From California, my partner and I flew to Denver, and from there to North Carolina, to visit some friends. Here are the highlights from the trip.
Lodging
Hotel
We stayed at a swanky hotel the first night. The TV was a little too close to the bed, and the top wall outlet on the right side of the bed didn’t work (which I didn’t realize until the morning when I found my phone dead), but other than those snags it was pretty good. Hard floors instead of carpet (always a plus because it’s usually cleaner), and a walk-in shower. Plus, we could check in and unlock our door with the mobile app! In the morning, they had free breakfast (e.g., oatmeal) and coffee (though the coffee was quite bad, it must be said).
Airbnb House
When it was time, we drove to the Airbnb we were renting with our friends. We all got there right at check-in time, eager to scope the place out and get settled. We milled about the house, seeing where everything was, including the rooms. One of which had a pull-out bed instead of an actual bed; since no was was exactly volunteering to take it, we rolled a dice and let chance decide for us.
The kitchen was nice; we were planning on cooking most of our meals. It had your standard kitchen things, including a small island in the middle.
The house had a cute, yet polished look to it, like a modernized cottage. The floor was a pale sandy wood and the countertops were a marbled, stony gray.
Beyond the kitchen was a living room with large, plush couches and a mounted television on the wall. The space was utilized well to mimic the appearance of a larger house, yet was still cozy.
It got even cozier with all ten of us in the living room that night, snuggled in giant blankets and pillows everywhere as we watched a scary movie.
North Carolina Museum of Art
Before we were able to check into the Airbnb, though, my partner and I went to the North Carolina Museum of Art. Upon entering the area, before even going inside, there were large sculptures that amazed. Most impressive of all (in my opinion) were the rings. Three great, giant rings that were big enough to walk through and then some (could probably stack 3 or 4 me’s and still walk through comfortably).
The artist made them on-site, digging their molds out of the ground and pouring in liquid metal. After the metal cooled, they were lifted up to stand in defiance of the sky that towered over them. The ground was filled in but you can still see the circular indents where they were made.
Inside the buildings there’s more modern art, as well as the ancient, in all its glory. Ancient Egyptian sarcophagus and ancient Greek statues – they’ve got it all. There was so much to see that after two full hours we still had several sections left unexplored.
One notable statue in the ancient Greek section was actually a fake Statue of Drunken Hercules made in the 18th century – a forgery that was so good it became immortalized in the museum, as it also indicated a time in history when Greek statues were so popular that forgeries saturated the market.
The Plant Cafe
For lunch that day, we drove to a place 17 minutes away called The Plant Cafe. Their Tofu Scrample Platter is pretty good, as is their curry. All the food there is plant-based, hence the name. I’d give the food a 3.5/5 for general restaurant food. Not the best, but definitely not bad either.
City Layout
Driving around that part of NC, we observed how spread out everything is. There’s lots of trees, like the city is laid out among a forest, only the necessary parts cleared away for buildings and parking lots.
Dave and Busters
The Dave and Busters seems popular – it was actually our first time going to one. We went with our friends, though we ended up scattering as we tried different games. There’s a good variety to choose from, including driving simulation games, shooting games, throwing games, arcade games, solo and competitive games, and so on.
The Pacman arcade game, like many other such arcade machines unfortunately (except the few really good ones), didn’t have the most responsive joystick and the character moved a little too fast to allow for much accuracy. So my hunt for the supreme arcade machine Pacman continues.
A friend and I played one of the two-player shooter games, which makes you pay to continue either when you die or at certain intervals – it was hard to tell if it was just one or both because there was so much going on, and the health bars weren’t very visible. It was still fun though honestly, and we made it pretty far.
The ones I ended up doing the best at were the throwing games, i.e., where you throw a ball at a target or a small basketball into a hoop. With those types of games, I find that something about the weight or bounciness (or lack thereof) of the ball makes it easier or harder to do well. That or sometimes I just happen to be on my game.
There’s a small shop in the back where you can buy various trinkets with the points you earn from playing games. I ended up getting a small, plushie octopus that’s orange with a blue underbelly. It was just too cute to pass up.
Worth Exploring
All in all, North Carolina is an interesting place, and if you ever find yourself there, I recommend exploring. You might just find some hidden gems.
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