w-s (winston-salem, while-snowing)

so after knowing my friend becca for at least three years i thought it was pitiful that i had still not visited her hometown. so on our way down to greenville (sc, not nc) my mom and i stopped in winston-salem. we couldn't have asked for a more perfect tour guide than becca who, not only has lived there all her life, but is an avid historic preservationist (read: she knows about buildings).

just as we pulled into the city it began to snow. this is evidentally pretty rare and, while it was nothing compared to the massive snowstorms up north, we felt pretty lucky to see the city a way few people do. during our initial driving tour becca told us that winston-salem is home to not only cigarettes but krispy kreme donuts. in other words, the birthplace of the leading causes of death. hmm, maybe not something you'd put on a billboard. after driving through the downtown we stopped near this cute little square (see: gazebo) for a delightful lunch of soup and sandwiches perfect for a winter day.

the city is also home to the historic salem college, which we drove through around dusk. the fresh snow and the streetlights added nicely to the effect. other fun sights along the way included a giant teapot and washington park, where becca spent many fondly-remembered childhood hours. we also stopped at a used bookstore (that also had movies and vinyl records, good find) and a delightful moravian bakery. their trademarks are their paper-thin yet delicious cookies and many-pointed moravian stars. apparently there was a significant moravian population in winston. and thank goodness! they make a delicious coffee cake.

after a quick power nap at the hotel we braced ourselves to go back out into the storm. (i'm using the word loosely, here). the town was looking pretty quiet but luckily the mexican place next door was still hopping. and by hopping, i mean they let us eat there and were waiting at the door when we left. still, we enjoyed (too much) delicious mexican food as well horchatas/flavored margaritas. at that point becca and i decided to venture out and see if there was any nightlife to be had. it seems the snow scared most of the businesspeople (and customers presumably) away; it was more or less a ghost town. still, we had a nice walk through the downtown and marveled at the wachovia building (it dominates the skyline) and the christmas trees in the square below (not pictured: massive christmas tree that topped in the wind).

the next morning the snow had stopped and without much difficulty we were able to get our car out of the snowy lot. but before we left we just had to stop at (another) bakery, ollie's. this town loves their pastries. i like that in a city. there we enjoyed some chai tea and delicious croissants. and on the way out we were greeted by ollie himself. (coming to work in the snow at his age, quite a champ.)

we were sorry to go but felt privileged to get to see the city at such a unique time. it's more than tobacco and donuts!

outer banks

continuing my travels down the east coast, this time i headed south to north carolina (counter intuitive, no?). a few friends and i were headed to that ultimate yuppie northern virginia family vacation destination, the outer banks. i got a friday off work and we drove straight down thursday night, trying to see if we could go the whole way finding only michael jackson songs on the radio (yes, this was the fateful day). the drive was dark and uneventful and we arrived at the 'ocean house hotel' just after midnight. it wasn't quite an ocean view and it had some fantastic wood paneling and very hotel-appropriate faded paintings. but the price was right and it was right on the water, as promised. after hauling our stuff in we went konked right out.

when we woke up we were ready for a big day at the beach. after a trip to cvs for milk, beer, and a commemorative michael jackson newspaper (the essentials) we were ready to start the day. the morning consisted of sitting on the beach, playing frisbee, giving up on frisbee and using it to play uno, and, of course, enjoying the ocean.

after hours of general relaxing and frolicking we were ready for some lunch. we found a little mexican place with an odd name (mama kwan's) where we enjoyed a good meal and got some free plastic cups. then we headed over to kitty hawk to check out the sites before it got too late. it was starting to get overcast and a bit windy, but i suppose it just made the experience that much more authentic. the wright brothers did choose the spot for its wind after all. we walked through the small exhibit and heard an explanation of the plane and the historic flight. then we headed up to the big glastonbury-tor-like hill with this monument atop it. from there we had a nice view of kitty hawk and kill devil hills as well as the clouds rolling in.

on the way back to the hotel we treated ourselves to some frozen custard, apparently kill devil hills' finest, and then walked it off with a stroll along the beach at dusk. (i found a fish skeleton!) from the abandoned lifeguard chair we had a pretty good view of the ocean and sea oats below. the rest of the night was spent in our hotel room commemorating michael jackson's life with hours of hastily put together documentaries and file footage, followed by a night swim in the hotel pool.

the next day we started off with one last dip in the ocean and quick shower before driving south to our next stop, cape hatteras. on the way we stopped for a quick excursion in the tall grass and some cold root bears. a few hours later we were approaching our campsite, frisco woods. after some confusion over our reservation and a run-in with the neighboring boy scouts we were able to set up our tents before dusk had set in. we stopped to enjoy the view of the sun on the bay before heading over to the cape itself.

we managed to get to the lighthouse before dark and had the place to ourselves, tramping around the walls of the lighthouse and the lighthouse keeper's former home. becca had fun explaining some of the vernacular architecture to us and the rest of us had fun spotting little frogs that seemed to be everywhere. just at dusk we managed to see the light come on, which made for a lovely view.

on our way home we picked up some hot dog and s'mores fixin's for a typical campfire. we also picked up some flicka flames, which are supposed to make the fire change color.. not so successful for us. we had a well-deserved meal and then called it a night.

after some debate the next morning we decided to head south for quick trip to ocracoke island. the only way to reach it is by ferry so we drove our car onto the boat (a little surreal) and watched as we 'drove' onto the water. we got out to enjoy the sunshine and watch the droves of seagulls that seemed to be following our boat. about half an hour later we arrived on the very quaint ocracoke island. like most land forms in the area, it too is long and narrow. we drove from one end to the other, where we found the hub of island life. there were lots of little cape cod houses with white picket fences and hydrangeas. most people staying on the island seem to get around by bicycle and it seemed like a very attractive option (especially during the 10 minutes we were backed up in one-lane traffic). we walked up to the (much smaller) lighthouse which is privately owned and in fact in someone's backyard. we didn't stop to explore any of the many souvenir shops but we did enjoy a nice seafood lunch before we headed back north.

after the ferry ride and an expensive gas stop we started on the eight hour drive north. we took turns driving and doing mad libs and made it back with only one stop at arby's and little traffic. the weekend seemed like it had a little bit of everything: lighthouses, beach fun, history, custard, campfires, and of course, mama kwan's.