The other day Daniel remarked on how active we stay, even during a typical October week in Raleigh. While this may have something to do with my inability to sit still most nights, I choose to believe that some of my exploration habits are due to the fact that I moved to Raleigh at the height of the pandemic.
Yes, I was one of those crazy people that decided to change jobs and states during 2020. I moved out of the densely-populated, extremely high-rent area of Washington DC to the growing city of Raleigh for a job with the state of North Carolina. When I moved in 2020 (and for what seemed like many on-and-off periods of 2021 and 2022), the city and most of the state were in lock-down mode, leaving little time for exploration. This year, I am trying to make up for lost time and am so glad to have Daniel’s company for my adventures.
So, Dear Reader, this is a week in the life of Daniel and Sydney and our attempts to make the most of all the City of Oaks has to offer.
Oakwood and the North Carolina State Capitol
Monday started off with us going for an evening walk through Oakwood Cemetery, the historic neighborhood that surrounds it, and all the way to the State Capitol. We admired the many Queen Ann-style homes and impressive landscaping that dotted our path, including ancient oak trees that reach for the heavens. To reward ourselves for our 4.2-mile urban hike, we settled in for a drink at the Foundation, a basement bar with a speakeasy vibe serving up handcrafted cocktails. Daniel and I, who have bonded many times over our shared love of bourbon, had two different variations of an old fashioned – Maple and Coffee.
Jazz in the Square and First Fridays
Thursday and Friday were downtown nights around the Moore Square area. We checked out Jazz in the Square on Thursday and listened to the soulful voice of Dupresha Townsend accompanied by her talented band members. On Friday, we again walked to Moore Square, Fayetteville Street, and the Warehouse District to take in First Fridays, showcasing artisan markets, tap take-overs, and a showing of the classic (and just in time for spooky season)– Jurassic Park! Jeff Goldbloom will forever hold a place in my heart.
Wilkerson Nature Preserve, Hiking, and NC Museum of Art
There is no rest for the wicked, so our Saturday was just as busy, if not more so, than our working week. We started the crisp cool fall day out with a hike at Annie Louise Wilkerson, MD Nature Preserve Park. Here we hiked the full 2.5 miles the park has to offer, hitting the main three trails – Forest Loop, Pond Loop, and Hidden Rock. If we had more time (and in case you do during your visit), you can connect from Wilkerson to the Mountains-to-Sea Trail that runs along Falls Lake Recreation area. We would highly recommend checking this trail out, especially as the group that manages and advocates for this trail is celebrating its 45th anniversary in 2022!
Our next adventure of the day was Raleigh Brewing, my dad’s favorite local brewery. We were led on a personal tour by Eric, the brewery’s QA/QC god, where we learned how much time, effort, and cleaning go into making these great beers. As a one-time homebrewer and chemistry nerd, I loved the experience and enjoyed having Daniel’s new perspective lead us down a multitude of brewing-related conversations. We discussed economies of scale, sanitization, and more, all while we sipped on three samples of their beer – Blatherskite, a Scottish ale with a malty and caramel taste just in time for fall; Have Another, a Session IPA more to Daniel’s liking than mine; and Holiday Bash, the beer that goes great with any fall or winter holiday thanks to the nice mulling spices.
NC Museum of Art
To end our day and work off all the superb beer, we drove over to the North Carolina Museum of Art, where weekend festivities to celebrate the reopening of the gallery were well underway. The late-blooming sunflowers and wildflowers helped bring our wonderful day of exploration to a close. We finished out the day by watching the sun set behind our condo, reveling in the way the sky’s colors danced among the clouds and faded into a star-filled night.