Hendersonville NC:
Historic Hendersonville, North Carolina is a town of curious contradictions. The retro USA atmosphere of Main Street resembles a Norman Rockwell painting, until you overhear German tourists on the sidewalk pointing out landmarks. A young couple walks out of New York deli, carrying a bag lunch while talking in Spanish. You get the feeling that you’re in a cosmopolitan city, but at the same time you aren’t surprised to look up and see an old-fashioned barbershop, with its pole spinning just as it probably has for decades. On the sidewalk in front of it is a huge shoeshine throne, where you can rest a while and get your boots shined while you wait your turn to “have your ears lowered”. Farmers recline in antique leather barbers’ chairs as a woman - in a male dominated business as a barber, gives them a trim.
Across the street is Mike’s, an authentic soda shop where you can order a root beer float or a banana split with all the trimmings while listening to Nat King Cole or Buddy Holly on a vintage jukebox. A few doors down the Flight Wood Grill & Wine Bar serves vintage wines in genuine crystal, from its temperature controlled vault, to accompany dishes including blue oysters, grilled artichoke with spinach and goat cheese, lobster, prawns, pan fried Carolina trout, and wood-oven roasted duck. The town is old school and looks like a scene from the 50s but the cosmopolitan amenities are everywhere.