In late July, Pam, Meredith and I flew to Charlotte, NC for a visit with Reed who is stationed at Fort Bragg in Fayetteville. He had to work the day we arrived so we drove downtown for a look-see.
Pam and Mere pose in front of a sculpture on Trade Street
These "cushions" which feature intricately laid tiles are not soft on the backside but are easy on the eyes.
Charlotte, we were told, is America's second largest banking capitol after New York City. It is home to Wachovia Bank and Bank of America; the latter's headquarters is the tall building on the left. We saw more men wearing suits and women wearing dresses than in any other city visited in recent memory.
We stopped at a Harris Teeter supermarket in the southern part of the city. This must be where the wealthy suburbanites shop. There were a dozen or more wine sellers exhibiting their wares and offering free samples. We were waiting for Reed to join us so we hung out at the store got our fill of wine, crackers, and cheese. Tough job but someone has to do it.
The next day we drove west on Highway 85 to Asheville where there was a huge festival going on. En route, we stopped in Shelby [pop. 21,000] and had lunch at Carla's Cafe. On the menu was an intriguing item--liver mush. None of us had tasted this particular entree and we quizzed our waitress about it. Turns out, it is tremendously popular in the area, so much so that there is an annual Liver Mush Expo. The consistency was like a crumbly sausage patty and had a distinct taste hard to describe.
On the way out of Shelby, Reed spied this church that caters to bikers.