Hot Tubs in Hot Springs

Fancy a dip in geothermally heated mineral water? Here at Hot Springs (and verily, yea, that is the name of the place), there are hot tubs you can rent by the hour (and likely longer). Magic. Warm, invigorating. Oxymoronically, it's the perfect place to chill. This remains my first and last encounter of bathing in water heated directly by Mother Earth herself. Hot Springs website is at this link.

Photos, Words and Memories from 2 trips and 3 months in the USA. Based mainly near Asheville in North Carolina.

Churches Churches Everywhere

American churches have a particular style of architecture on the whole. Well, I should say church buildings, because (of course) 'church' actually refers to the body of people which uses a building. In places they cluster along stretches of the roadside advertising the particularly flavour of faith like the restaurants and fast food joints offering their own palate of particular dishes. Much of the time it boils down to personal taste and previous experience as to which you do (or do not) choose. This church is between Chimney Rock and Asheville.

Photos, Words and Memories from 2 trips and 3 months in the USA. Based mainly near Asheville in North Carolina.

This is a little bit naughty...

The picture is Chimney Rock itself. An enormous towering rock column, with a rim around the uppermost rounded part. Impressive natural formation indeed. Our walk picked out a route around and under it, in places. In a later conversation a dear old lady from Virginia would refer to it as "Chimney Cock". Now that's being a little bit naughty, sweet dear, but I get what you mean.

Photos, Words and Memories from 2 trips and 3 months in the USA. Based mainly near Asheville in North Carolina.

Misty Mountains

Wow. That's what I said repeatedly as the mist cleared at Chimney Rock. Perceptions of the landscape changed fluidically as the visibility varied. I remember seeing this view like an enormous nose and facial profile. Stunning views, vibes, place. A must visit.

Photos, Words and Memories from 2 trips and 3 months in the USA. Based mainly near Asheville in North Carolina.

The Mountains in the Mist

Ever seen Gorillas in the Mist? Me neither. Ever seen Mountains in the Mist? Beautiful. Well that's what I got when I had my first visit to Chimney Rock. This is a walkway having just come up in a long elevator trip. Skeletal tree limbs was about all I could see for the first twenty minutes. Thankfully the conditions did improve for us to see a lot more.

Photos, Words and Memories from 2 trips and 3 months in the USA. Based mainly near Asheville in North Carolina.

I'm the Firestarter

Lake Lure looked really beautiful. Lots of lakeside activities and fun. Forget Dirty Dancing though. What pleased me most was finding out it was one of the locations for the film Firestarter with a very young but post ET Drew Barrymore. Based on the Stephen King book about a girl with pyrokinetic abilities hunted down by secretive units with the American government. Also has a soundtrack by my most favourite group, Tangerine Dream. So in that nerdish way my inner fan had been delighted to see a beautiful place which related to fiction I read when I was growing up and music I listened to. Nice one.

Photos, Words and Memories from 2 trips and 3 months in the USA. Based mainly near Asheville in North Carolina.

Burger Time at Lake Lure

Mistiness clung to the mountains and hunger dogged our tummies, so a quick review of the options at Lake Lure, and we ended up at the Beachside Grill. Burger and Fries it was. Delicious. I was informed this lake was the setting for the original Dirty Dancing film. I've never seen, even though I grew up in the 80s. Lake Lure had even more siginificance for me from another film.

Photos, Words and Memories from 2 trips and 3 months in the USA. Based mainly near Asheville in North Carolina.

Walk in Thunderous Woods

In Batcave, an exploration up the eastern side of the valley was had. Wasn't even sure if the Batcave actually existed (though the name does rather suggest it, doesn't it?). Nevertheless, in torrential rain and booming thunder, we eked our way up for half an hour or so. The mistiness, tree limbs and pretty blossom made it feel like the veil between our world and the fairy realm had been rent asunder. Magical. Vibes I like. It wasn't the last walk in the thunder I was to have in the USA in 2009. Thunder rumbles gave way to tummy rumbles, so time to go in quest of a mythical burger at Lake Lure.

Photos, Words and Memories from 2 trips and 3 months in the USA. Based mainly near Asheville in North Carolina.

Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na BATCAVE!

Hey, I lost a day somewhere! What happened to the 13th April? Well, here I am at Batcave. Awesome place name. Cool place name. It shows I also did eventually arrive in North Carolina. Having gone through jetlag and slept and chilled a lot, we headed out to Batcave, Chimney Rock and Lake Lure area. A cheesey tourist photo next to the sign was obligatory. One of my kids is also batty about bats, so this had to be done for her, too.

Photos, Words and Memories from 2 trips and 3 months in the USA. Based mainly near Asheville in North Carolina.