Today, we were planning to meet grandma and grandpa at a rental house in the North Carolina mountains at 3:00pm. But, we were informed by the hosts that the rental would not be available until 4:00pm. So, we decided to try to meet up at 3:00pm for a short hike and then proceed to the rental.
Since Knoxville ended up being much larger than expected, DH and I stayed up late trying to figure out what we could do in Knoxville instead of the activities we found for possibilities on the drive to North Carolina. DH also wanted to find a “real” breakfast place because, at check-in, the hotel said breakfast would be grab and go.
In the morning, we went to a breakfast place in Market Square. DH was the only one who ended up liking the breakfast he ordered. When we were walking around, I noticed a few homeless individuals in Market Square – it looked similar to how Portland looked when we first moved there years ago. One woman was asking for food. She ate one of our meals that we didn’t like and then got a box for the other two meals. She was so thankful, she offered us her umbrella, which was the only possession she was carrying with her. (We told her we had an umbrella and to keep hers.)
On our walk back to the hotel, we walked through “graffiti alley.” This is an alley that was covered in graffiti and reclaimed by artists in partnership with the city. Artists are provided a portion of a wall to transform the alley into works of art.
On the other side of graffiti alley was a chocolate and coffee shop. The mocha was excellent. The kids picked out chocolate and French macarons for later.
Back at the hotel, the “grab and go” breakfast looked more like a buffet than some of the other buffets we had at hotels along the way. We picked up some food, since we hadn’t really eaten at the restaurant, and had a second breakfast in the hotel room before heading out.
We stopped at a gem “mining” place along the way. (This is one of the places where you sift through a bucket and “find” “gems.”) The kids enjoyed it.
Lunch, our last meal of the road trip, was a bust, as the place where the kids liked the menu ended up being closed on Sundays. While we searched for a new place for lunch, grandma called and let us know she got lost and was running late. As we were also behind schedule, we decided to skip the hike and just meet at the rental at 4:00pm. That ended up being a good plan because the drive was longer than expected. One “highway” ended up being a barely two lane windy 25-mile-per-hour road.
We finally arrived at 4:15pm and saw grandma and grandpa’s car pull in right behind us. There’s not much cell phone service but the internet seems to be strong enough for DH and me to work for the next two days before we head to Durham. It is remote but there’s something for everyone to enjoy. Grandma and tween took a walk to see the cows, chickens, pony and donkey. In the morning, we can have fresh eggs for breakfast. After dinner, the kids relaxed in the hot tub and then we made a fire in the outdoor fireplace. I can’t wait to sleep in tomorrow! If I work West Coast hours, I get an extra three hours of sleep in the morning. So much for adjusting to the time change…
Overall, it was a successful trip! I already did three loads of laundry and, at some point, we’ll need to clear out the mounds of stuff that accumulated at the kids’ feet in the car. We got more efficient at packing the car as we went along and, for the most part, everyone got along. The kids weren’t on electronics all day (which is a change from the past 1.5 years) and we saw lots of beautiful sites across the country. The kids even played with each other at times in the car and occasionally went out of their way to be nice to each other. Because we often had to amend plans and writing the blog took more time than I anticipated, I didn’t get to watch a single movie that I downloaded before we left and barely started reading one book. But, that’s OK! This was most likely a once in a lifetime experience (except for the return trip). I enjoyed seeing different topography. I may get to watch a movie or read a book on the way back because that trip will be more driving each day with less to see. The kids will earn a few more Junior Ranger badges but we’ll mostly see a lot of flat farmland. I’m signing off until the return trip.