Visiting Friends in Great Falls (Part 2)

Our second weekend staying with Phil and Lesley was dominated by rain and sport. Neither Phil nor Lesley could remember ever having so much rain during their 10 years of living in Great Falls and all the rain brought concerns about some of the many sporting fixtures planned for the weekend.  Both Georgia and Jack had play-off games scheduled and the weekend was planned in true military fashion to ensure that they could get to all the events that they were either playing in or coaching, which, inevitably, were spread across the county.

Jack’s main event was a lacrosse game, a sport neither Nicky nor I had either played or watched before. Happily, he needed to be at the venue an hour before his game started so we got to watch the match before his and learn some of the rules before cheering Jack’s team on.  We were very fortunate with the weather and whilst it rained on the drive to the High School, it stayed dry throughout our time there.  The facilities at the school were incredible!  We saw about 10 good-quality hard surface tennis courts, as well as the astroturf football field (marked for a variety of sports), surrounded by a tartan running track and overlooked by a good-sized bank of seating and an enormous scoreboard.  It reminded us of the athletics track at Footes Lane in Guernsey and yet this was located at ‘just’ a High School.  Phil assured us that these were quite normal facilities for High Schools in this area. Signs around the car park gave directions to the swimming pool, gymnasium, health suite…….  There were plenty of parents and families watching the matches, several of whom were happy to help explain the rules to the strange Brits who had no idea about the rules of lacrosse.  The kids were enthusiastic and pretty skilful and all seemed to be having a great time.  Unfortunately, Jack’s team lost, but only by a small margin.  Had the extra points been awarded for the enthusiasm of their supporters, Nicky’s vocal encouragement would surely have tipped the balance!

Georgia spent Saturday coaching a volleyball team in their play-offs and then, on the Sunday, it was her turn to compete.  The rain had set in again so we were delighted that volleyball is an indoor sport – less delighted when we found out that the gym roof had several leaks!  We stayed for 2 of Georgia’s 3 games but Phil, Reg and I had to head back home before her final match as Jack was scheduled to play in a tag football match that evening and still had homework to complete before that.  Definitely proof that the weekend had to be planned with military precision to ensure that nothing fell between the cracks.

BV safe in the dock at Bill and Lydia’s home

Staying with Phil and Lesley in their guest apartment was lovely but it did feel a little strange to be in a proper bed and to have so much living space after being on BV for so long.  It also seemed odd to be away from her for an extended period.  However, any concerns that we might have had about her during all the unseasonable weather were soon dispelled with lovely sunset photos of BV safe on the dock sent to us by Lydia.

And so, our sojourn with Phil and Lesley, Georgia and Jack came to an end and we packed up our kit and new purchases for the journey back to BV.  It had been a lovely break from the sea and a fantastic opportunity to see something of Washington DC and ‘real life’ in a part of the USA that we would not otherwise have had the opportunity to experience. With luck, we’ll have the chance to visit again in the autumn (Fall!) when we plan to be back in the Chesapeake area, waiting to move south once more.  That’s assuming that they’ll have us back; we’d certainly like to see them all again in much less than the 10 years its taken us to get out here this time!

Great Falls, VA, USA