The Great CAmerican Roadtrip: There and Back Again - Day 9

The last day of the Great CAmerican Roadtrip has finally come.  Sunlight filtered through the windows as we lay in our warm and very comfortable bed. We took our time getting up and ready for the day.


Although anxious to get home, we decided to play tourist in Bryson City in keeping up with the rest of the week.  Our first stop was Nabers Drive-In for cheap, delicious, home-style cooked food.



Despite the name, we were able to go in and order from the counter and eat our lunch inside.  While we waited for our food to be ready, we played a quick game of old-school Pac-Man.






After filling our bellies, we made our way downtown to The Chocolate Shoppe.  A meal is not complete without a healthy dose of chocolate covered oreos.

Bryson City is considered the base camp for the Great Smoky Mountains, and attracts a lot of visitors throughtout the year.  Because of this, lots of little shops have sprung up along the main street through downtown.  These shops are great for supporting local chocolatiers, artists, musicians, and small business owners.  We walked down the street and stopped in a few shops that boasted unique homemade jelly flavors, freshly ground coffee beans, pottery, jewelry, and other really cool things.  The Cottage Craftsman was a particular favorite of Natalie's.

Finally the time came to say goodbye to Bryson City and hit the road for the last leg of our trip. The three hour trip home was pale in comparison to the 10 hour trip the day before.  The only trouble we encountered was an accident on I-575 that required a helicopter to be hanging out on the interstate.  Luckily we approached it early on and were able to change our route with no problem.

Odette enjoying the fresh air
on the ride home

We rolled into Marietta about 6 p.m. to stop by Big Daddy Don's house to pick up the pup.  A huge thank you to Don and Toni for watching Odette and Brittney for watching the kitties this last week while we were out on the road.


After a nice dinner at Elevation and a quick stop to a local farmer's (i.e. a 90-year-old man who really just gardens and sells his produce for fun) house, we were back on the road for the last 30 minutes of our trip.

At long last, we pulled into our driveway.  Everything was just as we left it, with a little bit taller grass, a few more sticks in the yard, and my basil plant growing like crazy!

In words, we made it there and back again.








Quote of the Day:  "I want four dipped oreos.  You can't have any.  Those are for me.  You're just going to have to get your own."  As told to Natalie by Phillip on our want to The Chocolate Shoppe.

Picture of the Day:

Phillip enjoying his Nabor's Hot Dog "All the Way"