Back to the mountains of Pennsylvania

During the past ten days, instead of working on my many quilting projects, preparing garden beds, or writing a blog post, I have been treating myself to scenes like this:

Pisgah National Forest, North Carolina

or like this:

Atlanta, Georgia

or like this:

Cedar Key, Florida

At the urging of my sister-in-law, who lives in Gainesville, Florida, we decided to see a part of the country neither of us have ever visited--the states from North Carolina to Florida, stopping to see friends along the way. 

Pelican, Cedar Key, Florida

• So we began in Charlottesville, VA, where friends took us to see Measure for Measure, admirably performed in the Blackfriars Theatre, a re-creation of Shakespeare's original Globe. 
• Then stopped in Brevard, NC, and hiked in the mountainous Pisgah National Forest, full of waterfalls and long vistas you can lose yourself in. We even survived the narrow road that wound its way up the side of the mountain with its hairpin turns dropping off into I didn't want to look.
• Went on to the culture shock of big city Atlanta with its hundreds of cars moving seven abreast down the interstate.
• And finally to Gainesville with its Spanish moss and palm trees and also a memorable Butterfly Rainforest. We also squeezed in a trip to Cedar Key, where we walked in gentle Gulf waves and had the best clam chowder I have ever had.

On the way home we handed the driving over to Amtrak while we ate, read, did some handwork, and slept.

So what does all this have to do with quilting, you may ask? Well, here are three of the many other pictures I took:

Atlas moth, Butterfly Rainforest

Elephant Ear, University of Florida Botanical Gardens

University of Virginia

I saw quilt patterns everywhere and came back with a long list of quilt ideas and an enthusiasm for getting my hands on some fabric. And of course, I couldn't resist making one unplanned stop on our journey:

So, if you are still reading, it's great to have your company again.