A Postcard From the East Coast
I flew ✈️ to North Carolina (NC) just over a week ago and I’ve really been enjoying the change of scenery. I’m not on vacation because I’m still working remotely 💻, but I’ve been making the most out of my limited free time by planning and doing fun things that I wouldn’t be able to do at home. So between work and my other plans, I’ve been quite busy. (But not busy enough to write a blog post!) Here’s a quick rundown of some of the fun things I’ve been up to.
Carolina Renaissance Festival: This festival blew me away. Imagine a ⅓ mile loop of shops, staff, guests, and entertainment on theme with or inspired by the Renaissance period. You could forge your own sword 🗡, give your best shot at throwing tomatoes 🍅 at someone, watch jousters, and more. There was so much to do and see that I didn’t know where to start. But I knew before going to the festival that I had to try a turkey leg, and when I got my hands on one, it didn’t disappoint. It had great flavor and was super tender. I took my time meandering through all the little shops that featured unique art/crafts/goods like odd looking ceramics, custom leatherwork, quills, and horn flasks. Throughout the whole festival there were live entertainers dancing, singing, playing music, or performing a comedy show. I also attended a jousting match and a falconry show🦉. The latter was probably my favorite thing at the festival. The host showed us several birds, including a falcon, vulture, and owl, and provided some fun facts about them. He even had them fly through the audience which was definitely the coolest part of the show.
Thanksgiving: This year’s Thanksgiving 🦃 was unlike anyone I’ve ever had. At (my Asian American) home, this holiday would usually just consist of a bigger dinner or the occasional potluck gathering between a few other families. The festivities never extended before dinner, which was almost always still Chinese food and maybe a few American dishes.
However, this year, Thanksgiving was packed with activities for hours before dinner started. From 10am - 5pm, I played Kan Jam, Spikeball, a card game, wiffle ball, trivia, ultimate 🥏, and probably a few more that I’m forgetting. Apparently this routine of playing games all day before dinner is very normal for many American households (or so I’ve been told), and I had a great time participating in it. Thanksgiving definitely felt more festive after a full day of running around, playing games, and chatting with people. Ending the day by coming together to share a nice meal with everyone made the holiday feel like a big bonding experience. Dinner included everything you’d expect a Thanksgiving meal should be but I must say the homemade applesauce I had was to die for. And for dessert, I had some pumpkin pie 🥧 and delicious coffee layer cake.
Visiting Boone: Boone was a popping mountain town. I stopped by this town twice, once on my way up to Damascus,VA and once on my way back down. During my first stop, I had lunch at the Boone Bagelry. The service was really slow and the food was what you’d expect of an average bagel sandwich🥯. (I wouldn’t recommend the place.) I also went to the Mast General Store and got some candy (sour strawberry belts), postcards, and stickers. The store sold a lot of local and mountain themed goodies ⛰ and it was a fun place to look around. I quickly browsed a few thrift shops right before leaving and though nothing immediately stood out to me, I’m sure a lot of them have cool finds if you have the time to browse.
During my second stop at Boone, I ate breakfast at Dan’l Boone Inn, a family-style restaurant that serves all-you-can eat Southern food. It was fantastic! Before I even had a chance to process how cool the place was (which was one of the town’s oldest buildings), the table was filled with food. There was sausage, bacon🥓, country ham, strawberry jam 🍓, grits, sausage gravy, and scrambled eggs 🍳. I can’t forget about the mountain of steaming pancakes 🥞 or biscuits either. The whole meal was sort of like a happy, flavorful blur 😋 and I’d highly recommend this place if you ever find yourself in Boone.
Grayson Highlands State Park: I’ve heard about Grayson Highlands State Park and the wild ponies 🐴 that live there for almost a year now and I finally got the chance to go. After driving about an hour east of Damascus, I reached the park and started hiking. I wasn’t sure where the ponies would be or if I’d get to see them, but it seemed like from what I’ve heard, they weren’t hard to find. I hiked 🥾on a very muddy trail for about 20 minutes and stumbled upon my first wild pony. There were actually four ponies and one of them looked like it was pregnant. They were grazing on a hillside and looked super cute in their thick winter coats. Although they’re called wild ponies, they were quite passive. Even when a passing hiker’s disobedient dog ran up to one of them, the pony didn’t seem phased at all. The park was fun to hike through and like Dan’l Boone Inn, I’d recommend anyone to check this place out if you’re in the area.
Other than what I've talked about above, I also had a Friendsgiving, was a first-time spectator at a Spartan Race, watched the Charlotte Thanksgiving Eve Parade in person, and enjoyed a play called Over the River and Through the Woods. I’m really happy to be in NC and feel very lucky to have done so many fun things that I've sometimes lost track of the days. Regardless of which holidays you celebrate or don’t celebrate, I hope your future includes more stress free days spent with loved ones, eating good food, and making memories. I think that’s what life should be about, especially during the fall 🍂 and coming winter ❄️ season.