Blowing Rock and Grandfather Mountain, North Carolina

One of the things we love about living in the Carolinas is the proximity to both the mountains and the beach.  On the whole, I would say our family definitely prefers the shore, but we love to take the occasional mountain trip as well and NC offers some very beautiful options.

Blowing Rock is an absolute must see.  The observation area is not huge, but there are a few different platforms and rocks to climb on, all showing off incredible views like these.  There is an admission fee of $7 for adults, $2 for kids 4-11.  Plan on spending about 45 minutes to an hour here.

The area is quite safe for kids as long as you are keeping a close eye on them.  My daughter is 3 here and occasionally got a bit too adventurous for my taste  :)

We have only driven through the little town of Blowing Rock, but it is on our list to visit again in the future - very cute and quaint!

Grandfather Mountain in Linville, NC is another one of our favorite places.  It is one of the highest peaks in the Blue Ridge Mountains, and you can basically drive to the top.  There are miles and miles of hiking trails we are looking forward to taking advantage of as our daughter grows, but in the meantime, there are TONS of things for kids to do here!  You get a CD with admission at the gate (adults $20, kids 4-12 $9) and you can play it as you go for a guided tour - one of our daughter's favorite parts!  Be sure to visit the website before you go as they often host fun events, festivals, classes, etc.  

One of your first stops will be the Nature Museum, which houses several interesting exhibits.  The really fun stuff, however, is behind the museum in the wildlife habitats.  They have several bears rescued from the wild and you feel very up close and personal!  You can stop for a snack or a meal at Mildred's Grill and don't miss the Fudge Shop for sweet treats!

Beautiful vistas around every corner

When you reach the top of the road/mountain, you have the option to take on the Mile High Swinging Bridge.  I've said this before, but I am NOT one for heights.  This bridge scares everything out of me, and I have now walked across it twice.  My four year old daughter held my hand the second time, whispering, "It's ok, Mommy.  You'll be fine.  Don't look down!"  The good news is that the bridge really doesn't "swing" very much and that it is a mile above sea level, not above the nearest ground.  Still...

The middle

This is on the far side of the bridge and they are not kidding - be very cautious!!

But it's worth it!!  At least once  :)

We usually spend between 3-5 hours at Grandfather Mountain - you could probably get through it all in about 2 or spend a whole day!  It's just a gorgeous area and you really feel close to nature here.  Expect crowds on the weekends, but the really place you only feel this too much is around the bridge itself.

One last fun attraction in this area is the Tweetsie Railroad in Blowing Rock.  Unless you are really into the Wild West or cheesy theme parks, it's for the younger set - probably age 2-8 would enjoy it the most.  We definitely had a good time with our three year old!  Again, this could take all day if you wish, or you could do it all in a few hours.  It is pricy ($41 for adults, $27 for children 3-12), but annual passes are available if you might be taking advantage a few times in a year.

There is an adorable train that runs around the entire park - it's definitely something you don't want to miss while at Tweetsie.

The train stops at a few places for a wild west show.  This is pretty low key and aimed at the littles, but they do really seem to enjoy it.  There are even characters who board the train!

At the bottom of the mountain, there is a wild west stage show you can see as well as building setups (a jail, etc) and amusement park rides, including go carts and a carousel.  When you're done with all that, head up the mountain in the chair lift for more shows, little kid rides, and a fun petting zoo.

This guy got loose!

The Mouse Mine Train

I don't think we'll return to Tweetsie, mainly due to cost, but it's a fun stop if you are in the Blowing Rock area!

San Juan, Puerto Rico

You know those trips where you are absolutely POSITIVE you are going to have an amazing time?  Puerto Rico was not like that for me.  It wasn't that I didn't want to go - not at all.  I just didn't have very high expectations.  I knew we'd see some beaches and some rainforest, but I really just didn't know what the experience had in store for us.

Thankfully, I was totally and completely overwhelmed by how amazing this little country is.

We started in San Juan, the capital of Puerto Rico.  I remember taking a cab in from the airport and thinking that the whole thing looked a bit too urban, loud, and crowded for my taste.  I should let you all know, if you don't, that I am NOT a city person.  I really prefer to be in wide, open spaces and surrounded by nature.  However, as we got into Old Town San Juan, I really started to see more character and historic charm and began to fall in love.

We stayed at the Caribe Hilton, which I would call pretty typical for a Hilton property.  The rooms and hotel itself have some room for updates, but it was still very comfortable.  They have a very nice beach area, although it was not incredibly large, and a great pool.  I will say we didn't have the best weather in San Juan, and the beach was quite windy.

Since the weather was not especially fantastic our first day, we decided to cab it into Old Town and explore.  Cabs in San Juan tend to be a little pricy, but we found they were quite accessible.

We began at Castillo San Cristobal, one of the two main forts in the area.  It was built between 1634 and 1785 and was known as the Gibraltar of the West Indies.  It guarded San Juan from land attacks to the east.  It was pretty easy to see, walking around both of these forts, how Spain held on to this island for so long!

View of Old Town

Surrounding buildings

One of my favorite shots from the trip

View of El Morro as we walked over

We then toured Castillo San Felipe del Morro (also known as El Morro), built between 1540 and 1783.  This intimidating fortress was built to protect the harbor entrance, and no one in their right mind would attack it from the land either (although people have tried…)

Imagine being asked to attack this fort from this direction...

Both of these forts had fantastic views of the city and the water and really gave you a great feel of the military and colonial history of this place.  There were lots of great exhibits and information available - allow yourself plenty of time to wander through both.  Each took us about an hour.

After exploring the forts, we wandered into the city for food and drinks.  I WISH I had kept a record of the restaurants we went to, but sadly I didn't.  I will say that San Juan restaurants and bars make a mean mojito, if you like that sort of thing, and my favorite meal in all of Puerto Rico was mofongo, a plantain based dish that is very filling and can be made with chicken, seafood, etc.  The best mofongo we had was not, however, in San Juan but at La Estacion near Fajardo (southeast of San Juan) - more on that later…  But the nightlife of Old San Juan, as we experienced, is lively and wonderful.  Stick to the main streets and busier areas and you will feel quite safe, and enjoy all this area has to offer - friendly people, cold drinks, and fantastic music.

Our second day is San Juan was spent doing exactly this.  It was a fabulous relaxing day on the beach at the Caribe Hilton.  Knowing what I now do about the beaches around Puerto Rico, I might have explored Old Town more and saved this lazy day for later in the trip - there are some very fabulous beaches around this island.  But is a beach day every a bad day?  :)