This past weekend I visited my fiancée in Waynesboro, Virginia, where she is spending six weeks as a veterinary technician extern. Halfway through her visit, she has saved many animals and explored some with her newfound roommates. I drove down after work on Friday, a five-hour drive, to visit and see local towns.

The majority of my time with Ashley on her day off was spent in nearby Charlottesville. Just a short half-hour drive from Waynesboro, historic Charlottesville has tons of history and opportunities to shop, drink and dine.

Driving through western Virginia is an experience all on its own. More mountains jut up and spread out before you each turn and around every bend. Even on the short drive between Waynesboro and Charlottesville, there are several scenic lookout points. In the mornings, fog and clouds collect in the valleys, giving the route a mountainous persona.

Once we arrived in Charlottesville, we parked in a nearby parking garage and perused the weekly city market. Folks selling homemade food and drinks, crafts and more filled the parking lot adjacent to downtown.

Once we made it to the downtown district, we made a point to visit The Juice Place for some smoothies. We went to New Dominion Bookshop, where I picked up an exciting book chronicling the Kellogg brothers’ rise to fame promoting their idea of breakfast wellness. We made a quick jump to O’Suzannah, an eclectic gift shop offering everything from bath bombs to niche books, home décor and more.

We finished up our time in Charlottesville by stopping by The Draft Taproom, where beer is self-served and charged by the ounce. We tried a number of brews before settling on our favorites: mine, a sour and hers, a cider. We stopped back at The Juice Place for a quick lunch before heading back to Waynesboro to see Christopher Robin at the local Zeus Digital Theater and cap off the day before I made an early-morning drive home to attend the Philadelphia Phillies game on Alumni Day.

The day offered an incredible look at downtown Charlottesville and the neighboring town of Waynesboro. Even though we didn’t have much time to explore, the weekend was unforgettable.

— Erich Martin, assistant editor