Old Town Alexandria Doorways

It doesn’t matter what time of the year or season. Old Town Alexandria has so much charm it hardly matters when you visit. We traveled there before we moved to Capitol Hill seventeen years ago. And when we lived in DC we oftentimes went in to town for lunch or dinner and oftentimes brought our guests there. It wasn’t a holiday or special occasion when we drove in last week. We usually park by the waterfront next to the Potomac River to start our morning walk there. In honor of Senator John Warner a new maritime heritage center is being constructed that will become the home port of the tall ship Providence. After a bit we meander back in to the historic neighborhood. The magnolias are stating to bloom along the route. The doorways are beautifully kept and are typically surrounded by some sort of flowering pots. There are iron gates everywhere. Everything seems to come in twos - lamps, lanterns, pots, wreaths. The window boxes and flower pots are nicely appointed and have not yet seen the brutal summer heat. It’s amazing how small the spaces are between the houses. The skinny walks usually lead in to beautiful gardens on the sides and behind the town and row houses. And red brick is everywhere. We looked at a couple of places before we moved to an alternate neighborhood in northern Virginia. Sometimes I wish we moved there instead but we preferred the practical to the charming. But at least we can still visit.