Wednesday, July 23, 2014

a weekend at salamander

What do you do when a flight cancellation leads to a trip cancellation? In our case, we hop in the car and head to a resort for the weekend.

As we sat on the couch mulling our post-trip cancellation options - our already packed bags sitting by the door just waiting to be whisked away for the weekend - Jon suggested we see if the Salamander had room. I had stumbled across the Salamander in Southern Living (they have the BEST regional travel tips) a few months ago, and it's been on our bucket list ever since. And hey, we deserved a little luck after our flight debacle. We called to say we were on the way, and by 8:30 p.m. we were checking into the hotel with complimentary glass of wine in hand. Ahhhhhhh.



view from the balcony
that bathtub…swoon
It's unlike us to show up anywhere without a plan, but I loved the spontaneity of the trip. Nothing is more depressing than unpacking a bag that you just packed 3 hours earlier. We were making the best of an annoying situation, and I'm really thankful we were able to enjoy a weekend getaway - even if it's not exactly how we planned it.

On Friday, we slept in and enjoyed room service breakfast. Ordering room service always makes me feel fancy - especially when it comes with white tablecloths and fresh flowers.


Later in the morning we headed to the spa. Spas make me feel fancy too. I got a facial and massage while Jon got a massage. It was definitely one of the nicest spas I've  ever been to. Even better, the spa had a private pool for spa patrons only. After our pampering, we spent the afternoon relaxing at the quiet, adults-only pool while the other resort-goers had to slum it down at the noisy family pool. ;)



It wasn't the most patriotic way to spend the 4th of July, but we made up for it by having BBQ for dinner, sitting by an outdoor fire, making s'mores, and watching some fireworks.


Middleburg is horse country. That's the only explanation I have for this. 
the good life




On Saturday, we sipped our way through Virginia wine country. Turns out we have some pretty decent vineyards right here in our own backyard. We've visited a few local wineries here and there, but this is the first time we devoted an entire afternoon to vineyard hopping. It was such a beautiful day.





For dinner that night, we headed to a nearby B&B called the Goodstone Inn. It was a charming little spot with lovely views and excellent food. I kind of wanted to move in and never leave.


On Sunday we headed home, but not before a delicious brunch at the resort. I was sad about leaving so I comforted myself with this little treat. These are butterscotch scones. They left them in our room each evening during turndown service (turndown service...add that to the list of things that make me feel fancy), and they had mountains of them at brunch. I thought about stuffing some in my pockets, but I went for the classier option of buying them at the local bakery on our way out of town.


My next order of business is to recreate these little mounds of awesomeness. It was a lovely weekend full of even more reminders of why Virginia is pretty awesome. Sorry we couldn't see you this time, Arkansas, but we'll be back!

4 comments:

  1. I bet you had the time of your lives during that weekend. I love how you turned a cancelled flight into a spontaneous day out. The massage sounds like it did well for the both of you. That private pool looks amazing. Everybody seems to be so lax on the resort. Looks like both of you loved your short vacation. Hope you get to enjoy more days like that. All the best! :)

    Ervin Willis @ Main St. Massage

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  2. Looks like a real welcome getaway. You had a quite a lot of amenities. The spa, though, is really essential. It's just the perfect health trip that can cap off a day real well. I hope you get to enjoy more trips like that. All the best!

    Leena Wolf @ H2O Spas

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  3. You got something really good out of a cancelled flight. Who says you have to unpack your things and go home, when you can head to a local getaway that’s as good as the one you originally planned to? All you needed is a resort with a scenic view that offers great food, and a spa that provides a heavenly massage. And it looks like you’ve found one that comes with all of those things. Cheers to that!

    William Connors @ The Healing Station

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  4. We preferred these Wedding venues because they were all-inclusive, and the truth is that their staff is really professional and made planning our wedding much easier.

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