Roanoke worship and Natural Bridge

Sunday we arose and fired up the GPS to lead us to church in Roanoke. We followed the directions and arrived in plenty of time. As it has happened many times, we arrived on the day of a potluck. We were blessed by the message and especially the friendliness of the congregation. We have been to many LCMS congregations and this one had all the others beat. We had a great visit with many of the people and were surprised at how many people were from the Fort Wayne area. In fact one girl had graduated from Heritage and Ball State and was the granddaughter of Bob and Jane Miller from Bethlehem Lutheran in Fort Wayne. We left there and drove to the Roanoke Hotel to get a room for the night. The cost was more than I had ever paid, but we got a free breakfast thrown in. We had trouble getting connected to the Internet and a hotel engineer and I worked on it while Evelyn napped. The wireless was supposed to work in the lobby where it was free, but, since it didn’t, he connected me to the DSL in the room which cost $10 per day. He fixed it so that we won’t be charged because of the problem in the lobby. This was a blessing because it is easier to work in the room than lug the computer down to the lobby. We took a walk to downtown Roanoke through the market area where there was a wine festival. The charge to drink wine was $25 and just to walk around was $10. We thought that was pricey so we just walked around the town and back to the hotel. We ate some of the food we had brought along because we were concerned about spoilage even though we have kept things iced down. After dinner, we drove up to the area where a huge metal star has been erected and lighted each night. We also looked out over the valley where the city lay. We came home and just relaxed until bed time.

Monday found us up and enjoying our free breakfast. Evelyn had wanted the raisin French toast but saw the fruit on the buffet and went for it. I enjoyed it also. We walked downtown hoping to get into the “Market in the Square” but found it closed on Mondays. Since there was little to do there we returned to the hotel. I walked to the side street to retrieve the car we had parked there and found it in perfect condition. We thanked our gracious Lord for His protection. I drove to the hotel where we loaded the car and drove to Natural Bridge. (pictures included) There is a hotel there and we had a coupon so we registered for the night although it was only 1:30. We had eaten a big breakfast and decided to skip lunch. We bought a ticket and walked down to the bridge which is higher than Niagara falls. We had been told that it was possible to drive across this bridge and not know it. We had done just that on our way. We walked back up and took our car to Lexington where we took a carriage ride through town. The driver/guide was very informed about the city and especially informed about Stonewall Jackson, Robert E. Lee, the Civil War and the colleges in town: Washington and Lee and VMI. We returned to the hotel around 6 and went to the Colonial dining room for dinner. We shared an appetizer of crab cakes and an entree of catfish. We still had too much to eat. I tried to get the WIFI to work without success, despite being told at check in that it would. I suspect the engineer at the Roanoke Hotel has messed my computer up. We waited until 8:45 and returned to the “holler” under the Natural Bridge. There is a light show that supposedly goes through the story of Creation. (We had laughed earlier because the information placards all told how the bridge had been formed millions of years ago. What a blend of evolution and Creation!) As the time approached for the show to begin, a huge thunder and lightning show began. The thunder really rolled through the “holler” sounding like dynamite blasts. We were told the show would be cancelled in the event that it continued. It did and a goose drowner followed. We ran for the shuttle bus and rode to the top in a torrent. The driver was very kind and took many of us to the hotel. We came inside only slightly damp, thank God. I got some ice and repacked our drink and food coolers. One cooler leaks so badly that we have to keep it in two plastic bags. We will buy another one tomorrow on our way home or to the next destination.