Things to do in Charlotte part 4

I wonder if people realize how much there is to do in Charlotte.
Like for real. Every time I cross something off my list I add 5 more things.

I try to find adventures that aren't too expensive...places that are tucked away & not too touristy.

Nascar Hall of Fame? Nope.
Charlotte Motor Speedway? Nah.
Carolina Panthers Stadium? hell No.

A Grocery Store?
YES!

I know what you're thinking. What is wrong with this girl?!
The answer is everything. But on the real, Whole Foods Charlotte is a fun hangout and has delicious food.
No not just tofu and kale. They have fried chicken and mac'n'cheese for you southern soul food searchers!


We don't grocery shop here because we can't afford it but it's been one of our favorite places to come grab lunch or dinner and hang out. It's buffet style and they have every type of food you could imagine. Pizza, wings, salad bar, gelato station, coffee bar...the hipster sister of Golden Corral.

They have cool areas to relax and dine too. Even a small jungle gym for the little ones and me

And since we're in the South where the weather is nice almost year round, they of course have an open air Veranda where you can lounge on couches and enjoy an adult beverage or 8.

Never thought I would blog about a grocery store but how cool is this place? I'm not even sharing half the photos I took. There's so much more to the store. If you're ever in town and can't figure out where to grab a bite to eat...stop at Whole Foods Charlotte. Everyone who works there is laid-back and friendly, they have every food and beverage under the sun and none of it contains yucky preservatives or chemicals. WIN-WIN.

My beverage of choice is a Lenny Boy Kombucha from right here in Charlotte-Yay local business!

Oh and I work there ;-)

Kidding.



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When you Google 'Charlotte, NC' it will list the city's top attractions under Points of Interest. This is where I got a lot of our adventure ideas from. The #1 place listed is Discovery Place Museum.
So guess what we did Saturday....

...We went and checked it out!

Definitely a kid based museum. But hey I like Science, it was cheap to get in, it was a great form of birth control and it's one of Charlotte's top attractions so off we went.

This place is fun! It's small and quaint. It's no Boston Museum of Science but $20 for full access to the museum AND a hour long Imax movie...perfect rainy day fun.

While it's a smaller scale museum it definitely doesn't lack in the interactive arena. I would say every single exhibit in there is interactive. One visit here and your kid can skip 1st-7th grade. They have a small aquarium section, outdoor rain forest, wilderness section - they cover all the bases ;-)

They even have turtles walking downstairs. How can you go wrong? This little guy's name is Herbie.
I tried to put him in my purse.

We made lots of discoveries at Discovery Place! Like that awkward moment when you realize you can comfortably fit in a rocking chair made for 3 year olds.
Ugh.

After this lovely break in the miniature rocking chairs, we made yet another discovery: that I'm deathly afraid of those really big, steep, dome shaped imax theaters.

The movie was cool though. The theater is huge and really makes you feel like you're in the movie. Holy motion sickness. We watched The Hubble and learned so much about the telescope and how stars and planets are formed...my head was orbiting by the end of the movie.
How hilarious am I.

The best part of the museum is their second floor 'Cool Stuff' exhibit.
This is where all the fun is had!

This room is busy and noisy. Chemical explosions going off, wooden Jenga pieces flying across the room, confetti dropping from the ceiling...it's fantastic, really.

After elbowing a few kids in the face we jumped right in and played!

I mastered the Jenga game...

We watched electromagnetic waves make dust dance. Yes that is all dust...insane.

And then Mitch took a casual nap on a bed of nails.

YES You can lay on a bed, then press a button, and sharp nails rise up and lift your body.

Do you see this shit.

If I wasn't in a dress I would have been all over this. No I wouldn't.
The museum was fun! We had a great time. It's always nice to learn something new.
Like the fact that I think I'll stick with cats over ever having kids.

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Next up we decided to take the local's suggestion and walk a couple of blocks over to Charlotte's wild Epicentre.

The walk there was fun in itself. Live music lined every corner of downtown Charlotte. This place is very cool, calm, and collected for being a major city. I like it.

I'm not a city girl by any means but downtown Charlotte I can handle. Besides for the occasional crackhead walking by screaming obscene profanities into mid air, I never feel unsafe.

We knew we made it to Epicentre when we heard loud music from a block away.

This place is party central. It's a one stop shop for food, music, and alcohol.
College girl Steph would have had a field day at this place.
Married, career driven, old and boring Steph says ehhh. I'm over it.
But if you are still into the party scene and come to Charlotte looking for the best bars:
Epicentre. Go.

Side Note: Have you ever tried Moe's cheese sauce? So good you'll want to drink it.

The Epicentre not only has restaurants and bars but a dine-in movie theater and a sweet bowling alley!

Name another bowling alley where both Michael Jordan AND Lifehouse have played. Ya can't.
This place was pricey though - $45 to rent an alley for an hour.
Thanks but no thanks.
Although it was very fancy inside and looked like a lot of fun!
But I've got student loans. So we moved on.

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 8 hours in the heart of the city is 7 hours too many for me so as soon as we explored Epicentre I said alright take me back to the Palmetto State.

Home, Sweet Home.