Yay Disney!

Day 1 - Epcot
The last time Tim and I were in Disney was in December of 2005 when we were still dating. Since we dated long distance for almost two years, it was always interesting to see where we would meet up. Most of the time it was in New York or Ohio where I was living at the time. Sometimes it was in Pennsylvania and Texas where our families are... and then this one time it was at Disney World:). My college roommate Sara Joy was living in Gainesville, Florida for a year and we planned a Disney meetup trip for the three of us. We stayed in this super shady Days Inn where there were literally bugs in our beds and we woke up to a woman crying... not the best accommodations. The park, however, was fabulous. And this is why we built in a Disney portion to our trip.

We began our Disney vacation with Epcot, what we remembered to be our favorite park. It was a lot like I remembered as we walked in and the huge spaceship earth globe stood in front of us. This is a great focal point when you're trying to find different attractions! We immediately made our way through all of the rides and attractions to get to the World Showcase, a collection of different countries from around the world, all situated around a large lake. Each country has a distinctive architecture style that houses an attraction like a film or an educational ride. There are also gift shops with items for sale from that country, a restaurant with native food, and both are typically operated by natives of the country. All of these things really make you feel like you are in that particular country. That night we stopped for dinner at Morocco where we got this delicious shaved beef and chicken with a cream sauce on it, hummus, a parsley salad, and a piece of bread. It was very enjoyable. Afterward, we strolled through the shop that was in an adobe-type building. The shop clerk said hello to us and asked us if we knew Arabic. We said no, and he asked our names, then wrote them for us in Arabic. He said the Arabic alphabet has five or more letters than the English alphabet. These letters allow them to write many sounds that our alphabet doesn't. He demonstrated some of the more throaty sounds known to that region and then pointed out where they were in our names. It is very interesting and makes a lot of sense. Such an educational trip:)

OK, so it wasn't all educational, a lot of what we did was EAT. There was a wine and culinary festival going on while we were there. In addition to the little food shops at all the countries, there were booths set up that had three different foods not found on the typical menu. It was a lot of fun to stop by all of these booths and get samples of foods we'd never tried or heard of before. My favorite was a dish native to Cape Town called bobotie. It was like meatloaf in consistency, but with raisins, and then a mango chutney poured over the top. It was a great combination of salty and sweet. We tried many other things like creme brulee from France, scallops from ?, wild mushroom soup and pierogies from Poland, and tres leches from Buenos Aires. It is super easy for these little samples to add up in cost, but I think it is still worth it, because where can you try foods from all over the world in one place?

We also saw some films in circlevision, which is a room you stand in the middle of and there are screens in a circle around you. It creates this great affect as you swoop through canyons and cities. It is very neat to look in front and back to see everything at the scene. We saw shows for Canada and Japan. We also caught some musical acts. There were The Beatles in London, of course, and then there was a band in Louisiana called the Pine Leaf Boys. There were an awesome zydeco band - a type of music I love. You can't not listen to it and smile. I think it's the accordion that makes me smile. I feel the same way about steel drum music - it's just happy music. Another show we saw was in China. It was an acrobat show with about 10 young guys. They say they're 16, but the verdict is still out... kidding. These boys were amazing! It's like their feet are spring loaded. They bounce forward and backward, upside down.. so effortlessly. There was also a guy there that had a board on a cylinder that he rolled back and forth on, and flipped bowls on top of his head. I'm not even sure how you come to acquire this skill.. I'm sure through a lot of trial and error.

We ended our day at Epcot without the fireworks, because there was quite a crowd and we didn't want to wait for the bus for an hour. We retired to our Disney resort (value resort, we're not too hoity toity:)) - The Pop Century Resort. It was an interesting place, decoratively speaking. Our section was supposed to encapsulate the 50's and 60's, and had bowling pins and yo-yos for staircases. The buildings were also a lovely violet color. Not sure I'll be incorporating what I've seen into our next home. Thankfully our rooms were fairly plain in their decor so we could go to sleep at night:)

PS - As a sidenote from Tim, we've opened up commenting to everyone and not just those with openid accounts.  So feel free to comment!

Cumberland Island

We decided to go ahead and go to Cumberland Island today. I reeeeally wanted to see those wild horses:). We took a 45 minute passenger ferry over to the island where we were greeted by a kooky park ranger named Rene. She has loved the island since she was a kid and when she was old enough, she got a job there, and hasn't left since... and she is in her 50's I'd say. She describes herself as a geographically undesirable woman, therefore never having married. She seems perfectly content with her island though.

So we embarked on a tour with Rene where she recounted the history of the island which once belonged to Native Americans, then was inhabited by different settlers and owners. She had us (10 adults) standing in as actors as she recounted the story. Overall, it was amusing. I got to be Catherine Greene, who was very popular amongst the men, and kind of a modern woman.. wearing pants when she rode horses, wowee! Hearing all of the stories and side stories gave life to the place. There are ruins of several mansions on the 15 mile long island. The mansions were destinations of the rich and famous at one time. In fact, the island was owned by the Carnegies until 1972 when they gave it over to the park service. The deal they struck was funny though, and some family members still live in the houses there. It was interesting to walk around, wondering if the other people there might be cabillionaires.

After our walk around the ruins of Dungeness, we walked through the sand dunes to the beach. We walked for awhile down there, picking up shells. We found several good ones, but no big ones. Cumberland Island is also near a submarine base, and the Navy had to dredge a couple of passages for the submarines. The stuff they dredged up now lines the roads that go through Cumberland Island. I found a shark's tooth out on the road! After walking the beach, we headed inland through an oak grove. These were the coolest oaks I'd ever seen. It felt like we were walking through an enchanted forest, the way the limbs started at the ground and sprawled everywhere as they tried to reach the skies.

As we made our way to the front of the island, our time on the island was coming to an end... and we hadn't seen horses yet! I was very glad we came, and in retrospect I would have come without seeing the horses, but I still wanted to see them! As we got back to where we arrived, Tim saw one! And then three more! There were several grazing at a distance, and I was happy:). We still had an hour to kill, so decided to walk back to the ruins where we had been tipped that we might see more horses. Sure enough, there were about ten more that we saw. There were some young ones, and older ones, all looking very different. These horses belonged to Andrew Carnegie's mother, and when she died, in her will she said to let the horses go on the island. Apparently she had Morgans, Mustangs, Appaloosas, Thoroughbreds... many different kinds of horses. So the horses there today are mutts.. but very pretty mutts.

I'm very glad we went to the Cumberland Island National Seashore, and I would love to go back sometime and camp. It is an island you could spend a week exploring!

Savannah

This morning we journeyed back into Savannah for a little more touring around. We parked near Forsyth Park, 10 acres that was dedicated as parkland back in the 1850's. There are so many green spaces in Savannah - it is beautiful. In the park and all over the city are these massive oak trees with limbs sprawling all over. There are also some of the biggest magnolia trees I've ever seen. We have magnolias in Texas that I thought were big, but some of the ones in Savannah were as big as oaks! Walking through the historic neghborhoods in the city, we saw some beautiful architecture. I'm not sure what the style is called, but there is a lot of brick with big windows and a lot of iron gates, railings, and huge scroll brackets that held up balconies. Many of the houses had courtyards, which I loved. I decided that I'm doing one at the house we build someday:). My grandmother used to have a courtyard at her house and it was so peaceful. It is an area that had either brick or concrete floors, planted areas on the sides, or potted plants sitting around, and many times a fountain. many have little garden spaces in the middle that are divided up by boxwood hedges. Some have little statues too. As you can tell, I'm in love with courtyards:) Check with me in 10 years to see if I have one:)

After walking down many streets and through many parks, we went back to the car to make our way to the Georgia-Florida border. On our way down, we got gas and stopped at an outlet mall. I was down to two pairs of jeans for the trip, and then got a hole in a conspicuous place, so it was Gap time. I found a great pair for $20, can't beat that. From there, we stopped at the Visitor's center for Brunswick and Cumberland Island - the area we were headed. I was really interested to get some information on the Cumberland Island, because they have wild horses there and I've always wanted to see wild horses:)

Charleston and Savannah

Tim again.  This morning we awoke in Myrtle Beach to a cool but otherwise beautiful morning.  The view from our hotel was really nice (especially for the price!), and we got a late start to get on the road by 10 or so.  I don't know what it is about being on the road, but I can't seem to want to get an early start unless we're camping.  I'll definitely have to get back in a more normal sleeping routine soon.  I remember being up really early all the time on my previous trip, but maybe that was due to it being summer, with a really early sunrise, and temperatures rising quickly.  Plus, Paul (who I went with on the trip, for those not familiar) used to get all cuddly in the mornings and it creeped me out.  Just kidding, Paul!

Anyways, we really didn't stop in Myrtle Beach for anything site or souvenir-wise.  I suppose the place must appeal to some people, and probably is a good family destination, but I think I'd rather spend my vacations away from large groups of unfamiliar people.  That could be the introvert in me showing.

So, after a relatively short 100 miles on the road, we came to Charleston.  Using the Road Food book given to us by Nathan as a guide, we decided to stop at Jestine's Kitchen for lunch.  It was really quite good, probably some of the best food of the trip.  I had a fried oyster po boy (a sub for those from the north), and Kat had the fried chicken, along with the "table wine", which is really just sweet tea.  Believe it or not, it was my first sweet tea of the trip and I made up for lost time by drinking like 3 glasses of it.  After walking around town a bit and looking at all the fancy stores we couldn't afford to go into, we hopped in the car and headed towards Savannah.  Along the way, we stopped at a roadside shop and picked up some sweet potato butter (like apple butter), as well as some kinda praline mustardy glaze, and a praline for good measure.  I don't know that I've ever had a praline before, but I think I'll be having more of them in the future because it was really good.  I've actually started a list of some foods I've had or heard of along the trip to try making them when we finish the trip.  The south really has a lot of delicious food.

Upon arriving in Savannah we followed our normal "first time in a new city" routine.  First, we look for the first signs of any sort of visitor's center and attempt to stop there.  Then, we get frustrated when we get lost or can't find parking or encounter a lot of traffic (it never fails).  Finally, once we get our bearings we calm down and start to enjoy the place.  Kat and I were talking today and saying that we don't really like touring around cities.  I told her that I thought it was mostly due to the stress of working your way around an unfamiliar place, that we liked Rochester once we knew where we were going, and she agreed.  Still, even if the stress of unfamiliarity weren't an issue, I think I'd choose touring around a National Park over seeing a major metropolitan area.

Once we got ourselves situated and parked in Savannah, we spent some time just walking around, taking in the waterfront and a lot of the area around the capitol, as well as few trendy shopping type areas.  I've heard that the homes and the architecture around Savannah are really beautiful so I'm looking forward to seeing that.  I think tomorrow we'll do a sort of self-guided walking tour of some of the homes and such around town then hit the road to end up somewhere in southern Georgia, or maybe Florida.  Who knows.

Part of what I like about the trip is that we're constantly not really knowing where we'll lay our heads down at night, where we'll be exploring the next day, who we might meet, and what situation we might run into.  I've stated to some that I think my first road trip around the country with Paul was one of the best things I've ever done.  I don't think it was just the experience of seeing all of those sites or being on a 5 week vacation.  I'm beginning to become more convinced that it was the fact that we were going around the country and really had no idea what would face us on a day to day basis.  Things were unknown and new and sometimes a bit scary and it was all ok.  We made it through just fine.  I think it gave me the confidence to step out a bit more, to be adventurous.

Perhaps more on this later, but for now, it's time to hit the sack.

Driving across NC

Well, Oakboro was a bust. I'm beginning to think that guy was having fun with a couple of tourists. It was a no stoplight town without even an interesting main street. Oh well. We quickly hopped back on main roads, then highways, and sped our way across North Carolina, headed for the coast. The highlight of the day and an extra programmed destination of the day was lunch at Sonic. We saw our first Sonic somewhere in Virginia, but weren't able to stop until our uneventful day-o-commuting. Man, was it heaven. I got a bacon cheeseburger, cheese tator tots, and a cherry lime slush. If I were on death row, that just might have to be my last meal. Well, maybe not, but there is something very comforting about Sonic food. As we sat there and waited for the car hop to come out, I told Tim of the many weekends of my childhood that I spent at the farm, and how most involved a trip to Sonic. Back then my favorites were a corn dog and grape slush - I have matured to better things now such as tots with cheese.
Anyways, as you can see, our day was pretty uneventful. I did notice that as we neared the coast, the land became flatter and pines were much more prevalent. It reminded me very much of driving through Texas. It's neat how as I get closer to home, things are becoming more familiar to me. I'm not typically one for nostalgia, because so many times it's just an inconvenience, but with no agenda and tons of time, I am soaking it all up.

Tim might say the highlight of his day was stopping at a place called Mackey's Ferry Peanuts. It was a place in the middle of nowhere, but with big signs advertising boiled peanuts. Well, neither of us have ever had boiled peanuts, but by these signs, we assumed it was a local delight, and we pulled over. Tim went up to the counter and ordered some like they're his favorite. The guys asked, hot or cold? Tim said hot, like he knew it was the best. Well sir, they were hot, fresh out of the boiler, I believe. They were interesting. They were hot and a little mushy. They still had the flavor of typical peanuts, but just took on a hot and mushy form. We still have them today, so now they are cold and mushy. I'm glad we tried them, but I'm not sure what all the fuss is about. You just get your hands messy.

From the peanut store, we made our way to our campsite for the night. It was a place called Pettigrew State Park, situated on a lake and a wildlife reserve. We were really just looking to get to sleep and get started on our next day, so we didn't bother with the wildlife reserve. That also could have to do with the ranger telling us there had been a mother bear and two cubs spotted recently. We did check out the lake though. It was a huge lake - 16,000 acres. It was a crystal clear evening and very pretty as the sun was setting over the lake. From here, we went back to our tent and found we had some neighbors in the site across the way. It was a couple of guys with a boat who we found out were expecting some other guys later at night. Well, by later at night, we thought, 8, 9, 10... something like that. Well, they got in at 4:30 this morning. Apparently they drove in from West Virginia.. and instead of wanting to sleep like normal people, they got their buddies up and proceeded to talk loudly, build a fire, make breakfast, and every other noisy thing you can think of. While in the bathroom, one of the guys asked Tim if he heard them come in. Tim said yes, and they guy kinda shrugged it off. Tim said he wanted to yell at the guy. Oh well, we were up and on the road by 8:30.. never to see those yahoos again.

The Outer Banks

We arrived at the Outer Banks by 10 and made our way toward Kitty Hawk, where Tim had bought stunt kites as a kid. We passed a couple of kite shops on the way, but Tim assured me that the best one was all the way in Kitty Hawk. Well, Kitty Hawk came and went and we found ourselves all the way in Duck, NC before we knew it. Using Lori, the faithful GPS, we got ourselves turned around on backroads for a good while, then Kitty Hawk bound once again. Well, as it turns out, the awesome kite store was one of the shops we had seen on our way. We parked and went into this store, that I think may have been pink on the outside with every kind of kite or windsock flying from the building. The store had TONS of stuff from clothing, to kites, to toys.. but we (I mean Tim) were only interested in kites. Tim got to talking with a kite lady and soon had his prized kite picked out. These kites are hand sewn and can do many tricks like spinning and flying low. I'm sure there are other things.. and Tim got a CD to learn them.

From the kite shop, we headed south to Nags Head for some lunch. We found a place recommended by the NC visitor guide - Sam and Omie's. We got a very interesting lady as a waitress. I'd say she was drunk, but it was 11 in the morning, so I'm thinking she's just a nutty local. She recommended the grilled fish cake sandwich, which we both got. It was very tasty and the fries were to die for. For dessert, we had homemade banana pudding. Neither of us had ever had homemade banana pudding before, and let me tell you, it was amazing. I can tell the difference in the boxed pudding. This stuff had a nicely whipped texture, vanilla wafers at the bottom, and chunks of banana throughout. After this scrumptious meal, we hit the road again.

Our next stop was the Bodie (pronounced body) Island Lighthouse. There are many beautiful lighthouses on the Outer Banks. We stood in the sun awhile and looked at it, toured the visitor's center, and picked up a couple of patches for Tim's patch collection. From the lighthouse, we went to the grocery store, picked up a few groceries, and hit the beach. We got there around 3 and set up our beach towels. There were fishermen spread along the beach, but the whole time I sat there, I didn't see one of them catch a fish. Tim pulled out his new kite and took it for it's inaugural flight with much success. No major crashes, and lots of loopty-loops. I finished the book I had been reading, The Ultimate Gift - a great book, I highly recommend it. We made PBJ's for dinner, enjoyed a drink as the sun set, and overall just relaxed while enjoying the waves and sun. Then we packed it all up and headed to our campsite.

We stayed at a place called Camp Woods, which is a RV park with a few tent sites. The woman there set us up with an awesome site right on the edge of a pond. I took full advantage of the nice bath house, then settled into the tent for some reading before bed. We had settled down into our sleeping bags, were talking, when we heard something lightly hitting the tent. Tim said, is that rain? I said, no way, it was a perfect day, not a cloud in the sky. Not 10 seconds later, the skies parted and it poured! I'm not talking a light rain, even a heavy rain, it was a HUGE rain with 35 mph winds. We quickly zipped up the tarp cover and bunkered down for the storm. We didn't make it half an hour before water was coming in the tent on Tim's side. He scootched over to my side a little more to avoid any dripping. We lay there as the winds ripped at the tent and the rain poured. We could heard loud things outside the tent, but had no idea what they were. Soon after, we had a branch come down on the tent. Luckily it wasn't big, but it scared us enough to run out of the tent into the car. Now, we're in the Fit, so sleeping in the car is out of the option. After not much deliberation, I started calling motels for late night rates. On the second try, I found a place for $50 and we left our tent to the storm.

Lexington

This morning while soaking up the last of the free cable at the Knight's Inn, we heard that there was a Barbeque Festival in Lexington, NC, a city which was on the general route of where we were headed. (Actually, we didn't know where we were headed) So we set out bright and early, barbeque on the brain. (We treated ourself to Mexican the night before, so it was time for my next fix of Texas favorites). We arrived a the Walmart parking lot for the shuttle around 10:00. Once on the shuttle, we struck up a conversation with a local guy who was extremely friendly. He was excited to hear we were down all the way from NY. He said this was the best barbeque in the country. I told him I wasn't sure, I was from Texas after all. He said this stuff is different from Texas barbeque, it's vinegar based. Hey, I'm open-minded, I definitely wanted to try this stuff. (Especially after all the junk we've been cooking up on the road). Oh, and lastly, we asked his opinion of where to go in NC since we were passing through. He said definitely go to Oakboro. Stay tuned for what that was like.

We entered the Barbeque Festival at the north end of what I think was Main Street. They blocked off traffic for about five or ten blocks down and all along each side were food booths, exhibits, and crafts. The first exhibit we came across was the Lumberjack Competition. Now, I had seen these things many times on TV and always thought it was amusing how throwing an axe or chopping a piece of wood had become a talent to perfect, worthy of a medal and the worship of many men and women. Well, I went up front and center to get a piece of the action. Not only were there burly looking lumberjack men, there were young guys fighting for the honor of best axe throw. I've never thrown an axe myself, so I guess I shouldn't knock it - I'm sure those things are heavy. We saw some talent out there I believe. Looking around at the crowd, I didn't see anyone about to pee themselves over a bullseye with an axe.. so now I'm almost wondering if it's like an exclusive club.. kinda like a Dungeons and Dragons club. Maybe it's enough to these guys to be cool to each other. OK, so that wasn't all of the festival.

We walked a block further and encountered a sand sculpture about 29 feet tall. It was a large birthday cake with pigs all over it, eating it mostly. And of course there was a pig in a wig popping out the top. This was the 25th anniversary of the festival, so they did it up big. The pigs are the mascot of the festival because barbecue in North Carolina is pork based, for the most part. We did make it down to a booth and both got barbecue sandwiches, Tim's with cole slaw, mine without. It was tasty and we both enjoyed it. Is it as good as Texas barbecue..? Even if it was, would I say so? Probably not:). Darn that Southern pride.

There were also many craft booths with birdhouses, pottery, clothes, jewelry, etc. One of the first booths we came to were selling these hand-sewn bags made from fabric scraps. There were adorable, and I got one for myself. After milling from booth to booth, we stopped by to see the Budweiser clydesdales. They are huge and beautiful animals. I've seen them before, but am blown away by their size and muscles every time I see them. They really look like gentle giants (that's not to say I'd go walking behind one of them!). From here, we went on to one of the many stages set up around the event. The featured entertainer of the evening was Leanne Womack. I don't know that I'm wild about her music, but she really does have a beautiful voice, somewhat like Alison Krauss. The best part of the concert was listening to one of her sideliners that she switched off singing songs with. His name is Jamey Johnson, and he is a pretty funny guy. I'm not saying I agree with everything he sings about, but he is pretty straightforward and hilarious at times. For an example, check out his song "Women." Well, after half dozen songs, I was pooped. We headed back to Walmart, bought the Jamey Johnson CD (yeah, we're bad), and hit the road for our campsite that would put us closer to Oakboro, North Carolina's pride and joy.

Camping was pretty good. We went on a Saturday night before Halloween, which apparently is a big deal in these parts, because there was trick or treating and a "decorate your campsite" competition. We were supposed to vote for the best one, but were having such a fit with our campfire that we never got around to it. We bought a bundle of wood for $3, which we thought was a pretty good deal. Well, little did we know, this was wet wood on a very humid night. We fought with that fire for hours... but the flame would never keep. Well, Tim said it did eventually, but I had long since gone to bed, and when I looked in the morning, there was more wood left than there was burnt. I will give my man credit for fanning the crap out of that wood for hours.. I'm surprised he's not sore today. Oh well. We're not fooling with fires tonight, that's all I know.

(No, it was not as good as Texas barbecue)