"So, how long are we in this hellhole?" Oz asked.
Hah. Hah. We were at the Hilton in Old Town Alexandria. A three-star hellhole with fluffy towels, superb air conditioning, and Starbucks in the lobby.
I may be taking a job up in Alexandria soon, so this was a preliminary exploration of the area where I'll be living and working during the week. Weekends will still belong to my beloved Church Hill, where Oz will be holding down the home front and the cats.
I have to say, I hope this Richmond trend of neighborhood blogs catches on in Alexandria. I went googling around and all I found was the Del Ray Sun, which simply does not compare to the Church Hill People's News. I'm longing for a crime map. None of the leasing agents will give me a straight answer (even when I say, "Really, I live in the 'hood back home. I'm just wondering about the break-in frequency around here … ") and without being intimately familiar with the area, it's hard to evaluate a prospective block.
We did find great Lebanese food in Old Town. I discovered that the neighborhood where I'll be working (and possibly living in the "luxury" apartment building right there) looks really post-bio-warfare on the weekends. No people. Just tall brick and stucco buildings. Pretty much like Trani's vision for downtown Richmond. Creepy.
Then our local friends took us out for Indian food and ice cream in Del Ray, the tree-filled residential area on the other side of the tracks, complete with Subarus, Birkenstock-wearing professionals, and cute cottages which I would totally buy if I had a spare half-million in the bank. I have discovered a few affordable rentals in that neighborhood. We may be going back up again soon, if only for the ice cream.
306 words | August 6, 2007 11:15 PM | Wish you were here