Cherryville, NC

Located in Gaston county, Cherryville is a short drive from the Charlotte area.  Being a Sunday, the only day off my husband could get on this 4th of July holiday weekend, nothing was open but I must go back!!  About every building in the downtown has historic interest and is occupied with my favorite type of business: an antique or vintage shop.  These were not junk shops ... the window fronts beckoned me with unique furniture pieces, quality antiques and must have collectibles.  There is also the Cherryville Historical Museum that looked of great interest. www.visitgaston.org/gaston-county-attractions/item/cherryville-historical-museum

We wandered around a bit then getting hungry drove a short distance to Parkway House Family Restaurant.  Housed in what was once obviously a chain steak joint I expected a dark interior with lots of variations of the color brown but was delighted instead to find a bright cheery decor when I entered.  The menu is extensive with almost every possible dish you can think of: including pizza, Italian, Greek, burgers, sandwiches, Calabash style seafood, soups, salads, and every Southerner's favorite: meat and 2 veggies plate.  Service was friendly, prices were reasonable, servings were ample and best of all I enjoyed the food.

How do we top off a great meal?!  With sweet muscadine and dessert wines at Fiddler's Vineyard a short drive from the downtown area of Cherryville.  the www.fiddlersvineyard.com  Our host was a hoot and we sampled for free every flavored wine you could think of : chocolate, pina colada, banana split, watermelon ... all sweet and delicious.  They do offer a few drier wines but their specialty is definitely on the sweeter side.  The grapes are grown on the premise.  The grounds are very pretty and they often have live music on the weekends.  

I couldn't ask for a more perfect way to spend the end of the holiday weekend than hanging out under a big shade tree sipping Pina Colada wine and shooting the breeze with my husband.

FATHER'S DAY IN BADIN, NORTH CAROLINA

Today is Father's Day and I am lucky to not only have my husband and son to spend the day with but also my father here from Georgia for the weekend.  We ... Mom, Dad, brother, husband, son and I ... loaded up in the mini van and headed to Badin, North Carolina to spend the day.  Badin is described as a "French flavor town" built up in the early 1900s when a french company came to build a damn.  It is indeed a small but oh so charming little town on the lake.  The "downtown" consists of just a few buildings.  There is a coffee shop, a couple of restaurants and a few shops ... all very quaint and picturesque.  Since it was early Sunday nothing was open so we had to be satisfied with window shopping.

Next we went to The Biden Inn and Golf Club and Resort.  www.badininn.com I would describe it as a mini Pinehurst.  The Inn is a beautiful white house with inviting rocking chairs on the sprawling front porch.  I looked inside the lobby and photos of the rooms.  Each room had a different decor and I thought the rates were very reasonable.  We ate lunch in the pub on the porch overlooking the golf course.  It made for a fun afternoon watching the golfers tee off and the food was yummy too!  

We then drove just a few miles away to Morrow Mountain State Park. www.stateparks.com/morrow_mountain  The park offers hiking, swimming, boating, camping and more.  We first went down by the lake.  My husband and son rented one canoe and my father and brother rented another.  The cost for 1 hour was only $5 a canoe.  They had a great time exploring Lake Tillery while my mother and I rested on a blanket  in the shade watching the boaters go by.

History buffs like myself will also enjoy seeing in the park the homestead of Dr. Francis Kron who emigrated to the U.S. in 1823 and was the first doctor in this area of North Carolina.  

There was much more to see and do in the park but my group was tired and ready for a cold drink somewhere before the ride home.  We definitely need to go back ... or even spend a weekend there .. they also have cabins you can rent.

Yet another adventure with many surprises and only an hour away from home!

Albemarle, NC

Summer is here and I am back on the road discovering nearby small towns.  Today I drove from the Charlotte area about one hour to Albemarle, NC.  It's a bigger town than I expected with lots of side roads off Main St. to explore but like so many small downtowns several of the beautiful old buildings stood empty.  Nevertheless I found plenty to do learning when I arrived that the town was celebrating "Downtown First Saturdays."  All of the shops and restaurants were open offering special sales, music and more.  I started at the Farmer's Market.  It was small but offered a nice variety of plants, produce and handmade goods.  I couldn't resist a beautiful sterling silver necklace by jewelry designers Art W. Heinrich and Colleen M. Clark. www.sweetwhispers.org

I also delighted in the fragrance of lavender lotion handmade by "Oak Hill Creek".  And I just had to have a blueberry muffin to enjoy for later!

Next I wandered the streets poking in and out of the shops.  There were a couple of thrift and consignment stores, dress shops and gift shops.  Many had sidewalk sales and great deals going on inside because of the First Saturday festivities.

At the Stanly Arts Guild and Falling Rivers Gallery www.fallingriversgallery.com they were having an opening reception for the artist Roger Thomas.  I sipped on ginger ale and chatted with the him about his detailed "Timberlake" like landscapes.   I also enjoyed the many other local artists featured there.  The gallery displayed all mediums including jewelry, pottery, collage, wood work, glass work and more.

There were many small nooks where one could rest on a bench and watch the world go by.  There was a nice war memorial and another spot with benches and a fountain.

I decided for lunch I would get back in my car and drive a couple of miles outside of the downtown area but still on Main St. to Thai Spice.  It's in a rather non-nondescript little building on a not particularly picturesque road but the interior is pleasant and the service was attentive.  I started with a flavorful broth soup that they always serve with lunch then some vegetable spring rolls and for my entree one of my favorite Thai dishes Massaman Curry.  It was delicious!  

Albemarle is a delightful town to wander.  It was quiet and friendly and the town had plenty to see and do for a day trip destination.  

Pinehurst

If you know golf then you know Pinehurst.  This historic golf resort is known world wide.  The first golf course was built there in the late 1800s and the first championship tournament was played in 1901. The resort now has 8 golf courses and in 2014 both the men's and women's U.S. Open will be played there.

On our visit here we went very casual.  After having our fancier, romantic dinner the night before in Southern Pines we went for pizza at Pinehurst Pizza www.pinehurstpizza.com  The large family friendly restaurant has pool tables, video games and personal TV's at the tables.  We split a large salad .... it was very large! And an 18" Margherita Pizza.  It took a while to get our pizza .... all pizzas are made to order.  It was a really tasty pizza that was worth the wait with fresh tomatoes and basil right from the garden.  The 2 of us could not finish it.  And best of all a nice pour of Pinot Grigio in a real wine glass for only $5!

Next we went to the Carolina Hotel.  www.pinehurst.com This is the grandest of the accommodations at the resort.  We found two rocking chairs on the porch and chilled with a glasses of wine.  A guitar player entertained us and the other guests.  However the price of my glass of Pinot Grigio was $13.75.  You definitely have to pay a bit more but it's worth it to be in this beautiful setting.

Nearby there is a village area of shops and restaurants.  Other Inns are located here as well.  We wandered around a bit then went into one of the many pubs for one more drink and more live music.  Golf is on the TVs wherever you go.  Tiger Woods was decisively ahead in this weekend's Bridgestone Invitational.

Pinehurst is 5 stars all the way.  Every detail is seen to in this luxurious historic resort.

Robbins Farmers Day

Saturday morning started a bit overcast but proved to be a beautiful day.  My husband and I got an early start driving from Southern Pines the 20 minutes to Robbins, North Carolina.  The town was celebrating it's 58th Annual Farmers Day.  The downtown streets were filled with carnival rides, games, food and craft vendors.  I fell in love with the jewelry made by a Kernersville woman named Rosa.  She called her line Rusty and Distressed Designs by Rosa.  Check out her website ... really beautiful copper jewelry all handcrafted.  www.rustydistresseddesigns.com Very reasonably priced too. She sells her pieces on Etsy as well.

There was also a parade but instead of the typical line up of beauty queens in convertibles and high school bands it was a parade of horses ... horse and buggies decorated, riders dressed in their finest western shirts and children looking adorable atop ponies.  

We decided to bypass the Bloomin' Onions, funnel cakes and fried candy bars and instead went for a healthy lunch at Eden's Garden.  This Vegan friendly, all organic restaurant frankly seems a bit out of place in downtown Robbins.  The menu selections change daily.  Everything was delicious and so fresh and flavorful.

On our way out of Robbins we travelled "Pottery Road" NC Highway 705.  Many potters live, work and show their wares along this route.  We stopped at several places and even though they said they were open on Saturdays no one was there.  I guess they were all at the Farmers Day celebration!  We did meet these friendly fellows though.

Robbins is a down-home, rustic, nothing fancy kind of town with a few interesting exceptions.  In Pinehurst it's golf shirts and loafers, in Robbins it's overalls and t-shirts and yet at one "thrift shop" they had some of the most beautiful antique furniture pieces I had ever seen in one place. Definitely an interesting town to check out. 

Southern Pines

From Aberdeen we drove next to the town of Southern Pines.  We checked in to our hotel, a nothing fancy chain hotel.  No sense in going into great detail about our accommodations ... a bed, a TV and a shower is all we needed for this trip.   There are several chain hotels in Southern Pines from which to choose.   If you are looking for something more special there are beautiful inns in Pinehurst as well as the Pinehurst resort itself.

The village of Southern Pines is filled with shops, bars and restaurants.  There is really something for everyone here.  I especially love the shopping.  Many of the stores carry original art and crafts from local artists.  On this night we lucked out ... Southern Pines was holding it's "First Friday" event.  www.firstfridaysouthernpines.com  The streets were blocked off, the shops remained open and artists and musicians were showing off their talents outside.  On the main stage the band Desert Noises from Provo, Utah played.  www.desertnoisesmusic.com You could buy beer and wine and walk around with it as well.  We set up our chairs in front of the stage and settled in for a great night of music.

The First Friday event ended at 8:30 pm so we wandered down the way to find a spot for a late dinner.  We settled on Wolcott's Restaurant www.wolcottsrestaurant.com  It's a very romantic, intimate place to dine. I had the most delicious salmon with sweet potatoes and golden raisins and I'm not sure what else.  The mix of flavors was divine and the fish was cooked to perfection.  My husband had the lobster bisque and a salad.  He was equally pleased.

Many of the bars had live music.  We sat a bit at one spot and had one final cocktail before calling it an evening.

Day or night you can find plenty to do on Broad Street, the main drag of Southern Pines.  

Starting our Weekend Getaway in Aberdeen

With our son away visiting his grandmother for a week it was time for my husband and I to do more than just a day trip.  We needed a romantic weekend just the two of us!  Not wanting to spend too much of our valuable time driving we chose the Pinehurst area, best known as a golfing resort and only a 90 mile drive from our home.  We started our adventure in the tiny town of Aberdeen.  Arriving there around lunch time we went first to the Railhouse Brewery www.railhousebrew.com.  It's the kind of place where your eyes have to adjust to the dark when you walk in on a sunny day.  Once I could see I was happy to focus on a  restaurant/bar with a casual and cool vibe.  We sat at the bar and had a great lunch ... my husband had the Rueben and I had a salad with grilled chicken and of course beer!  We chatted with the others at the bar.  It was a very friendly and welcoming place.

After lunch we walked around town.  There are several high end home decor shops here which took me by surprise.  My husband decided to go into the barber shop for a trim while I slipped into some of the stores.

From there we drove a couple of miles to historic Bethesda Church and Cemetery on Route 5.  Some of the graves date as far back as the late 1700s.  The exterior of the church has bullet holes from the Civil War.

If you are spending any time in Pinehurst it's worth the 10 minute drive to Aberdeen.  It's a small town with history and charm.