by Here are a few of the random sites we explored during our time in the Norfolk and Virginia Beach area.
I liked this statue of King Neptune by Paul DiPasquale on the Virginia Beach boardwalk. Neptune is the Roman god of the sea and this work was installed in 2005.
I must say, Neptune has an impressive mane of hair and set of abs. The work stands a whopping 34 feet tall and weighs an incredible 12.5 tons.
The USS Wisconsin is one of the largest battleships ever built. She’s an Iowa-class ship (one of only four built) that was constructed by the US Navy from 1941 to 1943. She served in World War II, the Korean War and the Persian Gulf War. She was decommissioned in 1996 and now resides at the Nauticus Museum in Norfolk. The ship is absolutely mammoth, designed to accommodate 2,000 (but actually holding more than 2,700 during WWII). Truth be told, it looks awfully similar to other large ships we’ve toured.
The associated museum was closed for renovations, so we could not tour it. Also on site is the Hampton Roads Naval Museum, which was not especially exciting.
Doumar’s Barbecue in Norfolk is the home of the original waffle cone machine, which appeared on the world stage when Doumar presented it at the St. Louis World’s Fair in 1904. Even though it was cold enough for me to be wearing gloves, of course we still had ice cream cones. The machine where the magic happens was on view, but no one was making fresh cones while we were there. We both thought the cones were very good!
What is this madness? Just a Peanut Pie. Doug loves pie, so he couldn’t resist this when he saw it. Apparently it’s a thing in Virginia, particularly from the Virginia Diner (not where we purchased it), which is in Wakefield about 50 miles northwest of Norfolk. Wakefield declares itself the “Peanut Capital of the World”…but so do places in Alabama and Georgia. Martha Stewart even made it on Martha Bakes (episode 709)!
Back in the day the dessert was known as the “poor man’s pecan pie.” But according to America’s Test Kitchen, “nothing about this pie feels like a compromise. Peanut pie achieves the right amount of sweet and salty, with crunchy, caramelized peanuts set atop a creamy filling and buttery, flaky crust.” We both thought it was good but not great (and certainly not better than pecan pie), but perhaps we need to go to the Virginia Diner to be absolutely sure.
We kept seeing Duck Donuts as we drove around the area, and we like donuts so we made sure to get some in Virginia Beach. The chain was founded in Duck, N.C., and now has more than 100 locations.
The chain literally makes the donuts to order. They made fresh donuts for our order and customized them as we watched. I’ve never seen anything like it, and can only imagine the lines when it’s busy. An employee said in the summer people can wait two hours!
The Lightship Portsmouth Museum (just south of Norfolk) is where to go if you want to board a lightship. What’s that? Oh, just floating lighthouse!
This lightship’s official designation is LV-101, and she served from 1915 to 1963. She would be anchored for months at a time at offshore spots where lighthouses were needed but couldn’t be built. The name painted on her side would be updated with each new assignment, which were primarily off the coasts of Virginia, Delaware, and Massachusetts. Upon retirement she came to the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard.
General of the Army Douglas MacArthur is buried in the Rotunda of the MacArthur Memorial in Norfolk, beside his wife Jean. Though he never lived here himself, Norfolk was the hometown of his mother, and a place he felt a connection to. He spent much of his life moving among military bases, growing up as the son of a U.S. Army Captain and then serving himself, so no place felt like “home” to him.
After being approached by the Norfolk city officials with the idea of housing a library in his honor there, the General executed a deed of gift in which he gave the city all his trophies, medals, prizes, decorations, uniforms, flags, swords, battle souvenirs, personal papers, documents, records, and other personal memorabilia.
The museum has several rooms displaying many of the aforementioned MacArthur items, along with a film and exhibition space open to the general public. The museum was a little confusing at times (specifically medals often seemed to be representative rather than his, but there was no sign to clear it up), and the film a little skimpy on personal details.
Edgar Cayce (1877-1945) was a clairvoyant who provided readings while in a trance-like state, with his wife or secretary transcribing for posterity.
He founded the Association for Research and Enlightenment (A.R.E.) in Virginia Beach, and you betcha we were going in for a tour.
As we drove by the unique building on route to another adventure I said to Doug “Oh, that’s where we’re going later on,” and he replied, “They know.” He’s a funny guy sometimes.
Back to Cayce, who as a child claimed to see the ghost of his dead grandfather, and a woman with wings who helped him realize if he slept on a book the information in it would be transmitted to him.
He was able to self-diagnose ailments and recommend a cure, also while asleep. Soon he was providing this service to others, though he was hesitant, worried something would go wrong.
He bounced around various occupations, trying to hold a normal job, but word of his abilities spread and he was not able to resist helping people in need with his readings. He provided information about past lives and solutions to medical mysteries, along with dream interpretations.
In 1928 he opened a “hospital” in Virginia Beach, where those who wanted readings had to join the association and agree that they were in fact participating in a psychic research experiment, so as to protect himself legally. The hospital had a months-long wait list, and soon a university was opened to help others become more spiritually aware.
There are more than 14,000 transcribed readings at the A.R.E. facility. The multiple readings a day were physically and emotionally exhausting, and he eventually collapsed from the strain.
The visit itself was not terribly exciting – a film followed by looking at some rooms – but learning the story was definitely interesting on its own.
I’ve been a M*A*S*H addict forever. The Korean War, with McArthur at the helm in the early days, was the first war…er…”Police Action”…Americans could watch while sitting in their living rooms since it was heavily filmed for viewing on early television sets. The image of McArthur, always wearing his iconic aviator sunglasses and smoking his pipe imbedded itself into the American psyche. Those iconic aviator glasses became all the rage in America. The series even mentions them as they related to popularity on the home front at least twice.
The sunglasses are instantly recognizable, but I hadn’t known that McArthur was the source until I saw the display and pictures!