Charlottesville's Decades Arcade is going "full tilt"
The noise, the flashing lights, the racing hearts, the cheers, and cries -- it’s all part of the arcade experience. If you’re like me, you probably have memories of your pocket full of quarters, shuffling around the sticky soda-drenched floors of the video arcade at your local mall or street corners, working your way around the big noisy cabinets. Or maybe you miss those pinball machines at your local pizza joint or movie lobby, and you want to rekindle some of those innocent feelings. Maybe you want to share that experience with your children. Have we got a place for you!
Read full storyWalnut Creek Park: Natural retreat and disc golf heaven
One of my favorite places to sit and calm my mind is located on a grassy hill, looking out over a clean lake, listening to the insects buzz and the woodpeckers tapping on the trees. I do this at Walnut Creek Park, located just south of Charlottesville in beautiful Southern Albemarle County.
Read full storyCrabtree Falls is a top-notch day hike in the Central Virginia area
For those that want to get outside and recharge in the wild of nature, one of the best options in the area is Crabtree Falls Hiking Trail. Located in the George Washington National Forest in Nelson County, Virginia, Crabtree Falls is one of the tallest sets of waterfalls in the United States east of the Mississippi River. And it’s only about an hour’s drive southwest from Charlottesville.
Read full storyThe Fralin Museum of Art at the University of Virginia has opened its doors after a year of "solitude"
On August 28th, after a 17-month closure, the Fralin Museum of Art at the University of Virginia opened to the public. Admission is free. Per UVA guidelines, masks are required indoors regardless of vaccination status. The museum is closed on Monday and open 10 am to 5 pm the rest of the week (12-5 on Sundays).
Read full storyWhat do you do if your child describes memories of a past life? Tell it to UVa's Division of Perceptual Studies
Despite popular interest in extraordinary experiences and paranormal phenomena, the scientific community generally steers away from actually studying these occurrences. After all, phenomena such as near-death experiences, visions of apparitions, and memories of past lives are deeply personal experiences. Parapsychology is a controversial subject, and it is fair to say that most academics do not believe that parapsychological phenomena are likely to exist since convincing evidence is fleeting at best. However, there is a research unit based right here in Charlottesville dedicated to using scientific methodology in their investigation of paranormal phenomena.
Read full storyThe Botanical Garden of the Piedmont has some big plans to educate and inspire us through nature
The positive impact of a communal green space in a city cannot be overstated. Nature has a way of bringing people together. Charlottesville is a city that knows how important inclusion and bringing people together can be in order to heal from past divisions. On the corner of John Warner Parkway and Melbourne Road, on the northeast side of McIntire Park lies 8.5 acres of land that is doing just that. As the mission statement reads, The Botanical Garden of the Piedmont is a project designed to “invite all community members and visitors to engage in nature, to educate and inspire through the beauty and importance of plants, to advance sustainability, and to promote human and environmental well-being.”
Read full storyMelody Supreme, a high fidelity refuge in downtown Charlottesville
These days you can pretty much find vinyl records everywhere. That includes big-box chain stores like Target, Barnes & Noble, and Walmart. As a generation X-er, I must admit, that just feels downright weird.
Read full storyThe only museum dedicated to Indigenous Australian art in the U.S. is right here in Charlottesville
Did you know we have something very unique in Charlottesville that you can’t see anywhere else in the United States? The Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection is the only museum outside of Australia dedicated to the exhibition and study of Indigenous Australian art — and it’s right here, on the east side of Charlottesville on Pantops mountain, less than 5 miles from the University of Virginia Grounds.
Read full storyHiking through history in the dark: the Blue Ridge Tunnel is open for your curiosity
Back in November, the Blue Ridge Tunnel opened to the public, and I’ve been meaning to check it out. Afterall, a new trail that goes through a mountain is not something I take for granted -- especially a trail that is largely protected from the summer sun. On a beautiful summer day, my family and I packed up our flashlights and took a break from the everyday to check out this historic, modern marvel that is only about a 30-minute drive from Charlottesville. Verdict: totally worth it.
Read full storyGet into the “spirit” of the Tokyo Olympics with some locally-made sake
What better way to get into the spirit of the Tokyo Summer Olympics than to enjoy some freshly made sake from our very own sake brewery here in Central Virginia?. Head brewer Andrew Centofante, along with his business partner Jeremy Goldstein, opened the North American Sake Brewery in the IX Art Park of Charlottesville in August of 2018. It is one of about 25 sake breweries currently open in the United States, up from about 20 in 2019. The increasing number of sake breweries in the United States reflects the rise of Japanese food culture in the country. Like craft beer, the popularity of craft sake comes down to the passion of its fans. Although the kind of rice used is important (much of NASB’s rice comes from Arkansas), the quality of sake comes down to the skill and intention of the "toji" (brewmaster) that determines the “personality” of the sake. Unlike wine or liquor, sake is not distilled but brewed like beer. Since there are no natural sugars in rice, the starch of the rice needs to be converted to sugar. How does this happen? It gets a little help from a process referred to as "koji."
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