After spending an amazing six weeks in Asia, we returned home … for ten days. We left this past Monday for our next adventure. We are currently on a 3-week road trip to Asheville, Nashville, Memphis, Clarksdale MS, New Orleans for the first weekend of Jazz Fest, and Sarasota for a wedding.
We spent much of Monday in the car driving to Asheville. We took the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel which coincidentally was celebrating its sixtieth birthday on Monday; unfortunately they weren’t passing out birthday cake at the EZ Pass toll booth.
After checking into the hotel Monday, we headed out to get diner and a drink. We went to the District Arts Brewing Company where we got a couple of beers and burrito (for me) and quesadilla (for Jane). They already started trivia so we missed out playing.
Our first adventure on Tuesday was a short drive to Pisgah National Forest where we went to Looking Glass Waterfall, hiked the Moore Core Trail to another waterfall, and then to Sliding Rock.
We left the forest and drove a short distance to the cute town of Brevard, NC where had lunch at Sully’s Steamers for steamed bagels that were delicious. After lunch, we explored the town and some cool boutique shops.
On the way back we stopped for gas; while pumping gas, a lady came over and offered me a Jesus Loves You card. I told her I’m set — a “welcome to the South” moment.
Before heading back to Asheville, we stopped at the Sierra Nevada Brewery. We didn’t feel like waiting an hour and a half for the next guided tour, so we took the self guided tour. We then worked our way down to the tap room and beer garden. They opened this place a dozen years ago and the building and outdoor setting is stunning. As an added bonus, the very fresh beer was cold and tasty.
We got back into Asheville and started exploring the downtown area by visiting some galleries and the City Building. We then made it over to The Wedge Brewery, which is in the historic Grove Arcade. The bar wasn’t busy and we spent the hour talking to the bartender about Asheville and getting restaurant recommendations. We went to dinner at one of his recommendations, Bear’s Smokehouse. We were a little disappointed in the BBQ we had. After dinner we walked over to Funkatorium, which is part of Wicked Weed Brewery.
We spent Wednesday exploring more of Asheville’s Art Deco architecture and many art galleries. We then walked over to additional galleries in the River Arts District. We were galleried-out by the afternoon and after lunch, we walked back to the hotel where we chilled for a few hours.
We had our first really good meal Wednesday night at Curate (thanks to the recommendation of our friend Katie). The open kitchen is directly behind the bar and we sat at the bar watching the back of the house operations in full view. The food was excellent and the service was great.
It was our first time in Asheville and we highly recommend it. Yesterday we drove to Nashville (surprisingly another first for Jane) and hung out on Broadway. Stay tuned for more details on our next posting.
Traveling Walters 