Sunday at Lake Junaluska

Charles spent the day in the mountains of North Carolina savoring the cool temps (only about 72F) and enjoying what the area had to offer.

First up this morning was attending church at Long's Chapel UMC (in Lake Junaluska, NC). This was a fantastic experince - everything about this congregation said this was a community leaning forward! They have two contemporary services on Sunday morning, a traditional service Sunday morning, an awesome sounding service on Saturday night, a mid-week gathering (with food!) and so much more. The singing was incredible, I've never heard a UMC sing with such passion and the offering of the Lord's Prayer sent goose-bumps up my spine. Wow!!!

After church, Charles drove to the nearby town of Cherokee where he enjoyed a fantastic meal of Cherokee Fried bread and beans at Grandma's, a little place with a big-time idea of good taste!

 

Then it was on to visit the heritage of Cherokee Nation and the Museum of the Cherokee Indian, the Qualla Arts and Crafts display, and and historic Cherokee village, Oconaluftee. This village also had a botanical garden with all the medicinal plants used by the Cherokee and much more.

On the way back to Lake Junaluska, Charles noticed a sign pointing to Maggie Valley Golf Course, one of the better known mountain courses in the country. With only time for nine holes, Charles is happy to report that this is one AWESOME course!