Thursday, May 16, 2019

From the travel journal - Sapphire 2019 - Day 1

5/16/17

Darcy entertained us on the drive to the mountains, regaling us with stories from her study abroad trip to Italy. We had only gotten up to her third day there before she passed out the night before. Before she conked out again, she got through Rome and Sienna and part of her time in Orvieto. 

Eighteen girls equaled a lot of drama, but they all managed to be ready on time, and except for one girl forgetting her passport and money in one hotel, with little incident. Madison and I were worn out by the time Darcy stopped talking. We didn't get to the end of her trip until a few days later. We needed that long to recoup.

The drive from our Microtel said a little over five hours. We stopped for lunch at a North Carolina staple, Bojangles, which I would not recommend. That was my second stop having done so with Tom on the drive to Maddy. That place was filthy and old, and I worried that I'd catch something deadly. This Bojangles was a considerable step up. New. Clean. The food was decent, and they had an employee, an older gentleman, who stood around to swoop in and clean up after people. He would do well in Disney World. Luckily for us, he was eagle-eyed, following after us to our car with the purse Madison had left behind. This seems to be the kid's MO. Remember the Indiana wedding trip?

Once we got off the Interstate, I felt like I was driving through Tennessee. Up, up, up and around, around, and around on winding, curvy roads up the mountain. When we got on the road taking us to our Wyndham resort, it was crazy driving. 

Not as bad as I remember Lake Lure, North Carolina's winding road to our unit. That one had terrifying drop-offs on either side that scared the hell out of me, and I had to leave the driving to Kelly. 

There were guard rails on this trip, and the forest seemed to butt the road as if the trees would safely grab us if our van slipped. Needless to say, I would not want to drive that road in the winter. Ever. 

The speed limit ranged from 50 mph, FIFTY, to 40 mph, although around the ess curves, they went as low as 15 mph. I never saw anyone drive like me; cautious and with care. Instead, most drivers rode my bumper, and I would have to pull off to let those assholes pass.

When I finally arrived at our Wyndham, in the middle of nowhere but beautiful greenery, I had a raging headache and tension in my neck and shoulders. I was already dreading having to get back on that road to find a grocery, but Christopher, the wonderful front desk host, assured me it was in the opposite direction and only two miles on a better track. When I asked who the hell thought 50 mph was a smart speed limit, he told me he goes 65 mph.

Christopher: "But I've lived here for over fifty years. I know those roads."



Uh, sure. Whatever. I'm going to research deaths on that road. Christopher checked me in and gave me everything I would need in the way of information. Unfortunately, I was too tired to retain it all. The girls had stayed in the car, but when I didn't return after twenty minutes, Madison wandered in. She was not helpful. She was more interested in the complimentary coffee and cookies. I tried really hard to remember the things Christopher was telling me, and thankfully he gave me a handy dandy map of the many waterfalls in the area, the hiking information, and Wyndham amenities. All of that info I'll include later in my Wyndham review.


As this is also a ski resort and homeowner's association, there was tons of stuff to do on the property. Also, there was a restaurant on site that Christopher recommended within walking distance. He sent us off to our two units up, up, up several more hills to the top of the mountain. I had initially only been able to reserve a one-bedroom unit but was later upgraded to a one-bedroom lock-off. I like these lock-offs more and more.


We entered through the one-bedroom deluxe, and when Darcy saw that I had another unit through the adjourning door, she suddenly came alive and decided five days in the mountains wouldn't be so harsh.

She'd been ready to get home after her New York/Italy traveling, but she rallied.

The second unit had a little living area in the entranceway, and the rest of the unit was downstairs. It was like an apartment, and the girls slept down there.

We relaxed, made a grocery list, did the multitude of laundry that Darcy and I had (two units meant two washing machines), hit the grocery, cooked dinner, and spent the rest of the night just chilling and planning the next day's adventure. The weather was cold. Only in the fifties, but Christopher assured me it would warm up. I didn't mind. I'll be back in Florida soon enough to ninety-degree temperatures, so I'll suck up the fifties. Besides, I purchased a hoodie in Chapel Hill.

Here's to a chill girls' trip!

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