Wasting Time

We flew into Reno a day before our check-in day at Lake Tahoe. We had planned on checking out everything Reno had to offer that evening but found ourselves too tired to leave the room except to grab a bite to eat. It was also enough time for us to decide Reno wasn't a town we too much cared for. Maybe we were too quick to judge but it seemed dirty and not the safest. 

Some vacations feel like we have every minute planned out, but with this one, it was more of a surprise to us both what we decided on doing. The next morning, thanks to a 3 hour time difference, we were awake way too early. After a quick search of best day trips from Reno, I knew exactly the town I wanted to see to "waste time" - Virginia City. 

The drive to Virginia City was an adventure all on its own. The road is steep and winding and offers beautiful views along the way. 


As I seem to say in almost all of my posts... Pictures do not do this little town justice. When you pull in, be prepared to feel like you're smack dab in the middle of an old western: the sidewalks are old wooden planks, business signs hang by chains, there's more saloons than you can count, friendly people greeting each other, and the whistle of a train can be heard in the background. 





If you walk almost out of town, you can find the hidden gem of a restaurant called The Cider Factory. Full disclosure: when I lead my husband here, I actually thought we were going to get to sample some ciders but it turns out that the restaurant gets its name from once upon a time being a place where apple cider was made. *insert sigh* The small disappointment was quickly remedied by the peaceful scenery and amazing food!





I wrote all of this to come to my main point which is to leave some things to chance. Take the long way around and waste some time on a side road. Had we been in a hurry to get to where we were going, we would have missed this little town. Not all side roads will lead you to somewhere special like this or to a place that you'd like to visit again, but if you find the beauty in the journey, then it's never truly "time wasted". 

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