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Agree 100%!!! The OP was coming from the BRP in the mountains, so why visit a fake, manmade river at the National Whitewater Center when the real deal is right off the BRP??? I have seen some of these posters do anything possible to paint Charlotte in only the most shining of lights, while often trying to downplay other areas in the state. FWIW, I could've come up with a list quite similar to those listed by above for the Raleigh-Durham area, too, but I realize that they're nice amenities for my hometown yet not that unique as tourist destination. That's why I listed NASCAR for Charlotte...it's the one thing that is truly unique to that area...and I understant they're pretty desperate to get attendance numbers up at the new Hall of Fame, too.
Wait a second. No one is down playing any part of the state here. If anything, the only part of the state that is being seriously down played is Charlotte.
Here are some picture links to Asheville, Charlotte, and Raleigh. If the OP still can't decide, it is not hard to visit all three in a day or two.
Asheville Asheville, NC on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/bz3rk/2332152696/ - broken link)
Asheville, NC on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/bz3rk/2419187057/ - broken link)
Asheville, North Carolina on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/bz3rk/3151963371/ - broken link) Asheville By Night on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/benpierce/1936207105/ - broken link)
Asheville, NC (Land of the Sky) on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/benpierce/354525727/ - broken link)
Charlotte
Epicentre with the Charlotte skyline in the background on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/fandi3/4693438154/ - broken link)
Charlotte Skyline on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/carolinatim/4471183517/ - broken link)
Lynx 3rd Street Station, Charlotte on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/bz3rk/2856948467/ - broken link)
Charlotte Skyline on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/bz3rk/3555091101/ - broken link)
Uptown Charlotte on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/bz3rk/3702014580/ - broken link)
Raleigh
on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/17198616@N03/2670563712/ - broken link)
on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/17198616@N03/2675409673/ - broken link)
My Little Town on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/karnevil/3429478973/ - broken link)
Raleigh Lightning Storm - July 19 on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/ocell/27690349/ - broken link)
Raleigh at Night on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/malcolmmacgregor/3963724497/ - broken link)
Last edited by urbancharlotte; 06-28-2010 at 11:58 AM..
You may have already made your trip, but I will add my two bits. However,to be truthful, I'm not sure what you really want from your post. If you want that down home, feels like I've arrived feeling, you are not going to get that unless you have family here. I won't belabor the point, but studies have shown that social connectiveness is a major key to why people love and stay in a particular area. Both Raleigh and Charlotte are full of transplants. Therefore, you will meet many people who don't feel at home or want something different. What they really want is folks who are either connected to them by blood or many years of deep friendship. Since most people don't have that in a fast growing area, the next thing they look for is physical beauty. The mountains certainly have that and the beach does also but not in such a glaring way. It doesn't suprise me that Asheville scored below average in the category of emotional well being recently. The raw beauty of the area attracts people who unknowingly think they can substitute beauty and possiblly climate for meaningful social bonds. I'll put it in a straight forward and simple manner as I was once told. It isn't where you live, it's people that count. I'll get off my stand now, but I hope this helps in some small way.
Honestly, as part of a mega road trip like this, where I'm pretty sure the emphasis will be on culturally unique places or those with geographic defining features, I'd opt for Wilmington, Asheville, New Bern, and even Winston-Salem (for Old Salem) over both Charlotte and Raleigh.
You may have already made your trip, but I will add my two bits. However,to be truthful, I'm not sure what you really want from your post. If you want that down home, feels like I've arrived feeling, you are not going to get that unless you have family here. I won't belabor the point, but studies have shown that social connectiveness is a major key to why people love and stay in a particular area. Both Raleigh and Charlotte are full of transplants. Therefore, you will meet many people who don't feel at home or want something different. What they really want is folks who are either connected to them by blood or many years of deep friendship. Since most people don't have that in a fast growing area, the next thing they look for is physical beauty. The mountains certainly have that and the beach does also but not in such a glaring way. It doesn't suprise me that Asheville scored below average in the category of emotional well being recently. The raw beauty of the area attracts people who unknowingly think they can substitute beauty and possiblly climate for meaningful social bonds. I'll put it in a straight forward and simple manner as I was once told. It isn't where you live, it's people that count. I'll get off my stand now, but I hope this helps in some small way.
Old thread, I know... but what a sad, albeit probably true, reality, Mr. Farmer. What about those with no family connections left to speak of? Is heading out in search of building them anew a mere pipedream? God, I hope not. Sounds to me like A LOT of people on this site (and in this world) just want to feel like they "belong" somewhere, and to---something. I hope it happens for us all.
^ Um, I'm pretty sure the OP was just taking a plain old-fashioned vacation/road trip. I doubt they're going to get too emotionally invested, and I don't think they're "looking" for anything more than a pleasant, enjoyable vacation.
^ Um, I'm pretty sure the OP was just taking a plain old-fashioned vacation/road trip. I doubt they're going to get too emotionally invested, and I don't think they're "looking" for anything more than a pleasant, enjoyable vacation.
LOL! Silly goose. I knew that, arbyunc. Kindly forgive the human being behind the curtain... I'll TRY to stick to the topic at hand from now on.
The original post was in June, 2010, but if anyone is still interested in the subject; here is a website that will educate all of us about tourist spots available.
State Parks of the United States
Just click on the state you are interested in and then click on points of interest or click on areas you plan to visit.
It would be nice to know why the OP was checking on these two spots. Could the tourist be flying in and want to know which airport to use. Raleigh is sometimes thought to be cheaper. Don't know why, but I have several family members who will swear to it.
Now here is something that as a North Carolina native I have always wanted to do. There are two roads that travel the length of the state. Highway 421 goes from Northwest at the Tennessee border to the Atlantic Ocean just below Wilmington and Highway 64 goes from the Southwest at the Tennessee border to Manteo where the live play The Lost Colony plays yearly. I would love to take a month or two and travel each road.
Our daughter bought us a book called the "Backroads of North Carolina" by Kevin Adams. It lists 29 planned trips and some of them are off the beaten path. We have done one so far and it was quite an experience.
Old thread, I know... but what a sad, albeit probably true, reality, Mr. Farmer. What about those with no family connections left to speak of? Is heading out in search of building them anew a mere pipedream? God, I hope not. Sounds to me like A LOT of people on this site (and in this world) just want to feel like they "belo
ng" somewhere, and to---something. I hope it happens for us all.
Obviously I don't check in here very often since this is such an old quote. However, it popped up in regards to a reputation rating change so I'll briefly address it. The OP sounded to me like they were checking out Charlotte and Raleigh as a place to live. Of course I could be totally wrong but I've never known someone to come to either place on vacation. Not that either place isn't a great place to live. It's just that it would be like someone saying they were going on vacation to Fresno, CA. Fresno may be a great place to live, but I haven't heard of anyone planning a vacation there to see their natural wonders.
Finally, I think js1mom may have missed the last thing I said and what I consider to be the most important thing. "It isn't where you live, it's people that count". That isn't sad to me. That's wonderful. People can be happy anywhere if they have close social bonds. That is the number one thing that studies of happiness have found. Anything else is just icing. As always, just my two bits.
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I'll TRY to stick to the topic at hand from now on.
