Walking around Charlotte
Here I am in Charlotte!
Huh? I was already in Charlotte, you say? Oh, yes, yes, of course. I mean to say that I'm in uptown Charlotte, like in the actual city part of Charlotte. Big buildings and fountains and all that rot. It's really nice, from what I've seen. And while I don't know if I've seen a lot in the last three hours, it sure feels like it. Lots of walking around, taking quick pictures so I don't look too much like a tourist.
See, I hate tourists. I have to, I'm from Boston. Tourists are slow-moving, bobble-head-doll-headed blobs with their only purpose being to get in your way when you're trying to get somewhere important. Those tourists. So I have a certain averseness to being like that. This, I walk quickly, try to stay out of everyone's way, and whip out the camera only when there's something really worth having its picture taken. That's how I roll, yo.
Anyway, I was supposed to go into town yesterday, but I woke up feeling like poop, feeling a vague cold or something coming on. So I opted to fart around the house all day, though I did manage to update this site and the gallery, as well as take a walk to the local Bojangles to have a tasty chicken sandwich for lunch. Okay, so I'd go to the city tomorrow, being today, which I did. Go to the city, I mean.
First I had to get to the bus stop. I knew there was one right near the Bojangles, but Google Maps told me I could get to the main road a lot quicker if I went down this other street which ended up being some projects next to a car dealership. Then again, everything in the area I ended up in was next to some sort of car dealership. Regardless, it was a smart thing to do, as the area around Seth's house can be somewhat confusing since the street names are all sort of similar. Names like Mapleridge, Thorncliff, Edgewater, Starmount. Sounds like a bunch of goddamn elf villages or something, I swear.
So I missed my bus because I'm stupid and ended up standing at a stop before the street where the bus came from, so after realizing my stupidity I wandered down to the next stop, vaguely angry since it was cold and windy out. But really, there was nothing to be mad at. Certainly nobody was to blame but myself, and there's no sense in getting mad at yourself or anyone else for a lack of understanding. And that was my little bit of wisdom for the day.
Okay, so there was the bus ride and suddenly I was downtown. Or uptown. I'm not sure what it was exactly, but there were bunches of huge buildings everywhere, so that was fine. I had a few goals in mind aside from taking in the sights: 1) find a post office so I could send out postcards and stuff, 2) get North Carolina postcards, 3) eat lunch, 4) find one of the two Dunkin Donuts that were within walking distance, as listed on dunkindonuts.com. Not in that order.
Had lunch at Chick-Fil-A, which brings me up to five or six fast food places that I've tried for the first time while on this trip, most of which are in North Carolina. Got some postcards, then went for a walk. A long walk. I think I walked in circles about fifteen times, always coming back to what is known as the Four Corners. I think it's called that. Uh, it's the center of the city, pretty much, the intersection of North and South Tryon Streets, and East and West Trade Streets. And it has some beautiful sculptures on each corner, and lots of artsy things and plants and stuff.
East Trade Street was the alleged home of the two Dunkin Donuts I was looking for. I figured I'd get me a coffee and sit down to write some postcards. Good plan! Now I just needed to find 33 East Trade Street or 333 East Trade Street. No problem! Well, it was no problem after I discovered that I was walking down West Trade Street, so I turned around. Back at the Four Corners or whatever it's called, I noticed that both Trade Streets seemed to start at 100, so my hopes of finding 33 East Trade Street were quickly dashed. Fine! Off to 333 then! Tally ho!
I turned around at about 600 East Trade Street, after taking a moment to admire Charlotte's lovely city hall. Passed 400, passed the Transportation Center where I had gotten off the bus and which was 310 East Trade Street, passed a big empty hole where a building used to be, but may or may not have been 333. It soon became apparent to me that Charlotte eats Dunkin Donuts franchises like candy, and also enjoys watching me walk around like a moron. In short, Charlotte most definitely hates me.
In the end, I found a coffee shop in one of the many ritzy shopping centers that Charlotte has to offer. Got a coffee, sat down, and wrote postcards. Talked to Seth, and he'd be able to come pick me up in a couple of hours or so, so it was up to me to entertain myself. I had seen Discovery Place during my travels and I'm a big fan of science museums, so I headed off to do that, without knowing that the museum closed at five and it was now about six. So I just gave up and went to a bar.
I spent the time writing and smoking and drinking and talking to Carly on the phone, catching up. After awhile, Seth's roommate Dwyer came by and picked me up, as he had just gotten out of work and was passing my way. Oh, and I did get to a post office somewhere in all that mess. And I also walked around this place called The Green, which was a little park surrounded by expensive restaurants, but the cool part about it was all the literature-inspired sculptures and art and stuff.
And then we sat around and had beers and played video games and prepared for Thanksgiving, which was the next day. THE END.