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North Carolina Travelog #3
Embassy Suites in Raleigh · Thu, 20 Aug 2026. 9:30pm.
I wanted to begin this blog entry by saying our travel to Raleigh, North Carolina today was mostly uneventful. Sadly it was uncomfortable, physically and emotionally, for several hours. But hey, at least the bad stuff is over now. We collected our bags, caught the shuttle to the airport, and settled into our room.
Well,we didn't so much settle as drop our bags in the room and head out immediately for dinner.
In the past, the evening reception at Embassy Suites— with free booze— would've been a major draw for me. Years ago I had a colleague-slash-drinking buddy, and we always tried to book at an Embassy Suites when we traveled together. We'd get sloshed. Not only did I stop with getting sloshed about 10 years ago (it's more enjoyable to hold it to a light or medium buzz) but these past few months I'm not feeling the allure of alcohol like I used to. Plus, the food offered with the free booze was just cheap crackers and cheese. We elected to skip it... and go to the mall food court! 😅
Crabtree Mall is basically across the street from the hotel. ...And by "across the street" I mean we still had to walk 2-3 blocks. Not particularly wanting to spend the time it takes at a full-service restaurant, we took a look at the food court. It was surprisingly well stocked with restaurants. So many malls nowadays are ghost towns. Though this one closed up at 8pm. The ghosts are creeping in! 👻💀🪦
Walking back from dinner I reaccustomed myself to Carolina summer evenings. I lived here for 3 years, for grad school, and I grew up in Virginia. The temperature at 8pm was still warm at 86° (30° C) though thankfully not oppressive as the sun was below the horizon. The sky was still light with beautiful colors (I took the pic above on the walk back) while cicadas and tree crickets serenaded us with their arpeggios. This is the look and feel— and sound— of summer from my youth.
After dinner I changed into my swim trunks and went downstairs for a dip in the pool.
Yes, I'm serious about trying to keep my use-the-pool-every-day-in-August streak going. It doesn't have to be my pool... though the pool at home in my townhouse complex is nicer than this and is outside; any pool will do. Alas, this one (a) doesn't have a hot tub, just a pool, and (b) the pool is COOOLD! 🥶 So I went in just far enough and long enough to get my swim trunks wet, then sat out on the sofas at the side for a while before heading back upstairs. Hey, technically I used the pool today! 🤣
Embassy Suites in Raleigh · Thu, 20 Aug 2026. 9:30pm.
I wanted to begin this blog entry by saying our travel to Raleigh, North Carolina today was mostly uneventful. Sadly it was uncomfortable, physically and emotionally, for several hours. But hey, at least the bad stuff is over now. We collected our bags, caught the shuttle to the airport, and settled into our room.
Well,we didn't so much settle as drop our bags in the room and head out immediately for dinner.
In the past, the evening reception at Embassy Suites— with free booze— would've been a major draw for me. Years ago I had a colleague-slash-drinking buddy, and we always tried to book at an Embassy Suites when we traveled together. We'd get sloshed. Not only did I stop with getting sloshed about 10 years ago (it's more enjoyable to hold it to a light or medium buzz) but these past few months I'm not feeling the allure of alcohol like I used to. Plus, the food offered with the free booze was just cheap crackers and cheese. We elected to skip it... and go to the mall food court! 😅
Crabtree Mall is basically across the street from the hotel. ...And by "across the street" I mean we still had to walk 2-3 blocks. Not particularly wanting to spend the time it takes at a full-service restaurant, we took a look at the food court. It was surprisingly well stocked with restaurants. So many malls nowadays are ghost towns. Though this one closed up at 8pm. The ghosts are creeping in! 👻💀🪦
Walking back from dinner I reaccustomed myself to Carolina summer evenings. I lived here for 3 years, for grad school, and I grew up in Virginia. The temperature at 8pm was still warm at 86° (30° C) though thankfully not oppressive as the sun was below the horizon. The sky was still light with beautiful colors (I took the pic above on the walk back) while cicadas and tree crickets serenaded us with their arpeggios. This is the look and feel— and sound— of summer from my youth.
After dinner I changed into my swim trunks and went downstairs for a dip in the pool.
Yes, I'm serious about trying to keep my use-the-pool-every-day-in-August streak going. It doesn't have to be my pool... though the pool at home in my townhouse complex is nicer than this and is outside; any pool will do. Alas, this one (a) doesn't have a hot tub, just a pool, and (b) the pool is COOOLD! 🥶 So I went in just far enough and long enough to get my swim trunks wet, then sat out on the sofas at the side for a while before heading back upstairs. Hey, technically I used the pool today! 🤣
