Friday, August 03, 2007

NC Tour - Day 9, Tues 31 July, 2007: Kill Devil Hills, NC


It's Hubby's birthday and he awakes early, at the Comfort Inn, Morehead City, to find that our smart car's rear driver's side tire is flat. We call the 1 800 number on our CAA card and the operator couldn't have been more professional and helpful. Within the hour, Phil from Wrance Wreckers in Newport arrived with his impressive flat-bed truck and didn't waste any time getting us, and our car, to Colony Tire at 3905 Arendell Street. By 8:55, and after a charge of only $20 US, we were on our way to Cedar Island for the noon ferry.
We enjoy chatting with some bikers from Long Island, New York during the two hour & ten minute ferry ride from Cedar Island to Ocracoke [$15]. We are intrigued by two vintage Winnebago RVs from the early seventies. After another free ferry and a birthday pitstop at the DQ, we drive along the Outer Banks to Tracy's home in Kill Devil Hills. We feel like we've stepped into another world. The landscape and architecture are like no other place we've been.
After a tasty pasta dinner with Tracy & Dave, we drive to Manteo to see a performance of The Lost Colony, now in its 70th season. We check in at the UPS depot, where Dave works, on the way.
"North Carolina's Paul Green penned the production, which was a unique combination of drama, song, and dance, while Roanoke Islanders set to work building the magnificent Waterside Theatre on the very spot where the colonists settled. On July 4, 1937, The Lost Colony opened to a packed house, despite the economic hardship of the Great Depression.
The show was intended to run only through the end of that summer. But when Franklin D. Roosevelt attended on August 18, 1937, the nation's eyes were fixed on the production, assuring that there would be subsequent seasons."
The Lost Colony is more than just a visual feast - it ensures that the story of the 16th Century colony on Roanoke Island is not forgotten.

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