Sunday, May 29, 2016

This morning, we took a trolley tour of Wilmington, North Carolina.  Every house in the historic district has a plaque outside the door telling the history of the house.  The homes are well taken care of, and the foundation for the district has restored some.

The guide pointed out where President Woodrow Wilson grew up and told us that he was known as Tommy Wilson as a boy.  Another resident here was the actress Linda Lavin.  Quite a number of movies have been filmed in Wilmington and the surrounding area.  I forgot to mention that in Savannah the guide pointed out locations that featured prominently in Forrest Gump.

Next, we did a boat tour/cruise on the Cape Fear River.  We went downriver and saw the big blue cranes that were in the Iron Man 3 movie.  We also got to see a tug boat guide a container ship into the dock for unloading.  The concrete piers along the river are being removed so the "turnaround basin" (I think that's what he called it) can be large enough for larger ships to come in and then turn to return to sea.  Judy said the city wants to be able to have cruise ships come in.

They dredge the river every few years to keep it deep enough for cargo ships.  The USS North Carolina is permanently docked here and open for tours.

We then went to the Airlie Gardens.  We had not sat down on the tram for more than 5 seconds before the skies opened and a downpour began.  It does not rain in the west like it does here.  It passed after a few minutes and we walked around the gardens seeing an oak tree that is more than 500 years old and a small house made from bottles honoring a local woman.  That tree was beautiful, very full and very tall.  It stands near the large area where they have concerts and other events.  A beautiful garden that was great to see.

We went to a restaurant on the Wrightsville Beach for lunch.  We had the fish and chips and have decided that we have been ruined for life with the fresh fish we've had.  The beach was crowded and the waves were big, we thought, but there were body surfers and others out in the water.  The lifeguards were glued to the scene, as they should be.

Another great dinner with Judy that evening.  We watched Grace and Frankie, the show with Lily Tomlin, Jane Fonda, Martin Sheen and Sam Waterson on Netflix after dinner.  I hadn't seen it before but enjoyed it.