Guide to Getting Away from the Sunnyside Traveler

Just wanted to let you know that I updated some of my past posts and will be working on updating more. A few that have been updated:  Savannah Restaurants Columbia Restaurants Tybee Restaurants Places are always closing, changing names or changing websites. Let me know if any links don't work or if something is out of date.  Also, I came across this great site for travel to Florida: Florida Rambler . This site has some great ideas and suggestions for experiencing the best, lesser-known parts of Florida. I hope to use their Florida Keys by mile marker this spring when we go back to Islamorada. I'm also excited about visiting Pigeon Key and seeing some of the history of the Keys. I'll let you know how it is! Hope you find an enjoyable way to make it through this winter! 

1 year! I can't believe it's been over a year since I posted last! I'd love to say it's because I've been so busy traveling and visiting new places, but sadly that's not the case. Life has just gotten in the way and I've been distracted.  I do have some places that I need to add. Some new restaurants and recommendations. But I have had this bit about the Golden Isles of Georgia that I've been working on some and I thought I'd go ahead and get it out there. This area is great if you want to plan a low-key family beach vacation. I'm sure we're all already planning those warm beach vacations.  My exciting trip for the year is another family vacation to Islamorada. I hope to try some new things while there and let you know how they go!  The Golden Isles and Amelia Island I’ve talked about Savannah, Georgia many times but about an hour’s drive south of Savannah is another good travel spot, what’s known as the Golden Isles of Georgia. These inc...

I will hopefully be checking out some of these restaurants soon but I thought I'd share this link: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/28/dining/southern-farmers-vanquish-the-cliches.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all   Good article and good recommendations for Southern restaurants and Southern farmers.  Happy New Year!

Cashiers, NC Christmas tree farm “It’s the most wonderful time of the year...” Christmas is one of my favorite times of the year. And for the past few years one of my favorite ways to bring in the Christmas season is to cut down a Christmas tree. I’ve grown up with Fraser firs and love the way they smell. And, luckily, I live in the south where I can drive up to Western North Carolina and have many places to choose from to cut a tree. There are tree farms all across the southern Appalachian Mountains that grow Fraser firs as well as other types of Christmas trees. To really jump into the Christmas spirit and join the masses, head out to get your tree on the day after Thanksgiving (“Black Friday”). This has been our tradition and I would rather fight the small crowds in getting a Christmas tree instead of fighting crowds at a mall. Also, you have a better chance at getting a good tree. We usually go to Cashiers or Highlands, North Carolina. There are a few places in this area ...

I was recently sharing some of my favorite restaurants on Tybee Island and remembered a few that I forgot to post on my other Savannah posts. I figured I would just make a post for Tybee Island restaurants so that you can have them all in one spot! One of the great things about Tybee is that they have so few “chain” restaurants. I know there’s an Arby’s (which has been closed for construction for awhile) but beyond that I can’t think of another one. So in a way you can’t go too wrong. It just depends on what kind of place you feel like. Many restaurants on Tybee are typical beach restaurants – bars that serve seafood and burgers and quesadillas. Most of these aren’t on my list but you definitely can find them, especially near the pier.  The popular tourist spot is the Crab Shack ( http://www.thecrabshack.com/ ). It has also been known to be a popular stop for any celebrities in the area. It's just off the highway when you come onto the island. You'll see signs. They'...

Sometimes I’ve gone to visit the coastal border of North Carolina and South Carolina. In this area there are a lot of small coastal towns like Litchfield, Ocean Isle, Holden Beach and a small, little known town called Myrtle Beach. Now Myrtle Beach isn’t really my type of beach town. I prefer the smaller, lower key coastal towns. Litchfield, Ocean Isle and Holden Beach are more of the smaller, residential beach towns where you go to get away from everything. But while you’re there, you might want to go out to eat or find something other to do than spend your days on the beach. A few places that I would recommend checking out for dining would be: The Purple Onion Cafe in Shallotte http://www.purpleonioncafe.com/ . I’ve heard good things about this place. It’s inland, between Ocean Isle and Holden Beach and they serve breakfast, lunch and dinner (it says dinner is seasonal which I’m assuming is summer). On Holden Beach there are a couple places that look interesting (I haven’t been t...

I wanted to go ahead and post these while they're fresh on my mind. This weekend we visited a couple of good restaurants that I would highly recommend. In Tryon, North Carolina, a great little bakery and cafe is 10 North Trade Bakery Cafe  http://www.10northtrade.com/ . It's downtown Tryon and has a great breakfast and lunch selection. They also have high quality loose leaf teas and a cozy atmosphere. You can tell that locals visit here often as well as those passing through (like the cyclists we saw grabbing a bit for brunch). If you're looking for breakfast or lunch and you're in the area of South Carolina/North Carolina border (between Spartanburg and Asheville), check this place out. Also we found a great new hang out in downtown Greenville, South Carolina. It's called The Velo Fellow a Publick House  http://thevelofellow.com/ . It's near the walking bridge and park area of West End Greenville. Just find Mellow Mushroom and go underneath it (facing th...