Hey there friends! Its been a while! This season in my life has been so crazy. I haven't had much time to sit down and write as much as I did when I first started this blog. With all this craziness, it was time for a vacation which I hadn't had since winter of 2017. It ended up being last minute and planned within a month. A friend and I decided to take a week long trip to North Carolina. Let me tell you, it was so much needed. We flew into Charlotte, NC. and then drove to our first destination, Asheville. We stayed in a airbnb with another couple that ended up being from Chicago. Both of us had never done an airbnb where we stayed with other people but it actually will save you some money and you can meet some cool people. The place was cozy though and we were in walking distance of some stores in the downtown area. Also, another tip for saving money while traveling is make your own food and meal prep which is what we did. However, checking out coffee shops everyday was a must for me! Asheville was a great place to do so! I literally got an amazing latte every place we hit. You can't go wrong on where you go out there! First day after traveling, it was suggestion by the lady who owned the airbnb to go to Graveyard Fields for hiking. It was about an hour away and the drive was amazing since we were in the mountains. Defiantly recommend this park. It had beautiful waterfalls that were worth the hike. We got to even just sit and eat our lunch and take it all in.
Our second stop that day was the Sliding Rock. That was about 25 minutes away from the Graveyard and it was only $2 per person to get in. Basically, its a natural water slide. Its a big rock where water flows down into a big pool of water. It might be really cold if you go since it was that way for us and others that went. Its so worth it though and something different that you might never have another chance to do! You will get used to the more you do it. Once you hit that bottom though, it will be a shock of cold a few times.
The next day, we decided to do more hiking and go to Chimney Rock State Park. Basically, you have to climb a bunch of stairs to get to a big rock on a ledge of a mountain. Again, worth it for the view but man I was out of shape. It amazed me to see couples with newborn babies and a couple of dogs going to all these parks. #goals, I am right? The view was a amazing and there was a larger waterfall then the last ones from the day before.
Then we got back to the airbnb, changed, and went out to do some shopping in town. Just an FIY, Asheville is a very hippie, artsy town. So you kind of had to get used to a few things. One being that there is graffiti everywhere but that was completely normal. If anyone else would be there, they would think its a super sketchy town but it was quite the opposite in some ways. But I will say it was a pretty unique, fun town to be in. There are so many cute shops and restaurants! We ate that night at the Mellow Mushroom which we found out was a pizza chain in North Carolina. Its good and both our meals were delicious! On our last day in Asheville, my sweet friend said yes to us going to the Biltmore estate. Its worth seeing once since admission was $64 for the cheapest ticket. It was breath taking inside and out! What caught my eye the most was the plant room in the middle of the house, the bowling ally, a pool in the basement with changing rooms, a library like in Beauty and the Beast, the dining hall, and kitchen where the staff would have had a view of the mountains while cooking. In addition, there are the lovely gardens next to it, shops, restaurants, and winery (they do have free wine tastings). You really could spend a whole day there! People who probably had yearly passes, where biking, running, and walking with their families around the estate. Which what an amazing opportunity when living there!
The next day was back to traveling. We did the best of both worlds and decided to go from the mountains to the beach!
We stayed in Wilmington, NC. at the Sunflower House with the people who actually owned it and we absolutely loved them! There names were Ryan and Martha. They had two cute dogs, Olivia and Carmel which we loved to pieces. We had things in common with the couple and we would have late night chats with them. When they sent their review of us back, they said if we were ever in town again, we should get together and go boating! I have their Instagram account for the Airbnb for anyone interested! How we chose Wilmington was because the house stuck our attention on how cute it was and the great reviews. It was very random when we were checking out places to stay! Which was funny because so many people there kept asking why we chose that area over Myrtle and Carolina beach. The nearest beach was Wrightsville which was a family, rich community beach. It made it nice though to not be in a tourist area. Everyone was so nice and we felt safe. It was only 22 minutes away and we would go a little bit during the day and some at night before it got dark. We collected shells, shopped again, laid out on the beach, and rode bikes. I seriously would go back in a heart beat! Anyone else want to move to North Carolina?? I may have cried a little a few days before we left... With all this said, this again was so much needed. I realized how crazy busy my life has been and it hasn't stopped since getting back. It was so good for me to take a step back though and know I need to start saying no to things... I need to rest more. If you are thinking about taking a trip to there, please let me know if you have any questions! Traveling is defiantly a hobby for me and I love sharing about places I have experienced!
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