Shepherdstown is about an hour and half drive away. However, thanks to my poor navigating skills and the confusing google directions, we somehow managed to cross the Pennsylvania border before we realized that we got lost. We were an hour behind when we arrived at our destination, but it was still early enough in which we got to see almost all that we wanted to. Shepherdstown is also a nice place to stop by while visitng Harper's Ferry.
The town is very small and walkable, despite the cold and rainy weather that day. The main street where all the main attractions are is German Street. To the North is the campus of Shepherd University. German Street is lined with cute and locally-owned shops from clothing stores, coffeeshops, restaurants, a library, and even an opera house. Every shop and place exhibited a distinct flavor of its own.
We first stopped by "German Street Coffee and Candelry." I can never say no to a place that sells coffee. The store sells a wide selection of coffee beans and grounds them up for you. It also had a selection of jams, wine, spices, other goods, and of course candles. I walked out with a small bag of "German Street Blend", which was highly recommended by the store clerk.
The Trinity Episcopal Church, built in 1859.
The Opera House, built in the early 1900s. It showed movies until 1956. It is now renovated and reopened as a movie theater.
"The Little House"
The building definitely lives up to its name. The house was built as a summer school project of Professor Florence Shaw. Don't be fooled by the small size, however, it has two stories, equipped with 2 bedrooms, a kitchen, living room, and a dining room.
Meanwhile, lunch time arrives. We were all starving, and what better choice than to hit up a local eatery called the "Blue Moon Cafe." The restaurant was a few streets over from German Street, from the outside it seemed like a place where many university students would come and hang out at night. Indeed, the cafe hosts concerts and other events on a weekly basis. I started out with a Rogue Dead Guy ale, it's that type of day where you just feel like a nice cold beer. I asked the waitress for suggestions on the vegetarian menu, and the spicy black bean burger was recommended.
Inside the Blue Moon Cafe
The burger, however, turned out to be a big disappointment. The black bean patty was not homemade, and probably came from a frozen package. It was $1.50 to substitute the chips for a ridiculously small portion of cole slaw. The spicy mayonnaise sauce was probably the best thing on that whole plate. I did not feel very satisfied after scraping clean my dish.
Laura ordered a chicken sandwich in ciabatta, which seemed to be a better success than my dried out burger. It was a disappointing dining experience, especially since there were so many other tasty options on German Street.
After browsing in a few clothing stores and the "Four Seasons" bookstore, we just had to hit one last coffeeshop before we leave town.
The Lost Dog Cafe is definitely one of those hip and laid back independent coffeeshop that the Washington, DC area lacks. Walking in, you will find a huge selection of teas from all over the world, even my home country Taiwan!!
There was also a wide selection of coffee beans that can be made to order. The barista was very patient with me as I ponder on my order. I ended up ordering a hand-press Java coffee, which was a bit mild, but perfect for a late afternoon.
The inside was decorated with a selection of artworks. There was also a bookshelf for people who want to spend a pleasant afternoon reading. There were also sketchbooks on tables where people can contribute their drawings, writings, poetries, etc. It was definitely an interesting read!
The excurstion to Shepherdstown proved to be a worthwhile trip! I highly recommend this as a day trip if you want something that's close enough and with the just right amount of sightseeing and shopping!
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