Once you leave the gates of Fort Belvoir and the convenience of the commissary or PX you are going to want to have some choices of where you find the essentials you need for your family.

It isn't hard in Northern Virginia to find what you need.  Whether you are looking for a bag of chips, a paint brush to put your own touch on your new home, clothes to deal with our ever changing weather or a whole house full of furniture because you are ready for something new, there are number of places to shop all within five miles of the main gate of base.

One of the hardest things to get used to when you move to a new area is the differences in the grocery stores and what you can and can not buy in them.  When we lived in Georgia the thought of going to Piggly Wiggly for groceries always brought up a giggle but you couldn't buy any beer or wine at all in the store.  When we lived in Arizona we were surprised to find that we could find all that and what we would consider in our area "hard liquior as well. 

In Northern Virginia we meet in the middle.  So if you head to Harris Teeter a "high end" grocery store or Trader Joe's famous for its Two Buck Chuck or our regular chain stores of Giant, Safeway or Bloom you will find that you can buy your beer and wine right along with your groceries.  If you want a bottle of something with a bit more kick then you need to head to a Virginia ABC store (usually located close by to one of the mega chain stores) to pick up the stronger stuff.

Just so you don't think that we have a drinking problem in our family we also occasionally shop for clothes too!  Northern Virginia offers a variety of malls for you to choose from.  The closest mall to Fort Belvoir is the Springfield Mall with large stores such as Macy's, JC Penney and Target as its anchor stores.  A variety of smaller stores fill in the in the GAP in the middle.  Just across the street from the mall you will find two smaller shopping centers which feature Old Navy, Linen's and Things, DSW (shoes) and for those who would like to include an intellectual pursuit to their shopping trip Borders and Barnes and Noble book stores are there as well.

If you are looking for a few new items for your home you might want to take a jaunt just a few miles down the Springfield Parkway to Kingstowne.  There you can look for bargains at Home Goods or World Imports.  If you need to find a bit more furniture then head across the street and stop in atLazy Boy or the next door Broyhill furniture store might fit the bill.

So don't worry when you move to Fort Belvoir you will find plenty to spend your money on.  Visa and MasterCard will love you! 

If one of the things you need when you get here is a new home.  Give me a call
I'll be glad to show you not only lots of great neighborhoods to call home but point out the local shopping and dining spots as well.

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As an Associate Broker with RE/MAX Allegiance in Northern Virginia and native of the area I can assist you whether you are buying, selling or renting a home anywhere in Northern Virginia. For more information about the area or my services you can check VaRealEstateTalk or my Northern Virginia website.

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