Skip to content

Random Connections

A collection of photography and exploration focusing on Upstate South Carolina and beyond.

  • Home
  • About Us
  • Photos
  • Resources
  • Other Voices
  • Post Archives
  • Home
  • Hendersonville

Tag: Hendersonville

Seeking the Kingdom of Happy Land

Posted on July 10, 2017July 10, 2017 By Tom 4 Comments on Seeking the Kingdom of Happy Land
History and Genealogy, Rambling
kingdomhappyland
Kingdom of the Happy Land by Gary Carden. Acrylic on canvas, 36”x24”. Source

A few weeks ago I gave my talk on the Hidden Towns Under South Carolina Lakes at the Taylors Branch of the Greenville County Library. After the talk someone came up to me and asked if I’d ever heard of the “Kingdom of Happy Land.” I had not. After chatting for a bit I decided I needed to see if I could find this kingdom. Last Thursday things had finally settled down from all our traveling and the Fourth holiday, so it was a perfect time for an expedition. I went to see if I could find the Kingdom of Happy Land.

Read More “Seeking the Kingdom of Happy Land” »

Oktoberfest at Haus Heidelberg

Posted on October 19, 2012 By Tom No Comments on Oktoberfest at Haus Heidelberg
Restaurants

Haus Heidelberg Sign

Of all the ethnic holidays, I think I like Oktoberfest the best. It brings with it hints of cooler weather, fall colors, and one of my favorite cuisines – German food. However, fellow kayaker and chef Darren M. recently pointed out that authentic Oktoberfest has a very specific date range – two weeks running from late September through the first week of October. Any restaurants or festivals advertising Oktoberfest this late in the year (such as Walhalla this weekend, but I guess a fake Norse town can have a fake Bavarian celebration any time it wants) is doing so purely for advertising promotion. I guess it’s not that different from seeing Halloween ads all October, or promoting Christmas just as soon as the after school sales end. That being said, when my friend Keith Dover proposed heading up to Haus Heidelberg in Hendersonville to take advantage of their Oktoberfest specials, I jumped at the chance, cultural authenticity be damned.

I have long complained about the dearth of German restaurants in the area, especially with BMW and all the other German industry in town. But, I guess that number is increasing. Joining Haus Edelweiss and Schwaben Haus are Hans und Franz and The Bavarian Pretzel Factory. Even Strossner’s Bakery is now on the list of places offering German food. German restaurants seem to be more prevalent on up in the mountains, I guess hearkening back to the Alpine nature of Bavaria. Both The Black Forest in Ardin and Haus Heidelberg have been long-time staples of German food in our region. However, I don’t get up that way often enough to take advantage of them. This was the first time I’d been to Haus Heidelberg in ages.

The drive up early Wednesday evening was spectacular. The October sky was brilliantly lit with the setting sun, and the leaves are just shy of being at peak. Keith and I drove on up through Flat Rock, enjoying the ride.

Read More “Oktoberfest at Haus Heidelberg” »

Fourth Weekend Photo Ramble

Posted on July 8, 2008 By Tom 2 Comments on Fourth Weekend Photo Ramble
Photography, Travel

Since July 4th was on a Friday and we were already off on Fridays, our office also took off Monday. We came back from the wedding fairly quickly Sunday morning since Laura was having problems with sinuses, and I hadn’t gotten the chance to explore the area as much as I would have liked. Therefore, … Read More “Fourth Weekend Photo Ramble” »

Categories

  • EdTech (200)
  • Entertainment (202)
  • Family (121)
  • Gear (115)
  • General Technology (99)
  • Geocaching and Maps (208)
  • History and Genealogy (266)
  • Internet (144)
  • Local (452)
  • Miscellaneous (550)
  • Music (197)
  • Paddling (251)
  • Photography (780)
  • Podcast (6)
  • Rambling (227)
  • Rants (161)
  • Recipes (34)
  • Religion (48)
  • Restaurants (165)
  • Science (48)
  • Things Overheard (29)
  • Travel (412)
  • Uncategorized (129)
  • Washington Sabbatical (113)
  • Weirdness (60)

Recent Posts

  • Washington Music Round-Up
  • Landsford Canal Lilies and the Catawba River
  • Paddling Up the Long Nose
  • A Bates Old River Two-fer
  • In Search of the Road Builder

Recent Comments

  • Kathy Jewell on Even More Echo Valley
  • Alan on Landsford Canal Lilies and the Catawba River
  • John Dorroh on A Long Wet Hike on Long Cane Creek
  • John Dorroh on A Long Wet Hike on Long Cane Creek
  • Emily on Paddling Up the Long Nose

Tags

blogging cemetery Christmas Columbia Edisto River edtech Entertainment family Flickr Florida Furman Furman University gear Georgia geotagging Ghost Town Ghost Towns Google Earth Google Maps GPS Greenville Greenville Chorale history Instructional Technology kayaking Lake Jocassee LCU Lowcountry Unfiltered maps Music North Carolina Paddling Photography rambling restaurant Restaurants review singing social networking South Carolina time-lapse Travel video Washington Washington State
June 2023
S M T W T F S
 123
45678910
11121314151617
18192021222324
252627282930  
« May    

Copyright © 2023 Random Connections.

Theme: Oceanly by ScriptsTown