A little broken down, but still an interesting local curiosity. If you like a little side of the…read moreroad fun, have a peek

This place is amazing, literally the best place to visit in Roanoke. Despite what some of the…read morereviews say, it is much bigger than expected. Neighborhood is beautiful, right next to the river. You are missing out if you don't make this a priority stop when passing by, near, around, or within a hour of Roanoke.

I wanted to register to vote for the first time in the upcoming November election and I quickly…read morerealized I should have not tried to do it in person. I made the mistake of asking one "dumb" question. It's the first time I'm registering or voting so I didn't know and assumed the Registrar was there to answer questions if needed! The Registrar was so hateful that I didn't even get registered and just left frustrated with a halfway filled in form. The assistant Registrar was trying to be helpful but I felt bad because even she wasn't above the wrath of the Registrar. I'm not sure how this woman got a job dealing with the public but the city would be better off with someone nicer and until they hire someone nicer, you'd be better off just registering to vote on the internet or at the DMV when you get a new license.

This is the best and most famous thing to do when visiting Roanoke. We went right before sunset and…read moreit ended up being the perfect time. You sit on the hill opposite the star and once the sun goes behind the tall trees, make your way over to the other side and see all of the city light up before you. Granted, it is a small place, but you get a whole view below you. The star is the biggest manmade star so take that as you will. It was nice that you could drive directly up to the parking lot and there were paved sidewalks so anyone could make the walk right up to the star. The parking lot is rather small so be prepared to either wait or have to go back down a little bit to find a place. We were there on a beautiful fall night so it seemed like the entire city was there. People were patient as you took pictures though so there was no trouble at all. Just a little crowded on the observation deck so be prepared.

A majestic object that looks down on the city from a small mountain. The mountain has a series of…read moretrails, with more planned, so there is plenty of opportunity to spend more time than just looking at the star and checking out the overlook. However, even if one is just going to do that, the views are nice.

USPS, IS USELESS. I have a package that electric tracking…read moresays will be delivered by end of business today. I waited at the letter box, the rural delivery contractor zoomed through. No package, it is 8.5lb, 40 inches long. Tomorrow I will bet there is a note in the mail box and they will claim it is undeliverable, I will be waiting at the mail box, this lazy contractor won't even bother to bring the package. As a result I will have to do a 12 mile round trip, take about 1.5 hours out of my day. Why am I even paying for delivery when I have to go pick it up myself. They deliver an average of 5 pieces of junk mail a day. The post office concerned is the main office near cave springs. They all need to be​ fired, no pension, nothing...useless. and when you call you get told the wait time to talk to a live human is an hour. Very convenient that this happened at 4pm.

The Roanoke Public Library is a wonderful resource for the community. Located in the Downtown…read moreRoanoke area, in a building that went through renovation from the original, it maintains the classical relaxed look, yet at the same time, it has those modern touches that has kept it up with the times. It now has a Virginia Room where people can do research on the history of Roanoke, among other things. And around this area it has meeting rooms where one can reserve to do research or to meet. Besides the traditional bookcases with books, the library has an extensive computer area located in the Darryl G. & Young-Ja Howery Mezzanine, as well as a cellphone charging station. I tried charging my cellphone there with the cords provided and a notice came up on my phone that this cord was too slow to charge my phone and to try to use another one because with this one it would take 8 hours to do so. This is one of the reasons I only gave this library a 4 star rating. The intention to provide modern services was there but not the execution. I brought it to the attention of the librarian to see if it could be corrected for the future with better charger cords, or even better, with devices where you can rest the cellphone on them and they would automatically charge the phone. I'm sure that after the Library Director reads this review he will follow-up because he is a very knowledgeable individual and wonderful human being. The librarians here are all very friendly and helpful. In the basement of the library the Blue Ridge Literacy is located. This is a place where among other this they teach English for free to immigrants new to the area. A reality that I can not leave behind is that many of the homeless of our community frequent the library during the day as a refuge to keep cool in the Summer and Warm in the Winter. Something that the library could do is have a station with booklets and information to help these write a resume, and look for and apply for a job using the computers. It could also offer workshops in one of the meeting rooms to teach and develop the skills needed for them to overcome the adversities that lead them to be homeless. Throughout the years the library has played very important roles in the community, and through creative thinking and innovation, it can find new ways in the future to meet the community's need head on.

Great little library with really helpful librarians. The book selection isn't huge but you can…read moreorder from any of the libraries and get it sent to this one

This, the main branch of the United States Post Office in the city of Roanoke, Virginia is my…read morefavorite of them all. For it's a clear example of the efficiency and excellent customer service, that throughout the years have distinguished our postal service and its dedicated employees. Even though they have had to confront competition along the way, it has only served to make it even better. For competition is the American way, where everyone benefits from it along the way. On the year 2025, the United States Postal Service (USPS) celebrated its 250th anniversary. This postal system was officially established by the Second Continental Congress on July 26, 1775, with Benjamin Franklin appointed as its first Postmaster General. It was founded to bind the nation together and facilitate secure and accessible communication among all communities. Its original intent was to ensure the inexpensive distribution of printed material to educate a democratic electorate. After the arrival of the computer, the internet, and the email, and with all the competition of private companies such as UPS and FedEx, the USPS went through some hardships. But they have remained in the hearts of every single person in our communities. We admire and look forward to the daily arrival of our mailcarier. To going to the Post Office to mail a letter or pick up a package. We enjoy buying and collecting stamps. We appreciate and respect the service that the U.S. Postal Service employees do for us. I invite you to visit their 250 Anniversary website USPS.com/250 and read the two books that they put out last year to celebrate the occasion: "Delivering for America: How the United States Postal Service Built a Nation," and the special 250th anniversary edition of "The United States Postal Service: An American History." And also, I invite you to watch my favorite movie that I watch every year around this Holiday Season: "Miracle on 34th Street." Today, I visited this post office to purchase some Forever stamps. I enjoy walking into their building and always finding it clean and filled with posters and flyers containing useful information. I enjoy taking a peak at their small little museum as you enter the building. As a contrast to this they have right in front of it, a Self-Service station with the latest electronic computer. Then there is a long, wide hallway filled with P.O. Boxes on the left, and the post office counter on the right after entering through another glass doors. They even have a branch of the Blue Eagle Credit Union inside the same building, for the convenience of their customers. In this U.S. Post Office you can not only buy stamps, send letters, mail and pick-up packages, but even purchase shipping supplies and greeting cards, among other things. The line always moves fast due to the very efficient postal clerks, who even though they move fast, give you their total attention and take their time to make you feel at home and not rushed, explaining what needs to be explained about the system to provide you with useful information. When my turn arrived, a walked over to the counter and received a warm and friendly greeting from the postal clerk. When I inquired about the latest editions of their commemorate Forever Stamps, he pulled out a box with all of them. I had time to look over them and picked a book of the one I like the most, and then proceeded to pay with my credit card. I was in and out in no time at all, after receiving not only my stamps and receipt, but a heartfelt Thank you. I walked out of this Post Office feeling proud that I was an American citizen and that I lived in this great country of ours.

We had an 8am appointment for a passport. No one showed ups waited for 50 minutes with many others…read morewho had appointments. Eventually learned the person called out sick, but no one bothered to tell any of the waiting customers, many of whom had little

Salem Civic Center treated Trump Rally attendees worse than anything I've ever seen. Absolutely…read moreabhorrent!!! I've always loved the Salem Civic Center and had good experiences there until yesterday, 11/2/2024, for the Trump Rally. You REALLY LET US DOWN YESTERDAY. There were signs for "Cooling Stations" supposedly, but none were set up. I had called days ahead and spoken with a man at the Civic Center about what would be available since no outside food or water would be allowed inside due to high security, and I was "ASSURED" there would be a Concession stand open with drinks and pre-packaged snacks, but no cooked food like hotdogs due to the expected size of the crowd. That would be perfect....EXCEPT, after waiting in line since 8 am, doors opening at 12, surprisingly INTENSE heat that had people passing out while waiting with no shade, we get inside at almost 2 pm to find them CLOSING THE CONCESSION STANDS!!!!!!!!!!! Yep CLOSED. Doors locked. First, I was told because they 'ran out of drinks, water and food." Then I was told by another worker: 'Secret Service closed it." It seemed to be open on and off as random people, like news reporters, seemed to be getting food and drinks AND COOKED FOOD. Then 'magically' the concession opened on the main level the instant Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin began his speech about an hour into the Rally. (Coincidence? I doubt it. Seemed intentional like so much of what happened Saturday.) But the line was NOT MOVING. And when we finally got waited on 1.5 hours later, we found out why the line was barely moving if at all. The young man behind the counter seemed to be intentionally moving as slow as possible! We had to argue with him to fill the $5 drink cups up! (he was filling them half way.) And there was also arguing with him over putting the cheese on the nachos! Not to mention, there were NO cardboard drink carriers for our family of five attending this who had had very little food or water since 8 am! That was true of nearly everyone there just due to circumstances. There were only 2 water fountains we could find, and one had almost no water pressure and you could only get one sip before it quit. The other one in the lobby had a long line...again, understandably so...people were dying of thirst and expecting to purchase water once inside. WHY ON EARTH DIDN'T YOU PREPARE FOR THIS CROWD????????????? Why didn't you bring in a TRUCK LOAD of BOTTLED WATER? I've owned and run a small vending service in the past, and even WE didn't run out of bottled water a large events, made a lot of money selling it, and also had DRINK CARRIERS!!!!! What is WRONG WITH YOU, SALEM CIVIC CENTER????? This was either GROSS INCOMPETENCE, or MALICE AGAINST TRUMP SUPPORTERS! I hate to think that was the case, but I was there and experienced it and it sure felt intentional because who could be that stupid?? One worker when I asked if there was water available (I was clearly having an issue with being over heated at this point) and she answered in a very sarcastic mean manner: "Well we had the restaurant open all morning and NOBODY CAME IN." REALLY LADY????????????????????????????? Unbelievable RUDE AND INSENSITIVE. How out of touch are you people anyway??? Did you not look outside and see with your own eyes what was happening out there? Thousands of people, Long lines, zig zagged through the ropes designed to organize the large numbers of people in line to get in!! You couldn't even get out of that line to use the Porta-Johns!!!!!!!! Much less visit and sit down in the indoor restaurant! Salem Civic Center, if you had been on top of your game, which CLEARLY YOU WERE NOT AND DIDN'T WANT TO BE, you would've had your bitchy restaurant person outside selling drinks, water and snacks to this massive crowd! I don't know who mismanaged this SO POORLY, but you should be fired! People were left suffering with heat strokes and dehydration, elderly people and children and some in health predicaments due to this negligence on your part. I'll be surprised if you aren't sued over this by someone. I hope Trump himself sues you! Heads should roll over this. You need new management, and new employees and a whole overhaul. I will never forget how BADLY I and my family and friends were treated yesterday. You all are deplorable: including every single employee there yesterday but most especially management!

The band we saw here, (the Turnpike Troubadours) were great; outstanding; excellent. The venue…read moreitself is miserable. It is clear that this is not a great venue for people who like to go to concerts, unless they want to stuff their faces at the same time with cheap, nasty greasy food. Better for sports fans who drink so much beer they're beyond caring. I did not know until we walked the considerable distance from the parking lot to the doors that handbags are not allowed inside the venue. Why not? I wondered. This was a first. I go to a *lot* of concerts, but never had I experienced any venue as officious. The staff were nice enough, but the owners are obviously way, WAY more interested in the profits made by hawking greasy, repulsive junk food than trying to make it enjoyable and comfortable for the concertgoers. I was ready to bail at that point and go home, but we were meeting another couple there, and my husband offered to run all the way back to our car and leave my bag there. They will allow see-through ziplock bags, so if you need to carry tampax, Anacin, etc, along, be warned they will be on full display, or take your chances without bringing anything. A completely disrespectful-to-women venue. Their rationale for this is to make a few bucks on food, and heaven forbid anyone might sneak food in. I never carry food in my handbag--no matter, we were still all forced to gag on the smell of fast food grease. UGH! I did not buy a single drink or bite on GPs, even I had not been grossed out. Instead of 1 so-so opening act, they had 2, and they both played a long time, so the Troubadours didn't come out till at least 9:15, or was it 9:30? (the concert started at 8, I believe, but we arrived at 8:15). There are lots of stairs to climb to any seat in the higher rows, so be warned, prepare to do a lot of climbing--no ramps, either, which is tougher in any kind of a heel. No handrails either. The seats are pretty small and hard, and leg room is poor for the longer-legged folks. Because of the so-so opening acts taking up so much time, the concert finished at 11:15. As we got closer to Blacksburg on the trip home, we got caught in some heavy traffic, ~ 12? which made the drive home even longer. I would have felt the trip was worth it if the humiliating treatment of women had not been freely and unapologetically displayed, but given their f---ed up policies and customer relations, I would not ever to a concert at this venue again, no matter who was performing there. They absolutely s*ck. No other venue in Virginia that I've gone to a concert at, has ever treated women so ignominiously. Even Jiffy Lube Pavilion, which has an egregiously hostile staff, never deprived me of my handbag, (in which I keep Visine, an essential at populous events for ppl with contacts). I hope the sexist porcine venue owner gets his butt sued one day.