A Short Trip Mid-Week

Coffee Underground

On Monday Claudette looked at our calendar and exclaimed, "We have nothing on the calendar after today! We need to go somewhere!"

"But where?" I countered.

"We can get a free room at a Marriott!"

"Really?"

"Yep, we've got enough points on our Visa card.  What about Greenville?"

"Fine by me. We haven't been there in a while. I wonder what is their current show at the art museum?"

"Okay.  Tomorrow we'll hit the road right after we get home from the gym"

"Why not skip the gym? We'll be walking all day after we get there."

According to plan, the next morning found us on I-26 west on our way to Greenville, South Carolina. The trip was uneventful with fairly light traffic. It was approaching eleven when we parked our car at the northern end of the tree-lined Main Street. Greenville is a hilly city at the base of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The temperature tends to be quite a few degrees cooler there than at our low country home and the humidity is considerably less. On our way down the tree lined sidewalk we passed a statue of Max Heller, an Austrian Jew who became one of the most popular mayors of the city. His family had escaped the Holocaust in Germany before making his fortune at the base of the Blue Ridge Mountains in South Carolina and becoming the first Jewish mayor of a major South Carolina city. Mayor Heller's leadership is seen throughout the area.  The shady streets we enjoyed as well attracting such multinational corporations as Michelin Tire to the area are attributed to his leadership.

A few blocks away we found our favorite Greenville coffee shop. We had visited Coffee Underground before and enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere.  The delicious  lattes with almond milk were enjoyable as we snuggled in the overstuffed sofa and planned our day.

Upon leaving the coffee shop we went our separate ways.  I would continue walking down Main Street toward the restaurant in West Greenville while Claudette would find a place near the restaurant to park the car.

I had a considerable wait for her at Pomegranate, the restaurant we had chosen. The hummus I ate while waiting for Claudette was quite "garlicky", the way I like it.  Upon her arrival we placed our order for Persian dishes. The Persian fare was quite good. A variety of roasted and marinated vegetables. Middle Eastern restaurants tend to have vegan dishes or those that are easily modified to fit our diets. Usually just a matter of leaving off the goat cheese.

We were in the neighborhood of the statue of another famous Greenvillian, "Shoeless" Joe Jackson. Interestingly enough, Joe Jackson of early baseball fame, got the moniker "Shoeless" after playing shoeless in only one game.

Did I mention that my walk had been down hill and I had crossed the Reedy River? The river provided for a natural landmark in the center of the city, the Reedy River Falls. The cascading waterfalls are the centerpiece of a lovely park filled with large shade trees and blooming flowers.  Stone stairways and walkways give access to river's edge and a semi-circular suspension bridge gives access to the other side.  We saw some folks enjoying walking in the shallow water.  We did not join them.  On our way back up to our car we stopped by a juciery for a cool wholesome beverage.  The area near the river is lined with interesting shops and galleries. And, of course, Canada Geese which seem to be required at any body of water larger than a mud puddle in South Carolina. One must walk carefully! We window shopped on our walk. It was a chamber of commerce kind of day, warm temperatures and puffy white clouds in a cerulean sky.

Reedy River Falls

There was a new museum in town since our last visit and we couldn't wait to visit it. It was on Heritage Green. This block in downtown Greenville has the Greenville County Library, the Greenville Little Theater, The Greenville County Art Museum an the Upcountry History Museum. The one we wanted to visit was the Upcountry History Museum.  As a native of the upstate, I was  very interested in seeing the museum. It was the newest structure  on Heritage Green at the very end of the Green with free parking behind. (a plus!) We paid our entry fee and got the maps of the floor plan on the building. The exhibits tell the story of the area from the early pioneer days to the present. Through hands-on exhibits as well as modern audio-video techniques the story of the upcountry is revealed. Also featured at the museum was a traveling exhibit which happened to be about the films of Alice In Wonderland. There were many props from the Tim Burton film.

The Upcountry History Museum

The Springhill Suites by Marriott was only one block off Main Street and easily accessible. We decided we would opt for valet parking since our room was free. After checking in we had some nachos in the bar.  Not good.  At six there was free wine and brats in the breakfast area. That was much better. We did not go out to dinner and satisfied ourselves with the free food. In our room which was upgraded had a small sitting area where we planned our next day activities.

After watching sunrise from our east facing window we checked out and went back to Heritage Green.  This time for the Greenville County Art Museum.  This museum has always been a favorite of mine.  The featured show was of water media paintings. Some Andrew Wyeth paintings were the centerpiece of that show. One of the largest collections of Wyeth paintings once graced the walls of the  museum before local textile magnet Arthur McGill sold it to the Japanese. Notable in the collection is a number of works by native South Carolina artist, Jasper Johns. The discovery I made while there was unique to the work of David Drake. I did not recognize the name but I did recognize the work.  He was known to me as Dave the Potter. I had always heard that this enslaved 

David Drake pottery

craftsman decorated his pots with Bible verses. 

Supposedly because his master had taught him to read from the Bible. I was surprised to find Dave's pots decorated with verses of his own poetry! This is a great art museum and I believe the only one without an admission fee in the state.

Later we had lunch at the Pita House on Pleasantburg Drive, formally known as the 291 Bypass.  The food was great at the restaurant/grocery store but only cash was accepted for payment. Styrofoam cups and plates with plastic utensils. It was a very popular eating spot totally lacking in any sort of ambiance.  But if you serve good food they will come!

from the Pita House

It was an uneventful, though picturesque, drive back to the Creek. We took the blue highways.