Students get a feel for Floyd

LCI students pose for a picture in front of the famed Floyd Country Store.

While things may be relatively quiet in downtown Blacksburg during the summer, several LCI students learned on Friday, June 9, that downtown Floyd is the place to be.

Merchants were out in the market area with various handicrafts. Several were eager to ask the students where they were from and describe the items for sale (handmade whisk brooms, postcards, iron racks, tie-dyed clothing, and woolen knit hats to name a few).

As we made our way down the crowded sidewalk, we paused to listen to several bands playing along the street. Our ultimate destination was the Floyd Country Store, where we enjoyed listening to the old-time bluegrass music, watching people dance, and even trying a turn on the floor ourselves.

While no one in our group won a prize for having traveled the farthest — that prize went to a visitor from China — we all left with a renewed sense of hope that community and goodwill for all does exist and that music and traditions bind us all in this little corner of the world.

— Professor Bonnie Sumner