December 2-3.2023 Fayetteville NC

I know I know ... I headed the wrong way! Yes, I made a detour on my southern journey to head north a couple hours to Fayetteville North Carolina to visit my friend Gail. We've known each other since 1989 when I was in grad school in Chapel Hill NC. Gail is an RN who has done travel nursing over the years and had just accepted a new position in Fayetteville. She upgraded her previous camper to a gorgeous tow behind that is her temporary home while in Fayetteville, and where she has a spot in a large campground.

On Saturday we went on a nice hike with her dog Gracie followed by a stop at a local winery. We thought it would be a place to taste wine in a vineyard setting .... but it turns out it's a wine wine shop in a strip mall. We sure had a good laugh at that! This vineyard has some super delicious wines and we each enjoyed a flight ... and might've bought an expensive bottle to share when we got back to her place later that evening

For dinner we went to an amazing restaurant in Fayetteville that takes standard southern fare and turns it into a gourmet meal. Gail had the shrimp and grits and I had the chicken parm. You can see by the photos below that the grits was not a bowl of white soggy mush but instead a baked wedge like a piece of quiche with grilled shrimp on top, and my chicken parm had no marinara or pasta but had a salsa of fried green tomatoes over a risotto with collard greens. I've never had so much crunch on a piece of chicken – It was spectacular!

That evening we enjoyed time around Gail's campfire with her neighbors, and the next morning Gail got the fire going again so we could enjoy our coffee and gourmet breakfast alfresco (she made a frittata with home fries). We went on a nature walk near her campground and then I had to hit the road to head to Charleston SC where I will be dog sitting. It was so nice to reconnect with Gail – I really enjoy meeting up with friends along my Adventure! 💗

P.S. has anyone ever heard of a 7.5 mph speed limit? We laughed that there were signs with both the decimal point and the fraction. 😂