Closed in 2010 for renovations, historic Pullen Park in Raleigh, NC reopened today. Founded in 1887 this 68 acre park is one of many reasons Raleigh is considered one of the best cities in America to live. The City of Oaks is a city with an abundance of charming parks. But if you like a little nostalgic charm with your park, you’ll love the 1911 carousel. We had the pleasure of meeting Lisa Parr who had lovingly hand painted the animals on the carousel. Beautifully done, Lisa. Not enough? How about a cute little train you can ride around the scenic lake and park grounds? See it all in the video. Then plan your trip to the 16th oldest park in America.

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“Hey good lookin’.  What you got cookin’?”  Yesterday, our church community group got together for an afternoon dedicated to one of my greatest interests – FOOD.  Chef Kyle came into the Deakles home and showed us how to prepare three entrées. In turn we showed him how to eat three entrées. It was an awesome afternoon well spent. But apparently all that food contributes to memory loss. I forgot to step on the scales this morning.

One of the things I miss most about California is the ubiquitous bungalow architecture, but if one knows where to look there are many equally fine Raleigh neighborhoods. Hope you enjoy these pictures we took.

After walking the Americana streets of Boylan Heights, I started to feel hints of hunger.  I had read that the service at Lilly’s wasn’t the fastest so we headed that direction.  Lilly’s is reputed to be the best pizza in Raleigh.  We arrived about 11:30am and there was only a short line.  When we reached the front of the line we ordered the Super Duper medium.  Although Lilly’s offers Vegan pizzas, we went for the full on carnivore’s special.  Their drinks have free refills and he sold us two for the price of one.  On our way to our table, we snagged some paper plates, napkins and metal utensils.  Our table was by the front window.  Beside us was an old refrigerator (the kind with the coils on top) in which were free newspaper flyers.  The outdoor tables were wet from the sprinkles which had already started.

When our pepperoni-sausage-bacon-and-more pizza arrived, it looked and smelled a thing of beauty.  I really don’t know whether to rave more about the seasoning of the sauce, the crust, or the toppings.  Every aspect of this pizza was the best.  Not since buying Greek pizza in Ipswich, Mass have I tasted anything close to this pizza.  Lilly’s may not make the best pizza in the world, but they make the best pizza in my world.  A medium was way to big for two people our age to eat, so we took home three extra slices. By the time we left the line was nearly to the door.

I started thinking I had overhyped in my mind how good this pizza was.  We had the leftovers on Sunday and I was again floored by the fantastic flavor.  The thickest part of the crust was a little too chewy when eaten cold, though.  I’ll try to do a better job of eating the whole thing fresh next time.

We beat the storm home thinking that we had avoided walking in the rain.  We didn’t realize that over 80 tornadoes would whip through our area killing 24 and leaving many hospitalized (not mention the property damage).  Our home and camp are fine, as are we, but our prayers are with the many families for whom the day brought more trouble than our brief power outage.  A huge tree was blown over onto the original farmhouse at the entrance to our development, but otherwise we just had some cleaning up to do.

After the open house we ran into a young Oracle employee. Despite my giving him grief about the Oracle-Google law suit, he was very friendly. He took us to the “Entertainment District” where he was meeting his girlfriend to watch the NFL game at Tobacco Road (which turned out to be a restaurant). He told us about two Irish pubs within walking distance and walked us past a third one. Tobacco Road has ESPN on something like a zillion TV’s. Also in Glenwood South (aka “Entertainment District”), there is the Downtown Grill & Sports Bar. It is one of those below the sidewalk bars that seemed to be favored for a guys’ night out. But did you hear me say that there are three Irish Pubs within walking distance of West (and the other homes in Glenwood South). There is also a Bada Bing NY-style pizza joint and a very nice Bruegger’s with lots of outdoor tables. These and many other restaurants are on the first floor of 222 Glenwood, home of another beautiful condo complex.

But one needs more than a home, coffee shop, sports bar, and pub. At least, I do. How about a church that meets in an old warehouse. It shares the warehouse with a bar and an outdoor volleyball court. The teaching pastor is a product of Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship. I belonged to IVCF in college and was also a faculty advisor for IVCF.

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Adjacent to Glenwood South is Sewickley, PA-like Cameron Park. Do you prefer an older home with character to condo living? Sidewalks and parks? Friendly people? Check this neighborhood out. I asked two different couples what I thought was a quick question and ended up engaged in friendly conversation for several minutes both times.

We went back to our favorite pub Friday night with Lindsay and Sherry. Napper Tandy is a tasteful assemblage of intimate dining nooks. Some of the fixtures were imported from Ireland, but they all look as if they could have been. The live music is not traditional Irish but one definitely feels as though one is in an Irish pub. I really loved this place. Heather provided first class service and the food was great. I cannot wait to go back. This discovery is going to cost me money.

Yes, I love Honolulu, So Cal, and Pittsburgh as well as several other great cities, but what fun to find that there is room in my heart for one more – especially since I live here.

Joy and I have had the privilege of living in or at least visiting some very cool cities. Who wouldn’t be impressed by Chicago’s old stone bridges and the romance of dining riverside? and the skyline? Please. Awesome. While the streets of New York may not be quite as picturesque, one has to admit that the little island of Manhattan is a one stop shop for everything attractive from antiques to contemporary boutiques. Throw in Broadway, Rao’s and other great restaurants and bars, and a plethora of cute little parks and one sees why so many of us <3 NY. Southern California is the region proffering the highest number of awesome cities per square mile in the world I have had the privilege to travel. Do you doubt me? Try driving down the coast from LA to San Diego and visiting every shop, restaurant, and site that draws your eye. Hope you're independently wealthy, because it will be a while before you get back to work. Then head up to the Palm Springs-Palm Dessert Area for a completely unique but equally stimulating vibe. Chicago does have a great beach and there is a nice marina in New York, but let's be honest, if you want the greatest combination of city and water, you'll find yourself in Honolulu. Nestled between the mountains and the sea, one finds some of the best shopping in the Pacific Rim and a dazzling skyline as well. Senor, do you like history, cities, shopping, and food? Si? Then hustle yourself on over to Old San Jaun in Puerto Rico - and pack some good walking shoes. Need a good cup of coffee, a wooden boat, a float plane, and a place to chill with a view? Then you need Seattle. Still, I have to admit that the crown jewel of all the cities I have seen would have to be Paris. Architecture, Museums, the Seine, the bridges, the shops, the food, the history, the off the charts sheer breathtaking beauty of it all, make Paris the winner so far in my experiences of many great cities.

When my career landed me in Raleigh five years ago, I feared that I might never again feel that little jolt of excitement one gets from rounding a corner and discovering an unexpected treasure. Like an out-of-favor communist exiled to Siberia, I ventured into what I expected to be a cultural void. In these five years, I have experienced some pretty cool places on the east coast, but, frankly, other than the Wrightsville Beach area and our little lakeside camp, North Carolina was underwhelming me. I could visit some pretty awesome places from here - D.C., Annapolis, Miami, but I just wasn't finding any local scratching of my itch for an urban aesthetic. The attraction of my east coast family and a great job kept me here, but it was a keenly felt sacrifice.

What this self-pitying son of many blessings needed was a good slap in the face and loud shout of "Wake up and open your eyes!"

Sunday dawned a beautiful, low humidity day. So, as we left the early service of church we decided that we would go look at one of the buildings housing loft condos downtown (West at North). As we tooled down Glenwood, we passed the entrance to Umstead State Park. For whatever reason, I thought it was just one of several little parks dotting the Raleigh area. Joy suggested we have a look at the park we had been passing for five years and we turned in. And we drove. And we drove. And we drove. The park was huge. Also unusual for this region was that it was predominately a hardwood forest. It reminded me of the drive out to Cooper’s Rock in West Virginia it was so beautiful – and right here in Raleigh. When we came to the lodge housing an exhibit hall, we spent about an hour learning about the history of the area. I especially enjoyed the exhibits about how the mill operated off of power from a waterwheel. Our church clothes weren’t conducive to hiking or paddling a rental boat, but we noted that dogs on a leash are allowed and planned to return with Moku and hiking shoes.

As we passed the very nice Crabtree Valley Shoppiing Mall at the inner beltway we transitioned away from the familiar part of Glenwood. Happily this lead us into the Carolina version of Beverley Hills as the homes on the southwest side of the boulevard were stately historic mansions with a sprinkling of upscale contemporaries. Grab a couple million and come shopping.

Sadly, Google Navigation dropped me at the right street address on the right street but not the right place. We were on the south end instead of the north end. As we began to drive up the street to the condo end, we discovered Raleigh’s Warehouse District. Old brick warehouses have been converted into quaint looking shops. But what really caught our eyes was a little restaurant with outdoor dining. The sign said, “H pie”. Seeing several people walking toward the restaurant, we decided to park and investigate for ourselves. Humble Pie may be a humble establishment, but what a pleasure it was to find a place with so much style. Exposed brick walls, hanging spherical paper lamps, servers in blue jeans and T-shirts, friendliness, and, as we found, good food. Joy says it is the best huevos rancheros she has had this side of Mexico. My southwestern omelette (with the goat cheese our server suggested) was the best omellette I’ve had since our last cruise. We were disappointed not to have been seated outside, but I really enjoyed studying the decor inside.

Between the park, the mansions, and Humble Pie, I found my impression of Raleigh slowly begin to shift. Not convinced about Raleigh? Keep in mind that this day was only half over.

Same story as yesterday, but now you can see the train and the Segways move.

There was a special event going on at Wrightsville Beach this weekend.  I didn’t know about it until Joy called me at work to tell me that they’d mentioned it on NPR.  So, I changed away from my plan to go surfing.

At 0-dark-thirty, Saturday we hopped in the old truck and headed to the Raleigh train station.  We took some pictures of the Raleigh skyline from the track side of the depot while we waited for them to unlock the doors at 6 a.m.  As soon as the doors were unlocked, we made our first entrance into an Amtrak station in eager anticipation of our first Amtrak train ride.  The train actually backed into the station after turning around just out of sight down the tracks.

There had been a group of rowdy elementary-age children that had rousted us out of the station to wait for our train by the tracks and I admit some concern about riding for three hours with them.  However, they were well-behaved on the train and the trip was quite fun.  While trains let you see the back side of urban areas they also let you see the hidden side of rural areas and small towns.  It was surprising how quickly the three hours passed.

Arriving at the sad little station in Charlotte, we walked across the street to Stop 11 and rode the bus to town.  The Charlotte Transport Center is in the heart of Uptown Charlotte.  We watched the preparations for a big bicycle race and took pictures of Charlotte’s skyscrapers, pubs, fountains, and public sculptures.  We ate a pleasant lunch at Libretto’s in the multi-story Epicenter outdoor mall. Joy heard the waitress tell a patron who had written “Hottie” on his ticket that she was the mother of five children and worked nights and weekends.  For someone blessed with the responsibility to support and care for five kids, she was amazingly chipper, friendly, and efficient.  The food was good and quickly served.  We both enjoyed hot Italian hoagies and a side salad.

We then walked down to the NASCAR Hall of Fame.  Across the street was the Segway tours starting point operated by Charlotte NC Tours.  Now, friends if you can stand for an hour and a half, I’m going to tell you to listen closely here, because you are going to want to do what we did.  In a few minutes, Rod showed us how to operate our Segways and then he led us in a reign of Segway terror on the poor city of Charlotte as we buzzed one fun locale after another.  Within seconds of Joy getting on one, Rod told her that he could tell she was going to be a natural.  Within minutes we were espousing our wishes to buy a couple of these things.  Segways are cool.

We visited the green that is frozen for ice skating at Christmas, has whimsical Alice-in-Wonderland seating, a great fountain for kids to splash safely in the water, and signposts to a variety of the world’s other cities named Charlotte.  I want one of the condos that looks out over the green.

We saw several more of the city’s sculptures, parks, and venues for sports and culture.  We even saw a competition where young men launched themselves into the air and performed tricks on BMX bikes.  We even visited the classy (and pricey) historic residential Fourth Ward.  This pastoral neighborhood is walking distance to the modern center of uptown Charlotte and my favorite part of the tour.  Imagine a slice of Charleston, SC dropped onto the city.

The other two people on the tour arrived late and we circled back for them.  This resulted in our tour lasting for 2 1/2 instead of 1 1/2 hours.  Okay by us.  But by the time we drug our tails back to the Charlotte Transport Center we were thoroughly wiped out.  Bus ride back to the train.  How sweet to just lean our spacious seat back and relax as we rode the train for three hours back to Raleigh.  Neither of us would have had the energy to drive.  Thank goodness we had Sunday to recup at the Lake.

Hopefully I’ll have video of our Segway tour finished tonight if we don’t go to the lake.

Oktoberfest! Ja, das ist das, was ich spreche. Joy and I greatly enjoyed our time at the Raleigh Oktoberfest hosted by St. Raphael’s Catholic Church here in Raleigh, North Carolina. There was an oom-pa band, Bavarian dancers, Bavarian child dancers, and a bunch of other folks from the area with a dash or more of German blood (or at least spirit). I enjoyed a dark ale that may have been the best I ever tasted. The potato salad did not measure up to Mom’s standards or Gram’s standards but the food was hearty. It was a fun ethnic celebration and a nice diversion from our normal routine.