Sweet Carolinas!

As even the most hardened traveler would attest, after an extended period of traveling through foreign places it is only natural to yearn for something familiar, something that resembles home...and after nearly four months abroad we have finally been afforded such a rare possibility...

The next stop on our American adventure was a 10 day visit at my cousin Le Roux's home just a short drive from Charlotte, North Carolina.

Trip through the South: New Orleans to Charlotte

As cousins we've always had a close bond and since it's been just over five years since I last saw him and his wife Kim, I was really looking forward to seeing them again and to meet their young daughter Olivia (and Baxter and Hank!). More so I really wanted them to meet Kristi and to get to know her!

Le Roux picked us up from the Greyhound station in Charlotte, and after a long bus ride and our couch surfing shenanigans he must have looked twice when he saw the two weary South Africans! It was great to see him again - after 5 minutes it felt like hardly any time has passed since we last saw each other - you just seem to have that with certain people in your life!

We headed to their lovely home just across the state border, in Fort Mill South Carolina, where we were greeted by Kim and little Olivia!

The Pelsers had, without our knowing, planned a whole lot of things to do for our visit...and after months of us planning every little obscure detail of our trip it was such a relief to just go with the flow!

Ons gaan nou braai!

That evening we were treated to something we've sorely missed on our travels...a braai! Words cannot describe the overwhelming joy that such a simple gesture provided! 

We had a lovely evening catching up and reminiscing about the good old days...

I'm going to mention this a lot, but it's remarkable what the simple, comforting feeling of home can do to one's soul, it was definitely a long overdue re-acquaintance!

No wonder we slept well past 08:00 the next morning!

Our first day mostly comprised of doing washing, clearing our backpacks and cleaning ourselves up for a change! Kristi also jumped at the opportunity to help out with little Olivia, who has to be one of the sweetest, happiest and easiest toddlers we've met, which is a clear testament to how well her parents have raised her!

Best buds...

That evening we had a surprise outing (the first of many!), to something I've always wanted to experience...a live baseball game! 

"Take me out to the ballgame"...

They say you haven't really experienced America until you've been to the nation's most treasured pastime! We went the whole nine yards or innings I suppose - hot-dogs, cold beer, cracker jacks and literally front row seats! 

The taste of freedom...

Plus the stadium is in the heart of the city, so every-time you look up you gaze directly into the impressive Charlotte skyline, which made for quite a surreal experience...

Awesome setting!

It was a great outing, the Charlotte Knights won which was a bonus and we came really close to catching some of the stray foul balls - which you get to keep...We also got the opportunity to meet some of Le Roux and Kim's close friends, Steve and Tracy, a really friendly couple, who kindly invited us to their house near Lake Norman on the weekend!

Now coming to America one usually has somewhat of a prejudiced view pertaining to the food on offer...big macs, fries and gallons of sugary drinks...but that couldn't be further from the truth, yes the portions are relatively big but when has that ever been a problem for someone coming from South Africa!? 

Le Roux and Kim treated us to all their favorite dining spots during our stay - en ek weet nie of ons net heeltemal uitgehonger was nie want ons het regtig soos konings geëet! We enjoyed everything from tapas, to tasty tacos, classic Carolina BBQ, healthy salads, Southern fried chicken and the deliciously strange burgushi (burger/sushi - only in America)...

'Good food on Montford'...more like Great food on Montford!

Needless to say I think I have regained my fighting weight so to say! It was such a treat!

Burgushi!

That Saturday we all headed to the Old Mecklenburg brewery just outside Charlotte, where Kristi and I got to meet some of Kim and Le Roux's other friends, and their little ones. It was really festive and the type of environment that the two of said we can easily envision ourselves and our friends in within the next couple of years, which was great because it really felt like something to look forward to! Oh and the beer wasn't half bad either!

On the Sunday we had the luxury of going to the lake, Lake Norman, to visit Steve and Tracy, and wait for it...go out on their pontoon boat! 

The lake is massive, with the classic American greenery adorning its shoreline and loads of small islands bobbing on its surface! The sun came out just as we arrived and it ended up being a lovely day for being out on the water. After parking off for a quick swim, Steve took us to one of the small uninhabited islands for a beach braai! 

Beach braai Lake Norman

He popped on some Boars Head sausages and beef patties which along with the ice cold beers and sunny sky just melted into what can only be described as a good old Sunday afternoon!

Takin it easy!

After a couple of optimistic attempts at wake boarding by the two cousins and being properly schooled in the end my endlessly talented wife, we made our way back to the docks...

Kristi showing how it's done on Lake Norman

Dit was so lekker om net 'n salige Sondag saam met familie en vriende te kon geniet!

As if we haven't been treated enough, Le Roux and Kim, surprised us with probably the biggest treat of our stay...A spa day at the Ballantyne resort just outside Charlotte with a couples massage, saunas, luxury pool, the works!

Some much appreciated R&R at the Ballantyne!

Now I am so proud of Kristi for all that she's had to endure on our adventure, and we've hit some pretty rough patches along the way...and through it all she's always made an effort to look her best, to do her nails (usually on an overnight bus!) and all those things despite the very limited resources we've had at our disposal. Thus I've always wanted to just give her some semblance of luxury again, this is our honeymoon after all, but as you can imagine, in South America that's not an easy fix! So I guess what I'm trying to say is that the Pelsers could not have given us a more timely and appropriate gift, which we are truly grateful for and if I have to say so myself, that massage did do wonders!

The one morning we also got to go to work with Le Roux, and got a glimpse of the behind the scenes workings of the retail food industry! 

Good to go!

We visited Le Roux's factory where his trucks were loading up the morning's shipments (cold meats, cheeses and various condiments) that had to go to all the different stores that they supply. I even got to help out with the sorting of some of the products...number 3566, three units of Smoked Turkey - check!

It was a fun morning outing with the boss, and good to see him action!

All in all we really could not have fathomed in our our wildest dreams the overwhelming joy and hospitality that we received during our stay at the Pelsers. It really felt like home, and we can honestly say that we feel fully recharged for the final leg of our journey! 

In fact after all the good food and luxuries I am worried about how we are going to return to the backpacking lifestyle!

Ain't nothing like family

We cannot say thank you enough to Le Roux, Kim and little Olivia, for all that they did for us and all the great experiences! We hope that we will be able to return the favor sometime in the near future!

Baie liefde Pelsers! Ons mis julle al klaar!

Good times!