A Weekend Away - For Everyone!

The time finally came for a "girls' weekend away"! Just as plans were firming up, I got a call from a friend inviting us (the family) to come and spend some time with her family at Hilton Head. Drat! It just wasn't meant to be for me, but after a LOT of coaxing and pleading, my friend and I talked Allan into taking the kids there himself. So, early on a Friday morning, Allan and the kids hit the road for Hilton Head and my friend, Rhonda and I hit the road for the mountains and Asheville!

What a riot it was! First, we had to drive the Civic, which I had not driven in almost 6 years. Allan had it all spiffed up for us and I thought I was good to go. HA! I guess I had forgotten what it was like to drive the little box of zero horsepower. Not only that, but I had not considered what it would be like driving the 5-speed in the MOUNTAINS! I will just sum it all up by saying my legs should look like those of an athlete after a weekend of driving in a mountain town with a 5-speed! OK, so they don't, but they SHOULD!

Next, I want to point out that I nearly ate my way through that town. Maybe that is what negated the leg exercises in the Civic. Hmmm.....anyway! The food was awesome! I really could have eaten at McDonald's all weekend and still enjoyed it, but we really hit the jackpot on some good food. What a joy it was to sit down and have quiet conversation while deciding on what to eat. I didn't have to read the menu to Rhonda, which was a plus. And then! The best part is that I didn't have to cut up Rhonda's food when it came! This allowed me to eat my food right away, which meant it was hot! Hooray! Our best meal by far, was at the Lobster Trap. It was so good that I had to take a picture of it. I dined on pecan-crusted Mountain Trout, Asian string beans and lobster macaroni and cheese. My mouth is watering just thinking about it!

Other than eating, we shopped at lots of little boutiques and hit a "few" bars. Our favorite bar was Jack of the Wood, which was an English pub that had a live band at night. The band didn't live up to anyone's expectations, but the pub was fun and we scored a couple of cool t-shirts.

On Friday night, Asheville had a street fair of sorts with beer and wine vendors and lots of locals running around. We had a great time there and made some new friends. We even went dancing at Magnolia's and did the old drinking days routine of hitting the Waffle House for breakfast before heading home.

Another highlight was hanging out at the hotel pool. I believe I last did something like that back in high school! It was just nice to lay around and not have to worry about a thing (or someone). It was also the perfect activity for "the day after".

As for Allan and the kids, I can pretty much sum up their activities for the weekend: swim. They had a GREAT time swimming in the ocean and the beach. Other than that, they simply had a great time being with our friends.