Exploring North Carolina

           I’m back at my sister’s, with delightful memories of my time at Jennie’s.

 

           Who knew that there were palm trees in North Carolina?  Not me! But there they were, right in front of her house.  I was there longer than I anticipated, and I hope I was as good a guest as she and Jay were hosts.  Their youngest daughter entertained me with stories and videos of all the things you can do with “Slime”.  I’d never heard of it (I’ve led a sheltered existence), but now I know all things Slime, except how to make it.  Is that a hole in my education?

 

           The Wilmington area is very populous, but once you get away from the city, it’s quite lovely.  The beaches are beautiful!  White sand stretching for miles, tufts of beach grass growing on and around large dunes, clear water that invites a dip.  Ah! December in North Carolina!  Not at all like December in Maine.

            We went to what was billed as a “ghost town”.  Well…that’s rather stretching it, but it was a fascinating historical site, Brunswick Town,  donated by the Ortin family to North Carolina.  I was still on crutches at the time so didn’t do a lot of wandering, but I did go through the administration building, which houses many artifacts. There I finally learned how Cape Fear got its name (one of those mysteries that one mulls over but never take action to actually solve). According to the story, in 1585 Sir Richard Grenville’s ship, while sailing to Roanoke Island, became trapped behind the cape.  Some of the crew were afraid they would wreck, and the name “Cape Fear” was born--and stuck. I’d always suspected it was something like that, but the details were enjoyable to learn.

 

I took several pictures, and left them large so clicking on them will show close-up details.

Entrance to the Ortin Plantation (private residence).

A view of the site with several Civil War cannon on display.

The church, what's left of it.  The walls are still in magnificent condition.

Mural inside the building.  This is a glass mosaic, quite stunning.

           Later we wandered over to the stocks, which were actually open to the public to play with.  Yes, indeed, a great way to contain your children!  It must be gratifying, too, to see your big brother well contained.

I'm guessing the original occupants of the stocks weren't quite this amused.

 

           This lovely tree graced the entrance to the site. Covered with Spanish Moss, it begged to be remembered.