My Last Stop This Year: Virginia Beach, Virginia
Dec. 2011
On the road I meet the most amazing people. Gas station attendants, waitresses, coffee shop helpers, store clerks, and angels along the way. But what has been astonishing about travel is that without exception I meet kindred spirits and solemates that seem to have been waiting for me all along just to stumble upon them as I allow the flow to navigate my life.
Last September I was, in no uncertain terms, ”shoved” by my inner guide to get out the front door and go to the Biltmore Hotel where my daughter works. She is the dispatch manager for all the boys and men who are Valets and Bellmen. I call them the Chippendale Boys. Lucky her.
The Biltmore was having a conference for two days and it was Esther Hicks channeling Abraham. I did not blink and joined the nearly 150 people who for two days had our cellular DNA reprogrammed to say the least. And there I met a new and very wonderful friend Robert. He and I have been like twins in the world ever since. So, I went to visit his home in Virginia Beach where my father had been stationed as the Commander of the USS Yorktown over 50 years ago. What a blast from the past. What a blast in general.
Virginia Beach is claimed by the military so in contrast to the new age-ness of Asheville and the feel of the 60′s here, my circuitry was not very at home in Virginia Beach with its focus on big planes, and war ships. There was great beauty there but everything was wrapped in the ever present noise of F14 jets. Even the crows had to congregate in huge numbers just to keep themselves together.
So I cannot put Virginia Beach in the up a coming Gypsy Travel Guide since it was only a destination to make deep and long lasting friendship and not a destination for my souls love of our natural world or for the excitement of a city.
Next Stop the Pacific Northwest via Denver.
Blessings, Maya
December 2011 Missouri:
Since the Gypsy life began on Sept. 2, 2011 I have had the privilege of seeing North Carolina, Tennessee, Arkansas, South Carolina, Colorado, Oklahoma, California, Washington, Massachusetts and Oregon. And now Missouri which you have read about in my posts. My car has been parked while doing the the dance with Bureaucracy, trying to get a drivers license renewed, I have a job doing what I love which is writing a screenplay and I am finding that the process of leaning into the flow of life proves to be the most important experience I have had in my life. And visiting Missouri in the dead of winter where if you don’t wear orange you take your life in your hands, has been one of the most fascinating adventures of all.
My Mother was born in Missouri, St. Louise has some of the best restaurants and architecture I can remember and sunsets rival the best of them. And like most rural areas I have both lived in and traveled through there are the local characters that make each place unique. So as I move in my life here is a wonderful look at the middle of our country.
First Stop: Asheville North Carolina September 5, 2011
The road to North Carolina was filled with unbelievable beauty, a thousand 16 wheelers barreling down I-40 and two unhappy cats in the front seat with me yowling their way to their new home with my daughter in Asheville. We were all a little frazzled when we finally arrived. Having left behind 105 degrees, the winds and light rain from Tropical Storm Lee was a welcomed relief. Today it is a dazzling, sunny 79 degrees and I am in heaven.
Asheville is a crossroads for all ages, the “New Age” standing out among the steeples on the scores of churches that litter the area. Billy Graham has a training center here called the Cove. There are Tarot readers, yoga studios, tea rooms, art galleries and scores of Gluten Free restaurants in every square block of this city of 89,000.
Asheville : Edgy, Artsy and Inviting
Tiny House In Asheville
I recently discovered a Tiny House practically in my back yard. For those of you who have never heard of Asheville, NC, it is a small mountain city in western North Carolina. It is easily classified as a hippy town, a town of free spirits, also where I went to school. While I myself am not much of the hippy type, I enjoy the fact that the city is pretty progressive, eco-friendly and has a charm all its own. It is a great place to visit, so check it out.
Like I said, this Tiny House is being built in Asheville, inspired by Jay Shaffer’s designs. They did decide to go with a normal foundation of cement piers, which is the first I have seen. Here are some of their construction photos, you can read more about her process here
More on Asheville: About Asheville | History | Asheville Area Maps | Mileage and Distance Chart | Getting Around and Getting to Asheville | Weather and Climate | See or Order the Official Asheville Travel Guide
