Southern comfort

During my career in publishing, I've had the pleasure of living in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Denver, Chicago and, most recently, Stamford, Connecticut--just an hour's commute from Manhattan, the publishing mecca of the world. But I've never lived or worked south of the Mason-Dixon line, so finding myself in Richmond, Virginia, where the offices of Vegetarian Times have moved to corporate headquarters, is an eye-opener--and an adventure.

Even though a Yankee by birth, I'm well aware that Richmond was the capital of the Confederacy. The city--which is but two hours from the nation's capitol, two hours from the mountains and two hours from the shore--is literally ringed with old battlefields and still-genteel plantations. I'm told that when you visit one of these plantations on a summer evening, hosts steeped in the traditions of Southern hospitality will serve juleps made with fresh mint grown on ancestral land.

The juleps offer their own brand of southern comfort, but at first I confess to wonder how vegetarians fare in this land of salt-cured Virginia ham. Not to worry. The state has a proud tradition of culling luscious fruits and vegetables from well-tended "kitchen" gardens. City dwellers raise their own herbs, even though oregano and thyme grow wild. The nearby Shenandoah Valley boasts some of the finest apples in America. Every Saturday morning, truckloads of vegetables roll into Richmond for sale at one of America's oldest farmers' markets. Happily, it's just 10 minutes from my new home, in a charming area of the city known as The Fan, a neighborhood boasting proud Georgetown-style row houses built at the turn of the century.

In late summer, Richmonders look forward to eating succulent Hanover tomatoes, raised in the northern county where Patrick Henry had his plantation. Those I'll eat just as I did as a child: like apples right off the vine. Peanuts remain a Virginia specialty, centuries after George Washington served peanut soup at Mount Vernon. Tobacco crops are giving way to healthier alternatives, such as whole grains, soybeans and even grapes that are made into Chardonnays and Merlots from the state's up-and-coming wineries.

I look forward to becoming a Virginian--an upstart southern belle from the north. What my friends and colleagues look forward to is watching for signs of a southern accent. Is there a hint of one on the horizon?

Not yet, y'all!

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