I’ve been looking forward to getting to Asheville again since I visited three years ago. The city is small, but diverse and filled with the hippy vibe I love from my hometown of Portland. This was Hawke’s first visit and luckily, we have old friends from the Brewery Artist Lofts to show us around. We figured we’d give you a quick tour, too!

Hawke and I started the morning with drag brunch at the Asheville Beauty Academy, an off-shoot of Sovereign Remedies (the only restaurant in town I re-visited this trip). The food was delicious, the entertainment delightful. We met up with Peter and Julie for afternoon coffee and cocktails at The Times Bar and I have to recommend it for their variety of options, both with and without caffeine and with and without alcohol. Plus the interior, like so many places in Asheville, is just beautiful.

I love a good museum and the Asheville Art Museum had several amazing exhibits to visit including a collection from the Black Mountain College students and teachers, including Josef Albers and his wife Annie Albers. There was another gallery of paintings by members of the Wyeth family and images by Gillian Laub in the Southern Rites exhibit.

Down the street from where we camped at Bear Creek RV Park was the Asheville Farmers Market, a year-round market filled with local vendors. I was surprised to run into Coates Produce there. I bought ramps (where were completely new to me!) as well as other veggies, Black n Blue jelly, salsa, and cornbread mix.

Over near the Moogseum, we found a few record shops and a hidden gem called Crow & Quill. It’s one of the few places to grab an adult beverage that we had to “join” in order to enter, something I’ve never experienced before (though the others all had). Outside, it is a non-descript store front that looked more boarded up and out of business than one might expect for something this ornate inside. It was a lovely surprise.

It sort of summed up the whole week for us–a lovely surprise. It was, in fact, so nice we stayed an extra two days! Thanks to Peter and Julie for letting us park that big rig in their driveway and letting us use their laundry facilitie.

And thanks to Angie and DJ, hosting our show on the road and for taking the time to show us the best of their area.

We’ll be back, I’m sure.