A Perfect Dog Day In Old Town Alexandria

Thinking about visiting the DC Metro Area?  Or maybe you live in the area and are looking for a fun place to go with your pup.  There is no doubt this area is super dog friendly, but one spot you must put on your agenda to visit is Old Town Alexandria.  Located just a few miles outside of Washington, DC, this little town is one of the most dog friendly places you will find anywhere.

Jen Lichtblau, dog mom to @oldtownprancer provides a guided tour unlike any other.  She includes lots of historical antedotes, shares which stores are dog friendly, and even provides directions to houses and businesses that cater to dogs by offering treats and water.   

Tune in to learn some wonderful history about Alexandria and get the scoop in a perfect dog day in Old Town Alexandria. 

Transcript

Review of Old Town Alexandria

Guest: Jen Lichtblau, dog mom to @oldtownprancer

 Stacey

Welcome back. Everyone appreciate you joining us for the adventure segment of the Snorts, Slobber and K9 Adventures podcast. and I do have to share a funny story with you. So, I know that the break audio talked about just as having a treat break. I've actually been having to take my earphones off while I've been recording this because he has been snoring so loud. I heard a noise and I was like what is that noise? And I looked over and he is on the couch snoring away. So, it'll be interesting to see if the microphone picked that up or not so. [chuckling]

Jen as I mentioned as in our first segment, I'm very excited to talk about Old Town Alexandria. And when you and I met and walked around Old Town I was very impressed with your knowledge about the history of the area and just the little tidbits and little factoids that you had. I typically like to give some history about the area that we're going to be talking about, but I would love to hear you tell us a little bit of the history of Old Town So give us a small taste of Old Town history.

Jen

Sure, so I love the history in Old Town. That's why we moved here. It's very old for the United States at least you know when talking about this area, it’s just about the oldest you can get. It was founded in 1749. So, it actually predates the Declaration of Independence. Alexandria is very proud of that, and they have an Alexandria birthday celebration every year. That's usually the week after the fourth of July and they like to make much of that and there's fireworks and everything. It's great. But so, 1749 was when it was founded because it was a port city at the time; it was the furthest up the Potomac that the big draft merchant ships could make it to so that's why the city is where it is and all the ships would come and stop here. And then the cargo would go by land to wherever it needed to go next. And it's a town that has a very strong association with George Washington. While most people know that  George Washington's estate, Mount Vernon, is about ten miles South of Old Town I believe you had a review of Mount Vernon on a prior episode of this very podcast. 

Stacey

I did.

Jen

George Washington was very involved with the Old Town area. He actually laid out the grid of the city He was he was a surveyor in his youth before he began his military career. So, he's the one who laid out the grid, and he had a house in town. He went to a church in town and he frequented many of the taverns and establishments in the town. And we're actually going to talk about a few of those sites as we as we go through our tour. 

Jen

And thanks to the historic preservation efforts which I believe in the 70 s is really  when they got going,  they did a great job of establishing Old Town as a historic district. So they were able to save a lot of the old historic buildings. So, you still you can see all of these original buildings. Pretty much just as they were and so it's great to just walk around and kind of see that history there. But then in addition to the history ,I mean if you're like okay George Washington yeah, yeah, well and good, but you know you're you're a bit more interested in modern things, there's also a really great shopping and dining scene. And  art initiatives there. There's a torpedo factory which a lot of locals are familiar with, which is an old torpedo factory. It even has been refurbished into an arts art center with artists studios all through and you can walk through and see artists making things. There's our installations down at the waterfront. Lots of kind of neat things to see in that regard.

Stacey

Yeah, it really is a neat little city and I also appreciate the fact that there is still a lot of the old history there. But, also, it's kind of like old world meets new world and it's a neat feel.

So, I gave my opinion on this before the close of the segment and I think you and I share the same opinion. But I'm going to ask the question because it's a podcast. Do you think Old Town is an adventure spot that those visiting from out of town with their dogs should put on their itinerary?  And if so why.

Jen

Oh, absolutely.  Oldtown Prancer certainly can't say otherwise, but I really do believe it and there's lots of reasons for it. If you're in the relatively close to the DC area, you know, if you're in the DC metropolitan area it's a really easy day trip. You know where it's 10 minutes from downtown DC and so it's easy to come in for the day and go back home. But if you're coming from further out of town. Alexandria is very much a dog town and it's very easy to include your dog in your vacation.

So, you should absolutely bring your dog along if you're inclined to visit There are many, many pet friendly hotels to choose from right in Old Town. The Alexandrian hotel which is right kind of in the heart of King Street is dog friendly. And, actually, there's an event every year called the Scottish walk. It’s a parade around Christmas time that obviously has nods to the Scottish elements of Alexandria's history, which I didn't talk about, but I has a strong tradition of Scottish heritage. But my favorite part about the Scotch walk is that dogs march in the in the parade. There's different breed groups that march along. I always take pictures of all of them, but getting back to Alexandria I happen to know that the Irish Wolf Hounds stay at the Alexandrian I think every year. You can go and sometimes see in the lobby these just giant graceful gorgeous dogs lying all over the lobby. So well behaved.  Better behaved than Prancer, that’s for sure.  [chuckling]

Jen

But, so, the Alexandrian will definitely welcome even the largest of dogs and the Hotel Indigo by the waterfront is dog friendly. There's a Hyatt by the King Street Metro and several others. So, lots of hotels for you.

Stacey

I was just gonna say that I should have said this at the beginning of the segment. So, we are gonna mention some businesses in this segment and neither Jen nor I are affiliated with the businesses. We're not getting any kickbacks or anything like that. We're just trying to really give you some information so that your visit to Alexandria is really memorable and that you just really have a great time with your dog.

And, Jen, I will share with you that I didn't know this until I started doing some research for the show. Apparently, in 2019 Forbes ranked Alexandria as the ice cream cone capital of the United States. There really are some really great ice cream establishments in Old Town. And Expedia ranks Alexandria as one of the top 10 dog friendly vacation destinations. So ,see it's not just me and Jen saying this folks.

Jen

Yes, the ice cream piece I did know about and yes, if you if you like ice cream at all, you should you should be booking your train, bus, or plane ticket now because there are there are so many different ice cream shops in this area. But, yes, ice cream and dogs would say those are the two biggest draws. 

Stacey

What more could you ask for, right?

Jen

Yeah, so, I will say so if you're if you're planning to visit and you'd like to visit with your dog and have a very very sociable dog that likes crowds, lots of people, lots of other dogs, things like that, there's dog  specific events that are happening all year long in Alexandria. I already mentioned the Scottish walk. If you have a dog that isn't a specific breed some of the rescue groups actually March as well but it is primarily your scottish dogs. You get your West Island Terriers that sort of thing, but all kinds of dogs March in this parade. So, if you if you've got a dog and would like to March to the parade, I'm sure you could make that happen. And that's a really fun time. That's a really fun weekend. There's also Halloween trick or treat that doggies trick or treat along King Street. And then then just this year, actually, there was and a dog walk. It's called Alexandria Dog Walk. I  think they had gosh at least several none dogs and their owners marched in April 2022 on the waterfront walk around town. We went. Prancer was very excited. But so, I would say these events they're very fun and they're great, but probably only if you have a very sociable dog who can handle a lot of excitement and stimulation. 

Stacey

So, talk about the leash requirement in Old Town.

Jen

So, leashes are required.  They are required everywhere except there's a few fenced in dog parks around. There's a fenced dog park towards the north of Old Town and then there are actually two unfenced dog exercise areas. One is down towards the waterfront. Well, actually they're both towards the waterfront. One’s kind of smack in the middle of Old Town in Founders' Park and one's a little bit to the south in Windmill Hill Park and dogs are actually allowed to run off leash there. Although, if you are from out of town, unless your dog has extremely good recall I would be cautious about letting them out there because it's fairly busy area. So, I could see a lot of temptation for a dog that it isn't familiar with the area to race off.

Stacey

Very good point. You're right, those are some very busy areas. Obviously Old Town is not huge. I think Alexandria in general was only something like fifteen square miles and Old Town is even smaller than that.  But there are still a lot of different ways to explore Old Town and different routes and I know that you're going to take us on a specific route today. Are we doing a loop, are we doing an out and back, or something else? What's the route that you're going to take us on today?

Jen

Yeah, so I have probably walked almost every possible loop or I should say Prancer and I probably walked just about every loop around here. That was actually one of the reasons my fiancé and I wanted to get a dog is because we took so many walks around this area. We just kept saying ourselves man, it would be great to have a dog along on these walks because they're perfect dog walks. But I have mapped out one that's about just over two miles. I think it gives you a good sampling of what the town has to offer and it is a loop that will start and end at the same location.

Stacey

Well, I'm going to turn it over to you then and I'm just going to say Jen, walk us through a perfect day with your pup in Old Town Alexandria

Jen

Okay. So, I will say if I was giving you caveats about how wonderful it is to visit Alexandria the only maybe caveat that I would give you is that traffic and parking can be a little bit challenging. This is a town that was built in 1749 not necessarily prepared for twentieth century or twenty first century traffic. But sure driving in you might have to deal with a little traffic on your way in and parking. You know there's street parking but you got to be a little on your game and find those available spots. But when I did not live in Old Town, my go to parking space in Old Town is a very large public parking lot underneath city hall. So, right in the heart, you know, smack dab in the middle of Old Town. It's inexpensive. It only charges $2.50 an hour any day of the week and it's a great place to park if you don't want to mess with trying to find a spot on the street. And most of the street parking is paid as well so,  you're probably not going to find a place to park for free unless you really kind of seek it out. So, I'm going to recommend that you park under city hall and the only caveat is that there's a very large farmers market there every Saturday. From around oh, earlier than I get up in the morning until noon. So, it's very busy at that time and dogs are not actually allowed in that farmer's market. So, if you're planning to visit on Saturday and you don't kind of want to deal with that I would suggest you park on the north end of the loop I'm going to describe and jump in and just, you know, make your make your loop from there. 

Stacey

Yeah, that's a good point; I'd forgotten that the farmers market is not dog friendly which I understand why, but it does kind of surprise me just because Alexandria itself is so dog friendly. 

Jen

Yeah, I yeah I think it's because the farmers market - it's actually the longest continuously running farmers market in in the country. They say it's it's been running you know since George Washington's day. It runs all year round and it is a great farmer's market. So If you if you if you come with a couple folks and someone can hang on to your pup while you well you check it out. You know it is fun to check out. But I think it's just so densely populated that they can't let the dogs in, unfortunately.

Stacey

Yeah, so where are we going to start?

Jen

So, assuming that you parked under city hall, we're gonna start in front of city hall. And so then what I'm going to recommend before I go on, I will say this gets a little detailed and it's probably go be a little hard for folks to remember so I'm going to see suggest, Stacey you have a place on your website where we can you know, write up a list of steps. So, I think I'll include that as well. So,if you want to actually follow the route we can give you a not printable these days but you know, something you can  pull up on your phone and kind of follow the route that way. But what I'm going to recommend is if you start from city hall, that you walk to King Street and then head east towards the river so you're going to kind of walk out to King Street look to your left and you'll see the river down in front of you. So, head that way. And you're going to cross Fairfax Street which is the street that's right there and then turn left on Fairfax and start heading north. If you need some coffee to get you going, there's a coffee shop, a great gelato and coffee shop right there called Dolce Gelato and you know you can get fueled up to get going. They  have in the past at least Prancer has been allowed to allowed to go in there. So, if you can you can check with them about whether  your dog is allowed to come in and then if you continue just go ahead. 

Stacey

You can also get you can also get your dog a papacino there.

Jen

Yes, yes, so they are doing that still. That's good to know.

Stacey

Ah, they were. So it's been a little while since I've been there, but they were still doing that. But my advice is the dogs say just ask. No one's gonna say no to a dog.

Jen

Yeah, I will say, as a general rule about the establishments in Old Town, most of them, all most shops are dog friendly. And the restaurants, you have to be more careful of, right, because they have you know requirements about food safety and things like that. So, you're more you have to be a little more careful about asking which food establishments dogs can come in. There's often a sign on the door. There is actually an Alexandria specific sticker that says dog friendly with a little picture of a dog. It's kind of blue and you'll see it on the doors of a lot of stores. So, if you see that sticker, you know you're good to bring your dog in. If you don't see it,  Prancer likes to try to go in to just about every store that she goes past. . She's gotten enough treats that she's always convinced every store will give her a treat so she heads on in and I restrain her so she's standing at the door and almost invariably the shop owner will say oh, she could come in, we have treats. So, if you don't see a sign I would recommend just asking.

So, if you've got your coffee and your dog's got its puppucino, you're ready to keep going heading north. You got a treat stop just right in front of you. There's the Twist Boutique which has a in their entryway a gumball machine that's repurposed as a dog treat dispenser. So, Prancer always makes sure to stop in there and grab a treat and once you've got that keep heading north on Fairfax and stop by the Carlyle house. That's going to be the first stop on our agenda. This is one of the first houses that was built in Old Town. It was one of the first lots purchased and it's a grand house. It's beautiful. It has a great perfect green lawn and then in the back if you walk around the house, there's a beautiful, beautiful garden and dogs are allowed on the lawn and in the garden. Just make sure you pick up after them. Make sure you do that everywhere in Old Town, please. If people didn't do that we would just be inundated because there are so many dogs in town. But you can walk all around the grounds.  You can't go in the house with a dog, but the grounds are beautiful. So, check that out and once you're done there,  you can keep going north along Fairfax to the next block. You've actually only gone one block at this point and you'll be at Cameron Street. So once you're at Cameron Street… Cameron Street was one of the very earliest streets in Old Town. It was actually a street where most of the wealthy residents lived at that time.  It was it was kind of the King Street of the seventeen hundreds. It was the main thoroughfare. So, you're gonna walk up on King Street so turn left on King and start heading to the west. And as you go up there, you're going to pass a few historic buildings that are associated with George Washington. So, first you'll go by Duval's Tavern. This is a tavern from the seventeen hundreds. There's actually a bench outside with the statue of a young George Washington that Prancer likes to take photos with. She likes to you know, sit with George and get some pets. He was fed at that tavern when he returned from the Revolutionary War. You know, they gave a grand celebration for him there. And if you continue go up about another block or so, you'll see the Gatsby Tavern. There were a lot of taverns on this street at the time. And the Gatsby Tavern that's also got some George Washington associations. He had a birthday party there in the ballroom and Thomas Jefferson was actually inaugurated in the ballroom there at that tavern, and so it's kind of a neat place to see and they have something pretty cool. Oh go ahead. 

Stacey

Let me ask you a quick question. So, for the taverns that you're talking about. Are they functioning taverns?  So, are these just historic spots? I'm just wondering is there outdoor seating where you can sit down and have a drink or have something to eat.

Jen

Duval’s Tavern, no.  I believe it is an Airbnb or something like that now. At this at this point you can't go inside without some sort of dispensation. Gatsby's tavern is still functioning. It's actually two things. It's a restaurant and it's museum. So, you can go in the museum and you can go to the restaurant, but it is not dog friendly. So, this this this one you're going to have to stay on the outside I do have for this portion of the trip. This is an outside only portion of the trip. As we loop around, we'll have some more options for outdoor dining and things with your dog, but this is admire the historic buildings from the outside part of the trip. 

Stacey

Okay.

Jen

But at the Gastby Tavern there is something neat that you can check out with your dog. There's an ice well. In the in the seventeen hundreds, they dug a huge, huge well into the street by the side of tavern and they would take chunks of ice from the Potomac and lower them into the well and pack them in with straw. And maybe this is why Alexandria became the ice cream capital of the United States because they actually would use it to make ice cream. And it was one of the first places that made ice cream in America and they have a whole display where you can go down and see the ice well and your dogs can check it out too. Prancer likes to. Likes so it likes to go down in the hole and you know see what's there. So, it's a neat place stop and if you continue. Keep going up Cameron Street there's a couple shops long here that also have treats and water bowls set outside. So, keep your eyes peeled. Your pup can keep their eyes peeled for treat canisters, but just keep going. As you go up Cameron, you'll see George Washington's townhouse. He had a house in town as well as his Mount Vernon estate.  It's actually a replica because it burned down so they had to rebuild a replica here, but it looks like it did. And there's there's a plaque out there with some information about it that you can check out. And then keep going just another block or two, keep going west on Cameron up to Washington Street aptly named given  what we're doing here. And across the street, you'll see Christ Church. That's the church where Washington used to go to church. There's a pew that's still dedicated to him, but your dog can't go in the church so I'm not going to recommend going over there. So, this is the point where we're going to turn around so you're going to turn right on Washington Street and head one block north and then you'll be at Queen Street. So, you're gonna turn right on Queen and head back east towards the river. So, you're basically just kind of making the zigzag here. This is just a scenic journey. The reason I would like to take you to Queen is Queen is probably my personal favorite street in Old Town. The houses are just so charming. There’s at least one magazine that's awarded it like most charming block in America, and it is. It's just the houses are gorgeous, they're colorful, and there's usually a few of them also that have treats and water bowls out for the dogs. There are many, many dog loving homeowners in Old Town. So, your dogs can have plenty of opportunities to get some snacks and keep hydrated as they're as they're proceeding along this walk. 

Stacey

Jen, I have to ask you so, one of the things that Prancer is most well known for is she takes a lot of pictures in doorways of some of the old houses. So are a lot of those doorways on Queen Street?

Jen

A lot of them are on Queen Street, yes. It's one of our favorites. We don't live too far from there so we hit it very frequently on our walks, and, as I mentioned, it's probably my favorite so we walk there a lot and Prancer takes a lot of photos. So yes.

Although, shockingly, there is one house that she has not taken a photo in front of and I've actually taken several photos of her in front of this house, but none of them have been good. So I haven't posted any yet. But there's a very famous house on Queen Street. It's probably the most famous house in Old Town and it is the Spite House.  Are you familiar with the Spite House? 

Stacey

Oh, wait. Yes, actually I am. I do know this story I'd forgotten it,  but yes I do.

Jen

Okay, well the Spite House. Yeah, it is so it's called the Spite House because it was it was built out of spite. It's tiny, it is minuscule and it's bright blue so it's pretty easy to spot. It's a bright blue house. But it's only seven feet wide and it was built by the owner of the adjacent building because he owned that adjacent building and where the Spite House now is was an alley he also owned. And he was annoyed because the youths of the day had their had their carriages loitering in his alley and were scraping up the walls with their carriage wheels and he was annoyed enough that he decided to build this house to block off the alley to prevent them from doing that. So, it is an extremely charming house and is a very popular photo spot. Maybe if you can take some pictures of your dogs and in front of the Spite House. Maybe you can motivate me to actually get a good one of Prancer. 

Then, just keep heading east on Queen Street and admire the houses and eventually you'll emerge at the waterfront you'll be in Founder's Park. So, once you just keep heading towards the river until you know you can't go any further and then once you've done that turn right. And you're going to head south along the waterfront walk which kind of takes you in a windy route. If you just keep the river, you know, next to you, you'll go on a windy route all along the waterfront. You will pass a lot of lot of boats, and the water taxis, all kinds of things. There's a bunch of piers that you can walk out on if you like. Prancer loves to walk out on the piers. I think there's birds that nest underneath the piers and she's very interested in that. So, that's a favorite activity of hers. And just meander your way along the waterfront. It's very beautiful. As Stacey mentioned, it can be very windy, which can be either a very nice thing on a very hot summer day or a not so nice thing on a cold winter day. So, you know, plan accordingly. But you know make your way along the waterfront.

And you'll just continue. One nice thing about Old Town is the parks connect so you'll just go kind of from one waterfront park to the to the next. You'll go down through the marina then to Waterfront Park which is right at the base of King Street and it has  neat art installation. Right now they have rotating art  installations in place. The one right now is it's a big I love you in in neon pink and it's a great place to get a photo with you and your dog. I think should try and try and do that.

Stacey

And it’s also where a lot of the restaurants are located as well.

Jen

Yep, and yes, and if you're already if this is taking you a while (and I will say Prancer and I don't walk very fast) there's you know, as we heard earlier, Prancer has a lot of sniffing time and squirrel hunting time. So, if you kind of walk at our pace, if you're ready to stop and take some refreshments, King Street's right ahead and you've got a lot of options with outdoor dining. There's a block that is closed to vehicular traffic now that has all the restaurants and they all have fairly spacious outdoor patios. And, actually, along the marina, there's several restaurants that have outdoor patios that allow dogs as well. So you've got a lot of options in this area if you would like a snack.

So, you keep going along the waterfront and you'll  wind down through again these connecting parks. Lots of squirrels to be chased as Prancer would let you know. Until you arrive at Robinson Landing, which is a relatively new development that is on an old warehouse site, but that they've now turned into some condos and then some restaurants. And there's some neat restaurants down there too. Again if you're if you're feeling puckish, there's a couple of restaurants that have outdoor dining as well as a restaurant on a pier that is called Barca. It's got Mediterranean small plates foods and dogs are welcome there as well. Prancer has brunched there several times. So, again, you've got your snacking options. 

Keep going, just keep going through there once you've refreshed yourself, and you'll go through the shipyard park, which is kind of a neat windy little path that is in front of a series of townhouses with beautiful landscaping. Whoever does landscaping there does a fantastic job; it's just gorgeous. 

And then wind your way back up and at that point once you kind of got through the shipyard park head away from the river. The path is going to take you away from the river just follow it until you get to Union Street. You'll go up towards the street that's in front of you and you'll be at Union Street. Cross it and follow the path in front of you through a tunnel. There's an old train tunnel back from when Alexandria was the main port city of this area and they needed something to take, you know, once the  shipped goods got here, they needed to get those goods to the west and so there were trains that went through here and there's an old train tunnel that is left behind.  You can walk through the train tunnel in the summer it's really nice because it's always I would say like a  good twenty degrees cooler than anywhere else. It's great and head just head through the tunnel once you come out of the tunnel turn right and you'll be on South Royal Street.

And just keep heading to your heading back north now. So, you head north along South Royal Street until you get to Prince Street. And this is where you'll start to see some shops. You'll see this is where we're kind of getting back into the more business areas. And if you stop at the corner there at Prince Street and look straight ahead to your left, you'll see another spite house. It's not quite as famous as the blue one but it's another tiny house and this one actually has treats. They're dog lovers. They have tiny treats. Prancer and I call it the tiny treat house both a tiny house and it has tiny treats for the dogs. And it's always very festively decorated for the season. They do awesome Halloween decorations, some spring decorations. So, it's a really cute little house to check out and on the other side of street in front of you, you'll see Old Town Books and that is a very dog friendly establishment. They have a shop dog who is occasionally resident, but they are happy to let you bring your dog in. Prancer is a frequent visitor so you know feel free to browse and have your dog get some treats.

And once you're done there, come out of Old Town Books and head one block to the east. So, coming out the bookstore, you're going to go left. Head one block east to Prince Street to stop at the most, I think, the most famous Old Town treat stop, which is the bone box at the enchanted forest.  This is a little tree house that has been repurposed into a dog bone holder. It's adorable and people from all over town make donations I think in in memory of their departed pets. So, it's really sweet and you know  your dog should absolutely get a treat there . The flower shop is gorgeous too. So, if you just want to see some gorgeous flowers, it's a good spot. And once you're done there, hang… let's see you'll be… you'll be back on Fairfax. So, this is Fairfax so head two more blocks and you're back at City hall.

Jen

Which is where you started. So you've made a loop. It's like I said it's a little over two miles and so you're back right in kind of the center of King Street. So, at that point depending on if you haven't stopped for  a meal yet, right in front of you are all the King Street restaurants with their outdoor patios. So, there's a lot of options for you to stop and get a meal with your dog .There's actually a few restaurants that even have doggy menus. Daniel O'Connells has a puppy menu. Sonoma Seller has one as well.  South Block.

Stacey

Yes, yes, Justice been to the Sonoma Cellar and he gives four paws up for their doggie menu. Apparently it was very good because he inhaled it.

Jen

Yeah, we love Sonoma Cellar. They've got a great garden in the back that not a lot of people are aware is there, but it's a great spot for the dogs, especially maybe if the patios on the main street are a little exciting for the dog. The garden is a little more private so that's a nice place to stop. And then if you've had your food and if you've had some lunch, there's plenty of shops along King Street and like I said most of them will let you take your dog in. So, if you want to take in some shops with your pup you can  spend all day, basically.

Stacey

And I don't think that there are a lot of places in the United States where you can do that. I mean, like you said, there are just so many shops that are welcoming for the dogs and it's great to be able to go spend a day in Old Town with your pup

Now, let's talk about one thing, though. Overheating is obviously a concern for every dog parent and you mentioned earlier that it can get a little toasty during the summer months. So, does the route include shade? Is it better walked in the early morning or late evening? What do you recommend?

Jen

So, actually, I think this is one of the nice things about this sort of route. So, Old Town has a pretty great tree canopy. So, there's lots of trees and the buildings themselves offer some shade apart from let's say if you're if you're walking at high noon it might be a little challenging. But even so, there's usually a way you can find shade. And if you're walking in any other time the direct noon by choosing which side of the street you walk on you, you generally have the option of being either in the sun or being in the shade. And, so, I think setting aside the fact that this area, you know Alexandria Virginia, in the summer is just it is a swamp and it does get it does get very hot. There's no real getting away from that. I think this [route] is a pretty good option and you are going to have many water stops available to you. I mean if your dog really needs a ton of water I would recommend you bring water for your dog, but as I mentioned a lot of businesses and even a lot of just homeowners put out water bowls. And I see these people putting them out now. They seem to do it quite diligently and there's a number of city water fountains that actually have dog bowls attached at the bottom. So, there's, you know, the top bowl for humans and then there's a button and a bowl at the bottom that's for dogs so there's a lot of places for your dog to get a drink and cool down.

Stacey

Yeah, I know that there's one of those water fountains down at the where the Chart House is located by the water on the pier. Justice has frequented that one. So, yes, but again I think that that's just another great feature that you've got water fountains that take dogs into consideration. That, again, that just shows how dog friendly Alexandria is.

Now you're not going to find dogy waste receptacles but there are a ton of trash cans throughout Alexandria. That's another thing, Alexandria is an incredibly clean city. I mean it really is just incredibly clean.  And so as Jen alluded to earlier, please make sure that you pick up after your dog if you are visiting.

 Jen, anything else that you think listeners need to know about a perfect day in Old Town.

Jen

Well, there, there's one other thing. I couldn't quite get them on my loop but I did want to mention there are at least three pet shops specifically that cater to dogs in Old Town. There's one on King Street which is called The Dog Park that hosts the Halloween festivities. There's Old Town School for Dogs which is just a little bit to the north in Old Town and then just a little further north in North Old Town, there's Loyal Companion. So, if your dog needs anything at all while you're here, you've got three places at a minimum that that would love to have you visit and you know could have just about anything that your dog could need.

Stacey

I'm so glad that you brought that up because that is, again, I think another just great feature about this little community is that there are so many options. And you also reminded me that I've been wanting to go to Loyal Companion. That's the only one I haven't visited so Justice and I may go do that next weekend, we’ll see.

Well, Jen, thank you so much. I am excited about doing this walk myself and so I appreciate… I know that you put a lot of time and effort into mapping this out and even though you walk it regularly with Prancer, I know to actually have to think about okay, well wait which way should we go here and writing out all the details and so thank you very much for that. And as you said you'll send me the information about the walk and then I will post that on the website. So, if anyone who wants to visit Alexandria, and we really hope that you all come visit,  if you want to come visit, you'll have a you'll have the instructions mapped out for you and I will also say that if you do come to Alexandria let me and Justice know. We would absolutely, positively love to meet up with you and walk with you. And  I suspect Jen would probably be open to doing the same thing.

Jen

Oh yeah, well this is this is really Prancer's tour of Old Town. So, I mean Prancer would always be happy to show someone around so feel free to reach out.

Stacey

Awesome! Well, Jen, again. Thank you so much for being on the show and providing us such great information about sent work and about Old Town Alexandria