New Bern


We spent the winter in New Bern, NC and absolutely fell in love with this place. The winter has been mild, the skies are blue most of the time.  Don’t be surprised if we end up calling this place home after we complete the Loop. We are about 40 minutes from the beach yet Mike was able to get some great kiteboarding by launching right here in town on the Neuse river. The town, birthplace of Pepsi is charming with lots of art and history and the traffic is lighter than I could have ever imagined. But the best part of New Bern has been the live aboard community at the New Bern Grand Marina Yacht Club. We have made some great new friends, beginning with our slip neighbors Mark and Vicki and Duke and Donna. Every day had some sort of social gathering. We listened to a band on Mondays, and went out for Taco Tuesdays at Blackbeards.  Wednesday Mike shot pool with Alan, Deb, Eric and Jennifer at Bear Town Market. Thursdays we found more music at Tonic, a little upstairs back door speakeasy. Friday mornings we all met for breakfast at Captain Ratty’s. This community is so great that even former live aboards continue to meet for breakfast.  We truly benefited from the collective knowledge of this group. We were thrilled to host many visitors while here. Bill and Kelly came down from Virginia and rang in the New year with us.  Donna and Duke were our guests while their boat was pulled out of the water for repairs.  Next came My Mom and sister who stayed with us for a week. We took them to the beach and toured the first British  Governors mansion also known as Tyrone’s  Palace.  This place is often referred to in the Outlander Series and much of the research for the books was conducted at the historical society here in town. Lindsay, her three children and her dog came for a brief visit. They brought their bikes and got to go for a boat ride in our new tender. Most traumatic event that week was a tornado warning that had us all evacuate to the marina office building where we met our latest friends, Bryan and Marcy, from Michigan. Our last guests were Chuck and Julie, Army friends from Fort Bliss currently living in Virginia Beach. We were so happy to be able to have them here.  They have and continue to do so much to support us for extended stays in Virginia Beach. Did I mention that we are only two hours from Lindsay’s house.  Getting to visit her frequently has been the best part of living in New Bern for me. Watching the youngest go from new born to practically crawling and just spending time with all three children has been our greatest joy.

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