Paulie in Gatlinburg --- SUNDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 YOUR FEARLESS SITE OWNER IN BEAR COUNTRY

Yep, it;s summertime and ol' Paulie and Sonya are on a well deserved vacation to one of our favorite haunts...Gatlinburg. So, what brings us back this year? To catch up with friends and get away after some hectic medical issues.  

Thanks to my kidney clinic for hooking me up with a "sister clinic" in Newmarket,TN., 45 minutes outside of Gatlinburg. The majority of the drive there on Wednesday and Friday was tied up in the traffic in getting to I-40 from Gatlinburg, going thru Pigeon Forge and Sevierville is never a fast drive...but we saw some beautiful scenery and one of the technicians at the clinic there cued us in on "the back way to get back to Pigeon Forge" and it really made the drive a lot less congested. 

We arrived Monday night and had a wonderful meal that evening at Crystal Creek.  Our server was engaging, a transplant from Boston who resettled down here several years ago. We had a lot of fun comparing the Boston College programs and Louisvile and he admitted that we had the best WBB coach by far in Jeff Walz. 

Tuesday we had a leisurely breakfast at Little House of Pancakes and then explored the Arts and Crafts community on the south side of Gatlinburg. The shops were all interesting and, dummy me, I left my walking cane in Louisville but found a great one at a shop on the Arts and Crafts Loop. We also founf a delightful coffee shop on the loop named Gatlinburg Grind and highly recommend it if you get down here. Our dinner Tuesday night was at The Best Italian Restaurant (the original one) located just off the main drag in Gatlinburg and the Shrimp Alfredo was a fantastic entree that I enjoyed immensely. Sonya got the eggplant parmesan and enjoyed it too. 

Wednesday started with another great breakfast at Little House and then after a day of sightseeing in NewMarket and Gatlinburg, we dined at the Split Rail on the art loop and had a great dinner there with fried chicken and slaw for me and fish tacos and fries for Sonya. Ww slept extremely well Wednesday night.

Thursday we took a drive to Cades Cove and toured the area. Traffic was as heavy as I have ever seen it there and noticeably slowed down when ever a bear or elk were spotted in the distance. We returned early and had an early dinner at DeLauders BBQ which was out of this world. The pulled pork was excellent and his sides are out of this world with green beans, slaw, and a baked potato as huge as you'll find in any restaurant. Another night of sound sleeping. 

Friday after my clinic visit, we returned to Gatlinburg and explored more shops on the loop. One of our favorite restaurants changed their name from Three Jimmy's to Smokehouse Jimmy's but the food was still fantastic. The Grind Burger is a humongous burger with all the fixin's , Sonya had the pulled chicken with baked beans and cinnamon apples. Don't go there without trying the aplles and lemon pepper pork rinds...what a great appetizer.!

At the Rampart Lion

Saturday we had a full day visiting shops and outlets plus driving the Cherokee Orchard Motor Nature Trail and ended up at the Rampart Lion for dinner. Our old buddy Brian Papworth, of the Fox and Parrot, owns this one also, and while the entrance is closed to the Fox and Parrot for bridge rebuilding,  he is holding fort at the Rampart Lion and we had a great visit with him and his staff of Jodi and Robert. The fish and fried green beans there are out of this world, and make sure you make a stop there.  

Today, we return to Louisville. It was a great getaway and thanks to the Cardinal Couple crew for running the site while Sonya and I were travelling. 

paulie