June 2015 traveling in Virginia, North and South Carolina

Our last week we moved south to Asheville and beyond.

We left Abingdon early on Sunday, June 21 to spend a couple of days in Asheville, a town we liked on a previous visit. We started that leg of the trip by paying a visit to a friend's daughter and her husband, who own and run Louise's Kitchen, a great little restaurant in Black Mountain, North Carolina, about 20 minutes north of Asheville. Charissa Gulotta and her husband Bud, have created a charming space with amazing food. The house made vanilla-bean syrup that accompanied our pancakes for brunch was developed by Bud and was worth the trip

The town is picturesque and at some point was considered "a hub of American cultural production", according to the PBS production of American Masters that describes Black Mountain College. Progressive education was at the core of the college. Professors and students worked together inside and outside the classroom to create the learning environment. Some of the greatest artists and thinkers of the 40's taught at the college. It closed in the 50's and there is now a museum that recounts its history.

Tomahawk Lake is also located in Black Mountain and we spent a nice afternoon hiking and resting on its shores. Could not resist watching this baby make its way around us and the water.

Asheville is a dynamic town full of young people and fun places to explore. The art galleries are amazing. Despite the very hot 90 degree weather, we enjoyed walking around town and going into galleries. One of the best parts of our stay in Asheville was the place where we stayed. Advertised as "A Model Community Property", the large a beautiful house was within walking distance of the center of town and is home to a non-profit that fosters self governance and equitable housing see: http://www.modelcommunities.org/ We spent a bit of time in the wrap around porch and the gorgeous kitchen.

The house was decorated in a soothing but whimsical style which I immediately adored. There are two rooms the first floor that are rented through 'airbnb' and each has its own bathroom. We enjoyed meeting the residents, usually over breakfast, and the young people who were renting the other room while we were there. It felt like we were visiting friends.

On our last night in Asheville we attended a free concert on the quad of University of North Carolina. The performer was Pura Fe, a songwriter, musician and singer who created a women's acapella group called Ulali. This was the solstice evening and the music in this open air place was mesmerizing.

The women's harmonies were amazing. You can hear some at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KSCoHQn2cyo

The trip to Beaufort, South Carolina, from Asheville was extremely hot but luckily we ran into a thunderstorm and the temperature decreased from 97 to 73 degrees! Our place in Beaufort was lovely, comfortable and close to the older area of town where we love to hang out.

We went to Beaufort to spend time exploring the ACE (Ashepoo, Combahee, Edisto rivers) Basin, one of the largest undeveloped estuaries along the Atlantic. The Basin lies between Beaufort in the south and Charleston in the north.

an old rice field in the basin

The very successful rice plantations in this area made it possible for Charleston to be the richest town in the US at one point. Before the Civil War, there were some 1100 white people living in Beaufort and over 8,000 slaves. The Gullah/Geechee people, descendents of African slaves from West Africa worked on the plantations in this area. St Helena Island, across from Beaufort, has retained their heritage and is a very interesting place to visit. On this our third visit to the area, we continue to learn things about the history of the place and its people.

We hiked and enjoyed the Spanish moss on the trees.