A month ago we were finally leaving Florida, making our way back to North Carolina. We had said farewell to Key West, where we had called home for two months specifically to return to North Carolina. We were on the road again, seeing new places and meeting new people.
Our first stop was to join in the festivities of family coming together to celebrate the accomplishments and career of Orsuré's cousin, Deryck. He retired as a Master Gunnery Sergeant on 1 February 2019, after 30 years in the US Marine Corps. And family members were coming in from all across the country to celebrate. Our next stop had yet to be determined.
We really wanted to visit Asheville, a "weird" mountain city in Appalachian North Carolina, but as we arrived in North Carolina there was a crazy winter storm hitting over half of the country. We knew we didn't want the cold without heat. So, we decided to wait to see how the weather turned to decide - but it was It looking like Asheville would be a place we'd visit on a return trip.
As the celebrations settled, the temperature shifted drastically. It was no longer freezing out. For me, it was definitely again shorts weather. It was actually supposed to be in the 70s in Asheville for the next few days. Perfect! It was decided, we were going to the mountains of North Carolina in the West. We were going to Asheville.
Last year as we were building out our van-home, ShaVanda, we actually had decided a long time ago that Asheville was a city we wanted to see. In fact, we had been trying to get out to Asheville to celebrate my 30th birthday 28 June. We knew we wanted to get to Asheville for a couple reasons. One being that we continued hearing rumors of how the city was this pocket of an artsy, liberal, queer haven in the middle of the Appalachian Mountains, and we wanted to see what it was like - especially being from an artsy, liberal, queer haven that is the Pacific Northwest.
The second reason was that, for Orsuré, growing up in St. Croix USVI and North Carolina, he had only ever visited the central corridor of North Carolina. On the east, North Carolina borders the Atlantic Ocean. On the west, the state is home to part of the Appalachian mountain range. The first time Orsuré had seen North Carolina's coast wasn't until he was a few years ago as an adult. And still had never seen its mountains.
As I had mentioned, we had planned to visit Asheville this past June, but we hadn't yet completed building our home. Had we visited it then we probably would not have gotten as much out of our visit as we had this time around. This is due to the friendships we had made while in Key West, Florida.
Our new friends, Derrick and Kim, live in Asheville. We had met them in Key West, in their converted Ram Promaster van. We were camping next to one another for a few days while at the Naval Air Station Key West campground. We became instant friends, and they invited us to visit them in Asheville anytime.
Arriving in Asheville, we were invited to driveway surf at Kim and Derrick's home. While visiting they gave us some amazing suggestions of restaurants to eat at and places to visit, in addition to some great conversations. I really think that we would not have known about half of the stuff we learned from them.
One thing we learned from them is that people who live in neighboring towns and cities attempt to greatly distance themselves from any association with Asheville. Just a few miles out of Asheville you are back in the traditional Appalachia of the South. We were told that they find everything that makes Asheville unique and weird, wrong. While driving towards Asheville, we noticed that the only place we found Confederate flag flying was within 30 miles from Asheville. Even though we were in the South, we didn't see a single Confederate flag until we were in the Appalachian Mountains. Something we no longer saw as soon as we got into Asheville.
Asheville felt like a pocket of the Pacific Northwest but in the South - culturally, environmentally, everything. I was really surprised to feel like I was home. Nestled in mountains of evergreen pine trees, with many flowing rivers and streams, is this beautiful city. Asheville, North Carolina, you are a truly remarkable and special place! Here, in the middle of Appalachia, you can be openly transgendered or anything "different" and be welcomed and accepted. The only thing missing from Asheville beingl the Pacific Northwest is the presence of an ocean.
We will be back to visit you again!
