Colonists in Wawa?: The True Burg Experience

I think Williamsburg might be one of the few places in the world where you can walk into the local convenience shop or store and just happen to run into a Colonist on any given day. I can’t even keep track of the number of times that’s happened to me since I’ve come to the College, but I don’t think it ever gets old. Just the other day, I decided to do some late night grocery shopping, and as I walked through the sliding glass doors, I almost ran smack dab into a Colonial restaurant worker in full garb, including vest, knickers, knee socks and everything, buying some snacks and drinks. An anachronism if I ever saw one, but definitely helped to make my shopping experience much more amusing! As well, pretty much every time I go to Wawa, our local 24-hour convenience store right off campus, I see at least one Colonist buying something. Wawa is definitely a student favorite, but apparently a Colonial favorite too!

And let’s not forget last weekend, when I went to Aroma’s, one of my favorite local coffee shops, to try and get caught up on work and emails. I was sitting there, enjoying a good cup of joe, and just happened to look up in time to see several colonists, including some women in their fancy dresses and mob caps, walk in to grab some scones and coffee. Certainly very funny to see, but not as much so as when you watch a Colonial reenactor drive by in their car, blasting pop tunes and otherwise unwinding as they head either to or from work. Yes, it probably seems a little weird, but I find it an endearing and special characteristic of life in Williamsburg, and I definitely wouldn’t trade it for anything. So if you, dear reader, come to campus, don’t worry if you see a Colonist wandering around our stores–they aren’t ghosts (well, probably not) but rather just another quirky and funny facet of life in the Burg!