Renee knows that town. I don't think there's a square inch of that place that she doesn't know. And she keeps up with the local festivals and such also. So this particular weekend, she planned for us to head to the waterfront and take in "Shrimpfest".
This was my first time on the town waterfront, and instantly I fell in love with it. The sights, smells, sounds of boats....Oh my gosh!....Reminded me alot of the time I spent with my Grandfather down in Topsail and Surf City.
There were tents with vendors everywhere, shrimp boats tied up on the waterfront, and the center of the park had a band set up in the pavillion. Everywhere I looked, I saw "Lt. Dan Weekend" on signs and banners. I didin't know what was going on, but I was enjoying every minute of being there.
Well, it turned out that Gary Sinise, "Lt. Dan" from "Forrest Gump" and from "CSI:New York" had a band, and they were playing the festival over the course of the weekend.
By the time we had gotten there, his band had been off stage for about a half hour, but they had scheduled entertainment throughout the entire day. These bands were good too! It didn't take long for the pavillion lawn to fill up with people dancing and having a great time.
We Listened for a while, and went walking around inside the park, taking in the sights and everything else. We went aboard a couple of the shrimpers that were tied to the dock, and got a small tour of their operation. That was neat, because I had never been on a shrimper before although I had seen the hundreds of times out off the coast of Topsail on the north end.
The waterfront was amazing to me. It was so well put together. And there was alot of room for pedestrian traffic along side. The walkways were gorgeous, brick lined, and there were swings all along it to enjoy the day.
From where the above shot was taken, directly 90* to the left, this is what you saw.
This is the swing bridge leading you over to "Lady's Island".
After being there for a while, we Started getting a little hungry, and so we went through the area with all of the food vendors. There was a little bit of everything, but mainly seafood, of course. Well, being that I'm allergic to seafood, I opted for something a little out of my norm. A big old honkin' italian sausage, on a sub roll, with spiced mustard. Oh, and a diet coke.
I enjoyed the heck out of that day. It was nice to finally 'exhale'. It was a start of rediscovery too. I eventually left the area to come back home to NC, but I have to admit, when finances are a little more stable, there's a part of me that wouldn't mind moving down there for good. Life moved at a slower pace there. Hell, any beachside town for that matter. And it truly felt like home. Maybe it will be.
Renee, my best friend..........
Love ya, and miss ya terribly.
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