Florida Bound!

One of my favorite parts of my day is how I start my mornings: with a cup of coffee, some sunny-sounding Cuban music, and a Florida guidebook in my hand. I am getting ready for a Florida-bound road trip with one of my best friends next month, and I cannot wait!

As you know, I love trip planning about as much as I love trip taking, so I have been savoring every minute. I've been scouring travel guides, blogs, maps, magazines, and online newspapers finding all the best things. And for a little literary context, I've been reading Hemingway's To Have and Have Not, a novel about the sobering adventures of a fishing boat captain who is forced to run contraband between Cuba and Key West to make a living for his family in the 1930s. 

[a little vintage Florida inspiration, including a photo of Hemingway]

The plans are still coming together, but here are a few of the things I'm looking forward to the most...

canoeing & camping in Everglades National Park

the Cuban food tour I've put together of Little Havana

Kermit’s Key West Key Lime Shoppe 

(and about half a dozen other pie place I've found)

shopping at L.A. Boudoir, Miami's vintage lingerie shop

watching cigars being rolled at El Credito Cigar Factory

snorkeling at Bahia Honda State Park

a tour of Hemingway House

Stone Crab claws

chickens running wild in the streets

Adventuring: Day 1ish

For the past few years, Paul and I have been taking a long trip out West at the end of the summer. Each time, we rent a car, pencil in a loop on our worn-in atlas, and aim for that ultimate road trip balance: a mix of city sights, roadside curiosities, and reprieves from it all in the great outdoors. 

This year, prompted by our friends' wedding in Vegas, we chose central California as our point of exploration. But this time we went about it a little differently. Aside from traveling together, we also each went our separate way for awhile to do some of the things that mattered most to us each. This added a whole new layer to the journey, allowing us to discover things that are only revealed to the solo traveler, unfettered and attentive, greeting the world face-to-face and foot-to-earth. With the wedding date the same as my 30th birthday, such a deep and rewarding adventure couldn't have been more perfectly timed.

We arrived in central California via Las Vegas via San Francisco. That's what a cheap flight gets you: the opportunity to look down from the airplane and wave hello as you pass your destination. I figure not everyone gets that experience. At least Paul can now say he, too, has been to San Francisco (more on that later). Between the plane and car rental and a full 24 hour day of sleepless travel, a cheap 90 degree motel room never looked so good.

So we'll just skip ahead and say our first real day of vacation technically began on day two. We woke up in the Barstow Days Inn about half an hour before checkout, showered, and repacked the car for the remainder of our road trip to Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks. Time to prepare ourselves to live out of the car for the next two weeks.

We had driven through pitch black the night before to get from Vegas to Barstow, as far as we could manage to drag ourselves down the highway. It was dark in the desert, with no hint of landscape, and only the blaring headlights of fellow travelers to lend light.

The daytime drive from Barstow, southwest and back up again, was much more revealing. Again, our route felt illogical. This time we had to bypass the high, rocky Sierras and rely upon the interstate and highways to take us across flatter ground and back north. And our drive took us through a heaping handful of California landscapes.

Coming out of Barstow, we passed farmland that looked curiously desert-like. (This is something I noticed last year in Arizona and still do not understand: how, and more importantly why, turn desert into farmland? Does that seem like a bad idea to anyone but me?) Soon the landscape turned more natural, with strange and shaggy Joshua Trees standing solitary among stubby sagebrush and dusty-looking mountains in the distance. There were fields and mountainsides covered in windmills, then fields and mountainsides covered in brilliantly golden grasses and wise, bowing oaks. The desert reappeared, this time with oil drills keeping perfect time as they tipped their foreheads to the dirt. Eventually, this arid yet fertile land gave way to the agricultural abundance of the San Joaquin Valley. This was one part of the drive I was looking forward to the most - to see this giant farmland, the source of so much of our country's sustenance.

To shop and eat locally back home in North Carolina requires more than little effort, seeking out the farmers' markets, being mindful of the seasons, and constantly questioning sellers and servers. But think about how many things come from California that we see on our supermarket shelves. While we were away, we shopped at major grocery chains three or four times, and the produce section was always dominated by local California products. Local avocados! Local olives! Strawberries picked right down the road at the end of September. Those damn lucky Californians.

By the end of the trip, we must have driven through hundreds of miles of fruit orchards and vegetable fields, abundant and green. We stopped at one roadside farm stand to peruse the produce, and left with an assortment of the most delicious plums. The tiny green ones I had never seen before and they were the best - the juiciest and the sweetest.

After a day of eating the things we had packed from home and had picked up along the way - quinoa-spinach bars, string cheese, nuts and some of the fresh plums, we were starving and craving something hot. I flipped through one of the guidebooks I had checked out from the library (I always travel with a stack of library guidebooks and a themed reading selection.) and found a recommendation not far down the road - Brewbaker's Brewing Company. Food and beer. Yes. Wait.... And homemade soda. Well, there was certainly no way we weren't going, even though it was ever so slightly out of the way.

Brewbaker's was a great place in tiny little Visalia, California. We ordered two rounds of food and a flight that included not only all the beers of the season but all the house sodas too - creme, orange creme, and root beer. Some of the beers had a fruity twist too, incorporating some of the local offerings. Everyone was friendly and wanted to know where we were from and where we were headed. And everything tasted delicious. It was the break from the road we needed and just the thing to get us through the gates of Sequoia National Park as dusk began to set on sunny California.

More soon, friends!

xoxo,

Amanda Aileen

Every Day is an Adventure

This was a "yes" day; everything we saw along the road that looked interesting, every idea we had, we had to say "yes" to. This took us into 5 different counties, down hidden back roads, and to places we've lived near and grew up close to, some of which we've never visited, others familiar and full of memories. It meant turning the car around many times to go back and go inside some little shop or to walk along the road and take a picture. 


A road trip should be cut through with a swath of green in every shade of the country and pops of vibrant color from roadside stops. It should be a little bit of everything. This one had it all, and this daylong excursion took place only an hour or so from home, proving that an adventure can be had anywhere, anytime, and with not much money in your pocket.

Paul and I started our day in our hometown of Mt. Pleasant, NC, where we stopped to check out the new farmers' market. The vegetables we picked up were weighed on this antique scale. While we were in town, we also rummaged around a consignment shop and a roadside yard sale. (Click photos to enlarge.)

Next stop: Cline's Antiques, a treasure trove full of interesting finds. Paul and I both grew up down the road from this place (but never met each other until after college - random fact), and I couldn't believe he had never been! It turned out to be one of his favorite stops of the day. We took home some cool letterpress blocks, a dish/tray/contraption for my nature collection, and antique beer bottles for bottling homebrew.

On the road in Stanly County: driving down country roads past fields of corn and soybeans, a church that dates back to 1830, BBQ lunch in Albemarle, and a wine tasting at Dennis Vineyards. We also found a really great thrift store in Albemarle that was tucked away down an alleyway and was packed so full of things you could hardly walk!

Paul remembered passing over an interesting bridge while driving out to a hike a year or so ago. We found it on the atlas and it was about an hour away. Should we go? There was only one possible answer: Yes! 

Wading through the Uwharrie River was one of the highlights of the day. It was such a cool reprieve after the 90 degree heat!

A country drive: Seeing another bridge on the map, we crossed over and kept driving. Left: looking down over the second bridge into a nice swimming hole. No road trip is really complete without a dirt road or two, and we found a bunch of good ones! Bottom right: old country store that was at the corner of the road pictured above it.

Last stop: Pat & Mick's in New London. I used to frequent this country fish camp with my family when we were staying at the lake house as I was growing up. Lots of good memories here! Dinner to share: cajun flounder, deviled crab, fried shrimp, oysters and scallops. And with full bellies, we drove just a little over an hour back home to Charlotte.

Road Trip Checklist

I am starting my 30th birthday celebration 6 months early. It's a big one, so why not?! And besides, this is a bucket list kind of thing, something I've always wanted to do... an all-girl road trip with three of my best friends! Most of my really close friends are normally spread all over the country, but the universe managed to align itself this one time, with all of us being in the same state and having the same few days free for travel! We've decided to explore Lexington and Louisville in Kentucky and Nashville, Tennessee. We head out in a few days, and I can't wait! The itinerary is ready to go, my seersucker has been laundered, and my car is washed, but I still have a few things left on my to-do list before we pack up and head out. For me, getting ready to go is half the fun!

road trip mix
make skirt for Nashville
pick out outfits
make granola, bread for sandwiches, and mozzarella
pack travel games
pick up F. Scott Fitzgerald short stories from library
choose audio book & check-out from library
make all camping reservations
business cards for the road
postcard stamps & addresses
hat(s)?

I wish I had this hat for the horse race we're going to in Lexington!

If you want to get in on the action and hear all about our journey, I would absolutely LOVE to send you a postcard. For me, no road trip is complete without a stack of postcards to accompany my rides in the passenger seat. I have a little summertime fundraiser in my Etsy shop, so for $5 you can get a handwritten traveling account from yours truly. The proceeds will help fund my travels to this season's craft shows, so I would really appreciate your support (and love to write to you too)!

Craft Kits

I have loved craft kits since I was a kid, and nothing much has changed now that I am an adult. Don't you think it's so satisfying to sit down with all the parts to something and then walk away with a finished project, completely created by your own two hands? And the great thing about a kit is that is everything is all ready to go. All the pieces are in place; you just have to put them together, sometimes learning a new skill along the way.


I think craft kits are great for so many things. I love them especially for road trips, and I can guarantee you I have my own craft kit packed for every long car ride. But think of every other time you might be sitting around twiddling your thumbs: getting your car worked on, doctor's/dentist's appointments, hanging with your man during a football game, waiting for your name to be called at a restaurant... It never hurts to have something to do waiting for you in your bag, something to occupy your mind and fingers besides your smart phone. :)


Here's a round-up of craft kits that will satisfy a variety of ages, from ones I'd have been happy with as a child to ones I'd love to have in my lap now. All of these kits are available on Etsy. And yes, there are even a couple in there by yours truly! (A little shameless self-promotion never hurts, right?)

DIY purse by Elenushka

Zodiac Embroidery Kit by Miniature Rhino

DIY Doll Kit by Sophie Tilley Designs

 

Sew-It-Yourself Appliques by Verabelle

Hand-Stitched Card Sets by Curious Doodles

Needle Felting Kit by Ag Snag Breac

Patchwork Pouch Kit by Sew Sew n Sew

Sew-It-Yourself Lacing Cards by Verabelle

Coloring Box by Leon + Coco

Mystery Grab Bag Craft Kits by Verabelle

National Park Week: A Photo Tribute

This week is National Parks Week, and as a lover of America's national parks, I thought I'd devote a few posts throughout the week to honoring one of our country's most brilliant ideas. During April 16-24, you can enter any of the parks for free, so check out a map and take advantage if you can.

Did you know there are 394 national parks in the U.S.?! I have only been to a handful, and I can't imagine that I'd ever get around to all the natural and historic sites preserved by the National Park Service. But in honor of National Parks Week, I thought I'd share some of my favorite trip photos with you from Yellowstone, Glacier, Congaree Swamp, Grand Canyon, Painted Desert/Petrified Forest, and Joshua Tree National Parks. These photos span intense backpacking treks; weekend getaways; a month-long, cross-country, father-daughter RV trip; a helicopter landing into the Grand Canyon; and roadside snapshots. Enjoy! Oh, and please comment - what's your favorite National Park experience?

Yellowstone National Park 

(the world's first national park, established in 1872)