What I Did On My Summer Vacation
After my wife Myla came back from a quick California trip where she was helping with preparations for our daughter’s upcoming wedding, we took a little “spa-cation” to Berkeley Springs, West Virginia. This spa town of 500 people is the oldest spa in the US. When folklore says George Washington slept somewhere, well, here he actually did. There is even a “George Washington bathtub” on the park property.
We enjoyed massage and acupuncture at a spa in Berkeley Springs. My back has hurt for years from an injury received during my retailing days. We went to Awakening where Lin Wang, a Chinese medicine doctor, needled me over a two-day period. This acupuncture, mixed with massage, made me feel like Jello. I was rather relaxed.
On this mini vacation, we took our dogs with us for the first time. Sophie and Tucker were well behaved, slept on the bed at night and walked more than they have ever walked. Tucker, the Shih Tzu, would simply stop and sit down while walking, for he tires easily. Apparently, he likes to be carried.
The next town we visited was Shepherdstown, West Virginia, which is along the Potomac River. We found it to be very dog friendly and charming. Shopowners invited us into their stores and even outdoor restaurants with the dogs. One of my favorite restaurants was the Blue Moon Café where we sat outside and listened to a very fast moving stream running through the center of the garden. Amazingly, the dogs did not bark at the other dogs and cats who were also visiting the garden. We were all very relaxed in the refreshing setting.
Every summer in Shepherdstown, which by the way is the home of the first steamboat, there is a theatre festival along with arts and craft exhibits with potters, jewelry makers, wood workers, painters and weavers. For history buffs, it is just a few miles from Harpers Ferry, Antietam, and the C & O canal. We plan to go back in the future to explore this Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia. For now, it’s back to work for a few weeks, and then our daughter’s wedding in August. Summer certainly is for travel, fun and family.
By Doug Kreinik
