Living in Southwest Virginia with “Nothing” To Do
Like some might think, Southwest Virginia is nothing but a bunch of farms, land, and nothing to do. I will admit that I was ONCE one of those people. I am originally from Chesapeake, VA. where there are things and events going on all the time. I am close to the beach, am surrounded by numerous restaurants, and have an array of options when it comes to finding “something to do.” I am now a senior at Radford University, and people still ask me “Why did you decide to go there? There’s nothing to do in that area!” I’m not going to lie, coming to SWVA from the coast was a big change; but not necessarily a bad one.
As I said before I am a senior at RU and have been playing soccer all four of my years here. Playing soccer and participating in extracurricular activities has given me the opportunity to travel to different states as well as to the many different areas of the SWVA region. Blacksburg has a great main street that is filled with a variety of shops and restaurants. Even though some of the restaurants look small and pretty much like “a hole in the wall,” you would be surprised on how amazing their food really is. The stores and shops are great and you can find things that you wouldn’t normally find in a larger suburban area. One word can describe Christiansburg, “unlimited.” Talk about restaurants; I can name 10 right off the top of my head. There is a mall, a Wal-mart, Target!, I mean what else do you need? Harrisonburg is also “blowing up” per se. For outdoorsy people, there are countless amounts of parks, hiking trails, and beautiful sites to see that you certainly couldn’t get or endure being in a city where you are surrounded by nothing but buildings. With an abundance of things to do, why do people still hold this everlasting thought that Southwest Virginia is a bunch of “nothing”? And trust me, I haven’t even come close to naming everything that this region has to offer. Seriously, not even close.
Being a young adult and living life to the fullest, I can see myself reaching my goals and enjoy doing so in Southwest Virginia.
My name is Chelsea Archer and I am currently a senior at Radford University. I have played soccer all four years for my school and I love to just hang out with my friends. I’ll be graduating in May with a degree in Communication and will be returning to Radford next year to finish my Master’s degree in Corporate and Professional Communication.
November 13th, 2008 at 12:55 am
What else is there to do in this area? I never get to see anything except the railroad. My husband loves to take train pictures in that area. But what is there to do that women would like? I like consignments shops and stuff like that. Coming to the area soon!!!
November 13th, 2008 at 9:02 am
It really depends on where you are in the area, but there are many things to do! For example, if you’re in Floyd County, a good Friday night can mean going to the Blue Ridge Diner (I reccommend their black bottom pie) and then going to the Floyd Country Store for live music and dancing. In the New River Valley (Blacksburg, Christiansburg and Radford, you can enjoy a busier scene with shopping and dining options. Also, you can benefit from having the colleges close by for quality entertainment whether it be concerts, plays, lecture series, etc… Going down I-81 gives you the option of dinner and a show at the Wolfhart Haus in Wytheville, a couple of different wineries in the region, performances at The Lincoln Theatre in Marion, The Paramount and Theatre Bristol in Bristol and The Barter Theatre in Abingdon– the state theatre of Virginia. There are many other cultural opportunities such as The Carter Fold in Hiltons and plenty of fine dining experiences to be had between The Martha Washington Inn, The Tavern and The Hardware Company, just to name a few. The area is also rich in consignment, second-hand and antique shops. The areas of Floyd, Abingdon Bristol are particularly rich in these stores. In the summer months you can attend the Virginia Highlands Arts and Crafts Festival in Abingdon which features a huge antiques market. If your husband likes to take train pictures, he could go slightly outside our region to Roanoke to the O. Winston Link Museum in Roanoke and see the historic N&W photographs or better yet visit the areas of Seven Mile Ford, Max Meadows and Christiansburg– all locations were these photographs were taken!