North Carolina: Day Six
While I was wandering through the breakfast line this morning, I started talking to one of the employees mannning the stations. She gave me some places to check out for spooky Charlotte folklore and introduced me to one of the hotel managers, who was a mine of spooky information, though sadly not for Charlotte. She had worked in a haunted hotel in San Diego, famed for its 1940 Big Band music. People staying in the penthouse suites would sometimes call the front desk in the middle of the night to complain about "loud music" coming from the ballroom below. Inevitably, the desk staff would politely tell them that there was no "big band" party going on, and when hotel staff and/or guests went to check things out, all was silent and still -- the phantom music was gone! Creepy stuff!
Today was a relaxing sort of day. I drove around downtown Charlotte, admiring the stadium, the tall buildings, the artwork and statuary in front of the museums. Then I stopped at the Discovery Place to watch the children at play, take photos of the animals in the rainforest, and see and IMAX film. Then I did some more driving through Charlotte, seeking out spooky spots and trying to picture how the event's of the story I wrote for the upcoming book (a story entitled Daddy's Return), might have played out. This is a sad tale in which a Father's suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning endangers the lives of his children, and his ghost returns to the hospital where his youngest child lays in a coma to wake her up.
After lunch, I sought out the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and found their famed greenhouses and gardens. It was a lovely place, filled with rooms of plants ranging from tropical to desert. And a room just devoted to orchids -- many in full bloom. Then I roamed through the outdoor garden, one of which was magnificent in winteretime with still-blooming trees, Asian architecture, and birds everywhere. I took many pictures and hiked around until I was exhausted and ready to return to the hotel. There, I worked on Spooky North Carolina for a few hours before dinner, and spent the evening researching more spooky spots to look for tomorrow. A fun day!
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