Waterside is located on the Elizabeth River in Norfolk, and is about an hour from us. It was built in the early 1990’s, and consists mostly of shops and restaurants. Each June, it is the site of Harborfest, and the Opsail (Operation Sail) events as they occur.
This weekend was Harborfest, as well as Opsail 2012, and the weather couldn’t have been more perfect. Motor Man, Marshall and I decided to visit early Sunday morning.
The Coast Guard Cutter, Eagle, has been host to all five previous Opsail events (1964, 1976, 1986, 1992, and 2000). The Opsail of 2000 was the first one I really knew about. I was surprised, when researching it for this post, to learn there had been so many, dating back that far.
Tall ships, representing many countries, come together during Opsail. The event ends with the Parade of Sail in New York on July 4. This is the Picton Castle, whose home port is the Cook Islands.
Motor Man took this of Marshall and me with the Eagle in the background.
And Marshall took some photos of Motor Man and me in front of the Brazilian tall ship Cisne Branco. This one was taken when Motor Man was playing nice.
And this one when he wasn’t. (No, we are NOT dancing.)
And when he was forgiven.
It was a fun, beautiful morning in the “Mermaid City”.
these days of mine 
Oh what GREAT photos! Must have been wonderful seeing all those beautiful ships together in one place. In spite of Motor Man trying to toss you in the water (!) it looks like a FUN time was had by you and your guys!
Pam (and Sam)
Lovely photos! We were there on Thursday, before the ships came in, and it was definitely not as crowded as it was yesterday afternoon! Love the photo of you and MM “playing around” on the dock! Glad you didn’t go overboard! I only took about 1000 photos between the Wednesday and Friday sailings, and the day yesterday…now to sort through them!
Looks like you had a great day – I love that first shot with all of those tall masts.
Looks like you very nearly went for a swim there, lol.
Nicely done! And-you didn’t have to get wet after all! 😉
Wow, I love looking at tall ships – so neat! But the best part is the mermaid at the end 🙂 What a beautiful statue!
I just LOVE tall ships – they’re so … Tall! You and Marshall especially, got some great shots. 😉 Glad ya didn’t end up playing mermaid! Bad boy Motor Man! But funny.
~d.
I would have loved to see that….thank you for sharing the day 🙂
The tall ships sailing into Norfolk was a beautiful sight! And your picture with the mermaid was perfect.
Oh what fun! What a sight….all the boat/ships and Motor Man trying to throw you in! He is a lucky man to be forgiven so quickly! 😉
Looks like you almost went for a little swim! This looks like such a FUN day-thanks so much for sharing. I would give anything to be closer to the water!
i like that cool sculpture at the end. glad you weren’t tossed in!
All those beautiful sailing ships must have been quite a sight! Looks like a fun day. I love the last photo with the mermaid!
It was a fun morning! … & we picked just the right time to go; no crowds, and mild heat. I only wish we had realized the Kalmar Nyckel was there .. would’ve been cool to see her again 😉 Also glad you weren’t tossed in.. none of us can swim !
Oh how I miss sailing… We had a small (23′) boat as a kid and sailed up & down the Hudson. One day I’ll have a sailboat again. Thanks for the beautiful reminders Dianna.
*anna
You look like a sailing gal in your sporty outfit! Nice shots – especially the one where you almost ‘went for a drink’!
Looks like so much fun!! Except for the photo of MM trying to get you wet. 😉 Glad you forgave him.
Wasn’t this a blast! Brett had the greats view of the event from his office window at the Naval Hospital! I was so jealous!
We took our first ride on the Tide to OpSail, later Sunday afternoon when it cooled off a bit. I’d love to see the Parade of Sail sometime. Glad to see Motor Man held on tightly so YOU didn’t go sailing into the water! Did you go on any of the ships?
How fun! I know nothing about sailing, but it always intrigues me! These are beautiful ships…boats…vessels…whatever, they’re lovely! What a great area you live in! ~ Sheila
Your ship pictures were so real life like we were there.