Lovely Laurel
 |
| Welcome to Laurel! |
My goodness, it's been a busy two months! Work has kept me hopping for the past several weeks. In addition, I've begun teaching a night class on business communications for my alma mater (more on that later), so I've had less time both to knock about *and* to write about it.
However, a couple of weeks ago, Anita and I took a quick weekend trip to lovely little Laurel, Mississippi, so I thought I'd share. Apparently, there's a television program on HGTV called Home Town. The program features a cute young couple (Erin and Ben), who live in Laurel, Mississippi. The program follows them as they renovate homes and businesses in the area.
 |
| We loved our tea tasting! |
Day 1
We started with a tour and tasting at Longleaf Tea Company. This place was so cute! It's owned and run by a sweet young couple on family land. The home that sits on the original farm is the place where visitors get their orientation and enjoy their tea tasting. (Apparently, this home has also been renovated by Erin and Ben, as well, and it is precious!)
We learned so much about TEA! We arrived early for our tasting, parked the car, and explored the lovely interior a bit as we sipped iced tea. Soon, it was time for our orientation. The couple who owns the company explained their journey into tea farming, the history of the farm, and the fact that tea is the second-most popular beverage in the United States. Then, we went outside to examine the plants! The plant tea comes from is actually a variety of camellia, and it grows wonderfully at the latitude of Laurel, Mississippi. (Who knew?) I was amazed to learn that harvesting leaves for white tea really just means harvesting one tiny spike leaf from the tops of the plants. (No wonder it's so expensive! It made me think of harvesting saffron!) Then, we went back inside to see how the tea is processed after harvest. The owners were very patient and knowledgable and answered all of our (many) questions.
Lastly, it was time for our tea tasting. They gave us notepads and pencils so we could record our impressions on a flavor chart. This tasting reminded me very much of a wine tasting, as you were searching for aroma as well as top, body, and tail notes. I found the green tea to taste very vegetal, with almost an asparagus note. The black tea had smoky hints of toasted almond. After we finished up the tasting, Anita and I bought some tea to take home with us. We loved this activity. It was my first time at a tea farm, and I really enjoyed learning about the process.
 |
| Cheers! |
After we'd finished up at Longleaf Tea Company, we headed to little downtown Laurel for lunch at Pearl's Diner. Let me just tell you, when a sweet black lady in Mississippi is selling fried chicken, just get the chicken. Don't ask questions, and certainly don't worry about your waistline. Just. Get. The. Chicken. Ok? Needless to say, lunch was delicious, with the chicken being a standout and the accompanying veggies being well-seasoned. A+!
Then, it was time to explore downtown Laurel and get our shop on! We started at Laurel Mercantile, which is owned by Ben and Erin. What a cute store! They have a lot of handmade, made-in-America goods, and we loved browsing here. Lots of fantastic candles (The couple opened a new shop to showcase them - The Scent Library - shortly after our visit.), gorgeous wood cutting boards, prints and paintings, food items, quilted oven mitts, all sorts of fun little goodies.
Then, we strolled, checking out the wares in the Southern Antique Mall and finding a host of lovely murals to admire and photograph. (Though it's a bit clunky, there's a cute little app that helps you find some of the places you might want to visit. We downloaded it to our phones and used it to hunt up some of the murals!)
 |
| All kinds of goodies at Laurel Mercantile |
By this time, our dogs were barking! We headed to our AirBnb to check in and relax a bit. We loved this property. It's on the second floor, and it's very spacious. Two bedrooms, two lovely porches, and a generous sitting room and kitchen. We loved sitting on the porches with our coffee in the mornings and watching the squirrels, birds, and neighborhood wake up around us.
After we'd rested a bit, it was back out for more adventure. We started at The Scotsman, which sits down by the railroad tracks. We loved the mural here, and the walk-in drink cooler was a hit! (There's also a restaurant here, and there's a viewing area into Ben's working woodshop. It's a whole destination in itself.)
 |
| I loved the mural reflection in this puddle. |
After dinner, we strolled a bit downtown, then headed back to our rental and to bed!
Day 2
We began our morning with a leisurely visit to Lee's Coffee and Tea for breakfast. I had a latte with avocado toast and a bit of fruit, and it hit the spot!
Then, it was on to the Lauren Rogers Museum of Art. I'd first been to this gem about a year ago, when I stopped by on my way to Me Camp. It's such a beautiful, calming place! We enjoyed the main galleries, the visiting Andrew Bucci exhibit, and the Rodin torso. In the basement, they currently have an interesting fiber exhibit that we loved. We easily spent a few hours here.
Next up was a visit to Bird Dog Cafe. On my last visit to Laurel, they served meals here (and I'd enjoyed a delicious salad and a glass of white), but now they've converted to more of a coffee/gift shop. No worries. We got cups of coffee and scones and shopped the merchandise. We spent a good amount of time here, talking and lounging after we'd eaten and shopped. They have a comfy sitting area and tons of books!
 |
| So much to see at the Lauren Rogers Museum of Art |
The bedrooms in our AirBnb had these really great fans over the beds. I turned mine on and changed into comfy lounge clothes. I'd intended to just lie down for a moment, but I ended up taking a nap! It was just so restful and peaceful!
When I awoke, it was nearly dinnertime! Because we'd basically eaten a scone for lunch, we were both hungry, so we got changed and headed downtown. All weekend long, we'd seen flyers in the various downtown business for Pork Rock Fest 2022, which was being held at Texas Pitmaster BBQ on Saturday night. The flyers promised live music, great food, drinks, and a pig mascot. How could we miss that?
This event ended up being a winner! We got there early and were seated at a booth in the back - close enough to have a good view of the stage, but not so close that the amps were blasting us out of the place. (What can I say? We are old.) We ordered drinks from the bar and big plates of BBQ. We munched our ribs as the place filled up and the acts started playing. And you KNOW that when the pig mascot started walking around, I waved him down for a photo. (As soon as Anita saw him, she started giggling, because she knew a pig photo was in her future.) This ended up being a fun, free way to end our weekend in Laurel!
The next morning, we popped into Vic's Biscuits and Burgers (one of the only breakfast places open on Sunday mornings) for a heart-stopping breakfast before loading back into the car and heading home.
 |
| The ribs were on point at Pork Rock Fest 2022! |
We loved Laurel! What we noticed, over and over - This whole town has leaned into the HGTV of it all. They understand that the show is an opportunity for all of them, and they all want to participate. Not only that, they all support and cross-promote one another, and everyone seems to know everyone. (For example, the couple that owns the tea company - the wife also works at the museum, and the husband was in one of the bands playing at Pork Rock Fest. Everyone joins in and wants everyone else to succeed. It was really nice to see.) It was definitely worth a trip, and it's the perfect girls' weekend destination!
 |
| If given the opportunity, I will ALWAYS take a photo with a mascot. |
Comments