Outer Banks - Wright Brothers

On our last morning, we loaded up the car again and before starting the long drive back, went to the Wright Brothers museum and memorial. This is where the brothers made the first flight of a powered manned vehicle. The first flight was on Decmeber 17th 1903 and lasted 12s and they did 3 other flights that day, getting up to 56s in the air on the last flight of the day. They were going to do more flights but the wind caught the plane and wrecked it. They picked Kitty Hawk in the Outer Banks because that year it had the strongest winds in the US. And it was mostly deserted in 1903.
We listened to the park ranger tell the story of the flights and then wondered around the grounds.

One of the first planes

Plaque to the Wright brothers

Mom and Dad at starting marker

First landing marker

There was also a big monument up o the top of the hill where they launched the unpowered glider flights. But it was well into the 90s that day and we decided it was too hot to walk up there.

Wright Brothers Monument on hill top

Plus we had a long drive home. We decided to go the slightly longer way around but it was much prettier, along smaller country roads through real small town USA, which Dad loved. Dad and I split the driving and we got some great photos while on the road.

Cool dude

Another deserted bridge

Mom enjoying being chauffeured 

Honestly I am not sure

There were also some great adverts near the Outer Banks for places with ... interesting names.

Sounds interesting

We stopped for lunch at a truckers road side dinner called, Doris and Roger's kitchen. The food was good and cheap and a nice break. The second time we stopped I was bored and saw a sign for Buffalo Springs. So I pulled off to investigate. It wasn't as much as I was expecting (and the toilets were nasty!) but it was a break. There used to be a spa for the springs but now all that was left was a rundown gazzebo (I could see the spiders from a distance - there was no way I was going near that!) and the "mountain spring" which was a hose coming out of the wall. But we saw some locals collecting and drinking the water so decided to give it a go. It had a sweet taste and lots of minerals and better yet, it was really cold. (It made my bugs bites a lot better though I had to do some interesting gymnastics to get some of them under the hose).

Drinking and collecting spring water

:)

On the way back we got the only rain the entire time my parents were here. Unfortunately this was when I was driving thought the mountains and it was a lightning storm at the same time. It was an interesting part of the drive.

It took us about 8-9 hrs driving to get home and we were exhausted by the time we got back. But it was a great trip and we all had a really good time. :-)

Outer Banks - Roanoke Island

On our second day in the Outer Banks, we went across more bridges to Roanoke Island, where the first British landed and settled in 1585. At least they think so. Like I said, what really happened is a bit of a puzzle. We went to the Victory Park display where they have a tall ship, the Elizabeth II, so my Dad finally got to see his boat! :-)

Ships life ring

Elizabeth II

 The tour guide on the boat annoyed me a little. I was asking reasonable questions and he was very patronizing. Still the ship was good and I got the information I wanted from someone else.

Annoying boat guide

We also had a look around a mock up of an Indian village.

Indian Chief's house 

Dancing circle

Blaming my Dad for this one! 

Canoe, hollowed out with shells

The best part of the Victory Park was the Settlement where there were two guys dressed up and showing people around the way of life of the English settlers. And you got to try some of the things, which I jumped at. So did my Dad! :-)

Using the lathe

Dad with the carpenter's knife

Dressed in Amour 

Dad in the armor.

Losing the battle :(

The smith

They were both really good and very informative. And the black smith presented me with my very own traditionally made nail which he made in front of us. Which made me very happy. :-)

My nail.

The only problem with this place was it was in a marsh-like area and I got bitten loads of times! :-( The bites are huge. In the Med, I have never really had a problem with bites. Apparently I am more allergic to the bugs here. :-( Though I did see some little lizards too which I much preferred.

Little lizard on the path railing

We had a look around the museum (which did include me and Dad trying on some of the dress-up clothes because we could!) and I brought a couple of books from the museum shop on the island and local history which I am reading at the moment and are really interesting.
After the museum, we got back in to the car and went to the top of the island to the Elizabethan gardens. The smell around the gardens was amazing! And there were loads of butterflies, so Dad and I continued our photo war.

Butterfly

And more!

Daisies

Statue of Virginia Deer, first British Child born in the US

I love this bench

Trees in bloom.

Statue of Elizabeth I.

We were hoping for a cafe in the garden to get a drink but there wasn't anything. So we headed back to our hotel for something to eat and drink and then down to the beach again. The water was just as fun and I love my little water proof camera!

Playing in the waves

Caught

:)

Dad not paying attention

And getting dunked.

Mom and Dad's shadow in the sand.

For out last night in the Outer Banks, we went to a nice restaurant called Stripers (though I keep calling it Strippers) which promise an ocean view from every table. And we got a lovely view. And the meal was one of the best I have ever had. I decided to go with just the 1/2 lb of snow crab legs and really wish I had gone for the full lb. They were amazing! 

Snow crab legs.

Dad enjoying this BBQ ribs.

 On the way out (with our half finished wine), we found a little frog who Mom saw climbing up the wall, sitting not top of the sign for the restaurant.

Back at the hotel, we sat in Mom and Dad's room and finished our wine before I went back to my own to pack.

Outer Banks - Day 1

First thing Monday we packed up the car again and headed into Williamsburg for a while to do some shopping. Which meant going back to the Gourmet candy place. :-) I got some little things as well as some chocolate dipped crisps/chips. (I had to try them! Apparently they are popular in Japan.) And they are actually really nice. They taste a bit like wafer biscuits.

Chocolate covered crisps.

Then we started the trip to the Outer Banks, North Carolina. I was expecting the trip to be a little stressful as we had to go past Norfolk and Virginia beach which are really big cities. But it beat even my expectations. It didn't help that the GPS was having an off day and not being very helpful at times. The worst was when I was happily driving along in the slow lane of a 2 lane highway and suddenly I am in the 5 lane of a 6 lane road with everyone suddenly changing directions and lanes! And mine exit was of course the other side. I really didn't like that!

But we made it alive (to my great surprise!) to the Outer Banks. And we all decided that we had crossed some of the longest bridges we had ever seen! Very impressive. The Outer Banks are a group of islands just off the coast of North Carolina. They are really thin and have lots of beaches and lighthouses, which I really wanted to see. They also have wide ponies on some of the beaches but they were further north than we were so we didn't see them this trip.

The hotel was right on the beach though the rooms were really small. I didn't care as I didn't intend to spend much time in them when the beach is so close! After dumping stuff in the rooms and getting changed, we went onto the beach and had a swim. Well, dad and I did (mom paddled). It wasn't as cold as I though it would be and the waves were great though a little too rough at times. It was fun just jumping the waves.

Caught by surprise

A little cool

:)

While we were sitting reading and soaking up the sun, a man not far from us decided to feed the seagulls. It was like something from The Birds! The woman who had been sitting right near them was NOT impressed. And they came a little too close for comfort to us too.

Crow

Attacked!

We also had a the crow mafia watching us which was a little unnerving. 

Crow mafia.

Bodie lighthouse

We didn't see any.

On the walkway 

There were lots of crabs in the water

View across the marches form the deck

Mom and dad! :) x

On the deck

Lighthouse at sunset

Pretty sunset

We tried to get into Awful Arthur's for dinner but it was going to be an hour to way for a table. We were all starving so ended up at the Black Raven where I had some tasting steamed clams while Mom and Dad had pizza. And for the first time we all managed a desert! :-)