for a place to build a ship yard.  Well, he found his ideal spot, asked the King's permission, got the land, and started his ship yard.  By the way, it is still in use today only now it is called the US Navy Shipyard Portsmouth.  It's a little bigger than it was originally, and there is a lot more capability, from the looks of all the cranes, and warehouses, etc. 

Basically, that's how Portsmouth got started and, to this day, the town is all about ship building.  As you may know, Portsmouth is neighbors with Norfolk and Newport News, also big ship building towns.  Portsmouth, however, has a nice colonial heritage, and is also the home to the Coast Guard's 5th Fleet.

We walked around the town and visited the colonial historic district and enjoyed some very cool homes.  We checked out a lightship called Portsmouth.  We checked out the local Naval History Museum.  I think the most fun we had, however, was going out to dinner and a movie.

We found this movie theatre and thought no more of it than that.  They were showing the most recent episode of Pirates of the Carribean at 7:00 pm so we decided we would go.  When we got there, however, things got quite interesting.  We went up to the ticket window, and the person inside waived us in the theatre and asked us if we wanted to see the movie.  Of course we said we did and he said we were in luck; that he had two tables left.  Tables?

So, we were issued our tickets and were then led inside by a person who directed us to a table and chairs in the center of the theatre.  The inside of the theatre was completely redone.  Instead of rows and rows of seats as you would anticipate in a movie theatre, it was set up like a multi level dining room.  There was a phone on the table from which we placed our dinner orders.  You had to use the phone for everything.  Even if you simply wanted a refill of your iced tea.  Within minutes, your request was delivered.  It was a great way to watch a film.  All service and dining was complete by 7:00 when the movie began.

The owner of this theatre bought the place back in 1985 and completely renovated the place to do what he and his family are still doing today.  What a great idea.

As I said, we are in Hampton, Virginia for the next day or so.  We have a rental car reserved and will follow up on what to do about the windlass today.  I'll let you know more later.  That's all for now.

That's one old bottle of rum.