Southern Comfort, Part I: Hot Springs and Rock City
Before the madness of midterms last week, I took the first substantial spring break trip of my life. Years and years of university, and barring getting my wisdom teeth out my first year, I spent most of them in the library or buried in a book. This year, I spent it at points south. I left my Harrisburg job as soon as my hours for the pay period were done, and headed across the Mason-Dixon line.
Early in the week we went to North Carolina, to enjoy a soak in the hot, mineral-laden waters of Hot Springs Resort & Spa, in North Carolina. Temperatures hovered around freezing, but even in my little red bikini my Navy officer's coat kept me comfortable. We soaked in a whirlpool tub--something I haven't done in a while because my heart does funny things when my core temperature gets too high--overlooking the river. Doing it in winter was probably a very smart decision, as I cooled off quickly when I got too pink.
Wednesday was the pilgrimage to Rock City. It was the setting of the climactic battle of Neil Gaiman's American Gods, and thirteenletters hadn't been there within memory, so curiousity about the kitch's appeal won out, and we travelled through Chattanooga, Tennessee, just across the Georgia border on Lookout Mountain. It's...inexplicable. You take a winding trail through gigantic boulders, which is lovely. The view of seven states (when it's sufficiently clear) is pretty spectacular, and the rocks themselves are fantastic, but it...has additions. Like the original owners had more money than sense. There are man-made bridges, and underpasses, and...gnomes. There's an entire set of rooms devoted to nursery rhymes and fairy tales, blacklit and full of phosphorescent characters, and for some reason there are gnomes all over the place. It's both beautiful and bizarre, and strangely exhilarating.
Adventures didn't end there.
Early in the week we went to North Carolina, to enjoy a soak in the hot, mineral-laden waters of Hot Springs Resort & Spa, in North Carolina. Temperatures hovered around freezing, but even in my little red bikini my Navy officer's coat kept me comfortable. We soaked in a whirlpool tub--something I haven't done in a while because my heart does funny things when my core temperature gets too high--overlooking the river. Doing it in winter was probably a very smart decision, as I cooled off quickly when I got too pink.
Wednesday was the pilgrimage to Rock City. It was the setting of the climactic battle of Neil Gaiman's American Gods, and thirteenletters hadn't been there within memory, so curiousity about the kitch's appeal won out, and we travelled through Chattanooga, Tennessee, just across the Georgia border on Lookout Mountain. It's...inexplicable. You take a winding trail through gigantic boulders, which is lovely. The view of seven states (when it's sufficiently clear) is pretty spectacular, and the rocks themselves are fantastic, but it...has additions. Like the original owners had more money than sense. There are man-made bridges, and underpasses, and...gnomes. There's an entire set of rooms devoted to nursery rhymes and fairy tales, blacklit and full of phosphorescent characters, and for some reason there are gnomes all over the place. It's both beautiful and bizarre, and strangely exhilarating.
Adventures didn't end there.