P . 16 | OCTOBER 2023 | THE HAMMONTONIAN GETAWAYS by Kristin Guglietti
I ’ m excited to share my adventures throughout the tri-state area and hope to inspire more people to travel . This column will focus mostly on places people can take a “ day trip ” and occasionally will explore far-away destinations such as North Carolina .
For most of my life , I lived in South Jersey , but for the past year I lived in New Bern , North Carolina , the birthplace of Pepsi .
The downtown area reminds me of Hammonton with its cute shops and eateries . My favorite place is Union Point Park , which overlooks the Neuse River . It ’ s a gorgeous spot to watch sunsets and a great place to read a book . For food , Morgan ’ s Tavern & Grill has fresh seafood , honey croissants and a menu for pets too .
I also highly recommend visiting New Bern during MumFest in October . The festival features hundreds of vendors , amusement rides and live music .
About 40 minutes from New Bern is Jacksonville . The Jacksonville Mall reminds me of the Deptford Mall , but with more military men
walking around . I prefer going to The Foundry , one of the largest consignment malls in the area . Besides antiques , they also sell crystals , furniture , jewelry and video games .
There are beaches in Jacksonville , too , but I ’ ve only explored Atlantic Beach and Emerald Isle . Beach tags aren ’ t required here . Instead , you can relax all yearlong even in the wintertime .
Located in western North Carolina ’ s Blue Ridge Mountains , is Asheville . It is known for its River Arts District , and it is my favorite city in North Carolina .
About half an hour away from Asheville is the Pisgah National Forest in Brevard , North Carolina . This is a camper ’ s paradise .
During my trip , I visited one of the 250 waterfalls in the area called Looking Glass Falls . This waterfall is 60 ft . tall and swimmable . It is also one of the more accessible waterfalls since there is parking nearby . When you get there , you might even see some yellow butterflies flying across the falls .
Raleigh , the state ’ s capital , is known as the “ Smithsonian of the South ” because of its museums . The city is thriving with young adults and if I didn ’ t move back to New Jersey , it would be a place I would consider moving to .
Another popular city is Charlotte , the largest city by population in the state . I visited the PNC Music Pavilion for a Fall Out Boy concert , and it took over an hour to leave because the parking lot was packed . If I could go back , I would like to try the barbeque food there because that is something western North Carolina is known for .
Other popular locations include Greensboro , Morehead City , Outer Banks and Wilmington .
Next time , I will share with you some of my favorite day trips in New Jersey .
If you ’ d like to share one of your day trips , send an email to kguglietti @ hammontongazette . com .