Time off for good behavior.

I took off for a few days to go to Gatlinburg. I always enjoy visiting the mountains, and this trip did not disappoint.

1. Frogs from Ripley's Aquarium of the Smokies. This was my first time visiting the aquarium, and it is a first class experience. I really enjoyed their tunnel that takes you under the surface of the main aquarium. Ripley's also has several hands-on activities for children. It was definitely worth the price of admission.
2. This gentleman makes his living by carving logs into bears and other figures. He has an amazing talent with the chainsaw. He can be found on Gatlinburg's Arts & Crafts loop with hundreds of artisans and craftspeople. We saw woodworkers, potters, a glassblower, basket makers, leatherworkers, musicians, jewelers, painters and sculptors on the loop. It is free to visit just about anyplace on the loop, but you will want to take home some treasures.
   
3. The view from the Space Needle. I don't know how the tower gets its name, but you (almost) can't buy views like you see from the top. Nowhere else can you better see the contrast between the tourist town of Gatlinburg and the National Park, which is essentially untouched by commerce and development.
   
4. This gentleman in the Mountain Mall builds single string instruments called didley bows from cigar boxes. They are played with a slide. The didley bow goes back to the War of Norther Aggression, when there was little time or material to spare to building instruments, so people built them however they could improvise. I didn't think to ask how much time and energy they could have saved by not smoking cigars to get the boxes. The cigar box guitar he is playing in the photo has three strings. He introduced me to http://www.cigarboxnation.com/ , where you can see videos of people playing their instruments. I'm very impressed by the whole thing.
   
5. How can you not stop to witness the zen of the taffy pulling machine? The Ole Smoky Candy Kitchen is the world's premier expert on taffy making. It has spawned legions of expert taffy samplers in Gatlinburg.
   

If you missed the farm update this week, I did too. Updates are coming forth, and soon.