Fall comes to Virginia
The joys of Fredericksburg and Alexandria, VA. On what seems like a short visit to the USA again. Autumn is in full swing and the days are a mix of cold, sun and some amazing colours as the leaves turn before falling from the trees.
With a few days spent driving around bits of Fredericksburg I also had a day in Alexandria, exploring the history of the town. Mixed in was a day out to Washington DC, specifically to the Spy Museum.
For most, Christmas is also coming. For Corporate America, Xmas arrives when Starbucks get out the Red Cups.
The Appomattox Statue in Alexandria was erected as a memorial to those Confederate sons of Alexandria who died during the American Civil War. The figure is a model of a soldier from a painting by John A Elder, entitled “Appomattox”. The Confederate soldier is surveying the scene of the battlefields after Robert E Lee’s surrender at Appomattox, VA, in April 1865.
The South Side of the statue reads, “Erected to the memory of Confederate dead of Alexandria, Va. by their Surviving Comrades, May 24th 1889″ while the North Side reads “They died in the consciousness of duty faithfully performed”. The West Side has the names of 100 soldiers from the 17th Virginia Infantry and Alexandria Artillery. Dedicated in May 1889 in an address by Governor Fitzhugh Lee (nephew of General Robert E. Lee), the Statue sits on the intersection of Washington and Prince Streets in Alexandria, the point from which the Alexandria troops left the town.
The Scottish Merchant has the sense to sell Irn Bru, that well known bastion of Scottish drinking. Also selling other Scottish paraphernalia such as tartan, whisky, claymores and golfing equipment, the Scottish Merchant is a piece of Alexandria’s heritage.
As a tobacconist the Scottish Merchant also has a wide and exciting array of pipes on sale. Something which allegedly pleases Sir Douglas Ten-Benson whenever he visits Old Town Alexandria. Next door, there are hoes available for your comfort.
