Homeward bound - part two!

6/23/2018

We left Staunton, VA around 9:00 AM.  After stops to empty our tanks and fill the car's, we had a fantastic drive on some great mountain roads into Blacksburg, VA to the Hokie House for lunch.  Blacksburg is home to Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, commonly known as Virginia Tech and the Hokie House is right across the street from the campus.  After lunch, we headed out toward Bristol, VA, our stop for the night.  After an uneventful drive, we ran into some rain just outside of Bristol.  Normally, we would just drive through a light rain, but because we kept having to stop at all the traffic lights, we decided to pull under a Lowe's loading dock and put the top up.  After a quick stop, it was back on the road to Bristol.  Most of the group went to eat near the hotel, but we decided to see what downtown was like and eat there.  Bristol, a town of about 35,000 people, is very interesting as there is a stripe down the middle of main street and one side is in VA and the other is in TN.  Half the people live in Virginia and half in Tennessee.  And, it seems like a very dynamic place.  Main street is very viable, with few empty storefronts.  We ate at 620 State, a local restaurant specializing in sushi, Asian and American fare, located on the first floor of a nicely renovated historic building.  The food and service were excellent and we went across the street (from TN to VA) for dessert at an ice cream store.  We passed by the very hopping Quaker Steak and Lube Restaurant that had live music on its packed patio.  You could hear the music all up and down the street.  Luckily, it was good, classic rock!

 

Bristol - VA on the left, TN on the right.

Great music from the patio of the Quaker Steak and Lube restaurant