Chapel Hill

Looking to take a slightly more scenic path to Chapel Hill, Eric and I decided to take another stretch of the Blue Ridge Parkway en route to our destination. Unfortunately, it turns out the parkway was closed about 30 miles into our journey, with no other way out other than to turn around and exit the way we came in. For those of you at home keeping score, that’s Blue Ridge parkway: 2, Greg and Eric: 0. Anywho, a few hours later we rolled into Chapel Hill. I was, somewhat surprising to myself, like a kid in a candy store. I couldn’t have been more excited to be back. That night we hit up the powerful 1-2 punch of Kurama (sushi) and Yogurt Pump with Heather and Erica (former roommates of mine) and Niki (another good friend of mine). Afterwards, Eric, Heather and I walked around campus, which was as lovely as ever. I challenge anyone to name a more idyllic local than Chapel Hill in late April. The next day I spent a good deal of time waxing nostalgic, by walking around campus. Eric and I played some Frisbee golf on the recently improved coarse and afterwards Eric met up with an old friend while I talked with one of my professors. Actually, by the time I had left Chapel Hill I had seen 4 professors and a TA that recognized me, but only one was planned. In the evening we did another Chapel Hill two-fer: Cosmic Cantina and the Varsity movie theatre. We saw ‘Friends with Money;’ a decent flick but by no means life changing. After the movie we charged back to the car through the pouring rain and scooted back to Niki and Erica’s place to talk to them a bit and see Erica’s dog Sonny who’s equal parts dumb, lovable oaf and skittish coke addict. That’s about it for Chapel Hill. I really didn’t expect to be that psyched to be back, but I was pleasantly surprised. So, as a parting thought, I leave you with a quote:

"What is it that binds us to this place as to no other? It is not the well or the bell or the stone walls or the crisp October nights. Our loyalty is not to the memories of what William Richardson Davie did 200 years ago . . . No, our love for this place is based upon the fact that it is as it was meant to be The University of the People. Two hundred years to the day since the founding of the First State University, we can read again the words on its seal--"light and liberty"-- and say the The University of North Carolina has lived by those two short noble words and say that in all of the American story there is no other place like this."_-Charles Kuralt, class of 55_UNC Bicentennial_October 12, 1993