<p>I've got a D who's a rising HS senior. Her older sister is at is at a campus where the younger D loves the adjacent sidewalk scene. It's urban / suburban with a college town buzz, the opportunity to step off the campus and be in a different, but still active, environment. What would she likely think of the U.Va. neighborhood? I know that it has a couple blocks of restaurants just off the Lawn; is the neighborhood bustling or in a "bubble"?</p>
<p>UVA isn't urban like Georgetown or NYU, but there's plenty to do right off grounds or within a mile or two of the grounds. Charlottesville is a very, very nice small city (large town), IMO. The area immediately off grounds is known as the Corner and is filled with mostly students, professors and other people affiliated with the University. The downtown mall, which is further away, usually has a mix of students and locals.</p>
<p>On Charlottesville: I love C'ville because although there's always something to do, it's not huge and sprawling and busy. It's a fun, modern, laid-back southern small city. Lots of restaurants on the corner, even more in the Downtown Mall and along Rt 29. Shopping follows the same guidelines. There's also a few music venues ranging from Starr Hill to JPJ, that have both local/small bands and larger/well-known. There's also plenty of stuff to do that's affiliated with the University, including weekly movies at Newcomb, plays, concerts, etc. I'd say C'ville is the best of all worlds: a tad urban, a tad rural, and although it has a great college town vibe, it also extends beyond that as you move beyond the Grounds area.
As for location: anywhere in central VA won't be a "bubble". DC is 2 hours away, VA beach ~3, Richmond ~2. Plus, there's tons of outdoor-sy type stuff to do around C'ville, especially with the Blue Ridge Pkwy so close.</p>
<p>C'ville is a lovely place but it is southern suburbia at best. There is nothing urban, edgy or bustling about it. IMO it is a bubble built to cater to the students. The Corner, is like Nassua Street in Princeton, and like Princeton you travel up the road a piece to get to a mall. Betwen the grounds and the mall is a pile of strip malls with a million fast food joints. I happen to love fast food but it's not Cambridge or NYC. The Corner features local food haunts and other small stores. In Princeton you are 1 hour by train or car to NY or Philly. At UVa you are 3 hours to DC. UVa is lovely and sedate, but there is no suggestion of urban life. Sorority girls who crave fashion go elsewhere to purchase the latest styles if that gives you an idea of the digs. Hope this helps.</p>
<p>Actually it's only two hours to DC. I don't know what the latest fashion means but there are most of the popular stores for young people in C'Ville. Not many people at UVa are into wild fashions. J Crew will do fine.</p>
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Actually it's only two hours to DC
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<p>IFF you go at a non-peak traffic time. During the day you're bound to run in to traffic on 66 between Gainesville and DC that could easily push the travel time to three hours.</p>
<p>Agreed. I made it down on a Saturday in less than 2 hours (i'm about 20-30min from downtown, heart of DC). However, I've also sat on 66 for an hour, only to get on 29 and be stuck again. If you know 66 is tied up, get on 29 at the first exit (going to Cville) or get off onto 66 at the second exit (going to DC). They're still widening 66 past Manassass, and thus the second 29 exit off of 66 is often clogged. Welcome to DC traffic.</p>
<p>NEVER get off at Gainesville. Always go to the Haymarket exit and take 15 to 29.</p>
<p>something is in the water or the air in Charlottesville..never met anyone--city slicker or country kid who didn't love living there all four years and frankly they can't seem to explain it to me...Albemarle County is lovely and that is a fact. we have friends with preppy kids and granola kids and kids who can't be labeled anything..all find their niche at UVa</p>
<p>C-ville isn't bad. It's not urban along the lines of DC, but it certainly isn't desolate. I would say it's a college town. If there's a surrounding town, a couple thousand college kids are going to find stuff to do. If there isn't, they're going to create something to do. But I would say the corner has a pretty bustling vibe, at least weekend nights. The last sat night I went through there, no parking whatsoever and everything was packed. It is not a huge things with clubs quite like Georgetown but it's right there, and it's decent. I think from what you describe your daughter would probably like it.</p>
<p>I have a quick word about downtown, which is a mile down Main Street from The Corner.</p>
<p>The Downtown Mall and the area around it are full of boutiques, restaurants, salons, and art galleries. For information about what's going on around downtown check out The</a> Hook and [Cville</a> Weekly<a href="scroll%20down%20for%20the%20calendar">/url</a>, our free weeklies, similar to The Village Voice in NYC, The Washington Paper in DC, and The Phoenix in Boston.</p>
<p>As a former New Yorker and Bostonian, I admit that I had doubts about how vibrant Charlottesville would be, but I've found it to be a fun, eclectic place to live. I consider it a large town, but people from suburbia or rural areas consider it a city.</p>
<p>Here are some threads to read for some more information:
<a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=220023%5B/url%5D">http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=220023](<a href="http://www.c-ville.com/index.php?cat=121304064638297%5DCville">http://www.c-ville.com/index.php?cat=121304064638297)</a>
<a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=323984%5B/url%5D">http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=323984</a></p>
<p>This</a> interactive map isn't perfect (it omits a few blocks here and there), but it'll give you an idea of the town's layout. Click on store/restaurant names and a photo will pop up for many of them (well, the ones that paid to be on the map).</p>
<p>Great stuff - thanks everyone!</p>
<p>i'm never bored when I'm down there and there are always new things i want to go see and do.</p>
<p>on grounds, off grounds, or something easily accessible by car/train/bus, there's plenty to see and do for all types.</p>
<p>I just loved hanging out at the Downtown Mall this past weekend - great restaurants and bars. It's cool that there's a free trolley from Grounds to the Downtown Mall. Plus now, any UVA student can take any</a> Charlottesville city bus for free.</p>
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University of Virginia students, staff, and faculty may ride on any CTS bus on any fixed-route, without paying a fare, simply by showing the CTS driver their current valid UVA photo ID card. Charlottesville Transit Service is partnering with the University of Virginia to offer a fare-free ridership program for holders of UVA ID cards.
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<p>Just a random question, how does C-ville compare to Chapel Hill?</p>
<p>Random question, but whenever you're on grounds you can see a house that resembles Monticello up on a hill, with trees all around it and partly covering it. I've heard the story behind it before, but can't remember it. Anyone know?</p>
<p>It's owned by some person that gave a lot of money to the school. That's all I can remember about that house.</p>
<p>It used to be a convent.</p>
<p>I think I'll be able to see that house from my dorm room! I thought it was Monticello too, but asked someone at an information desk there at UVA. They said that there are lots of tales about that place, one being that it was built by someone who got rejected from UVA a long time ago, and as way of getting even, they built a house to rival Mr. Jefferson's that would look over the grounds.</p>
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They said that there are lots of tales about that place, one being that it was built by someone who got rejected from UVA a long time ago, and as way of getting even, they built a house to rival Mr. Jefferson's that would look over the grounds.
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<p>Kind of a stupid and unrealistic story, imo.</p>