Every year since we began dating, I have gifted Joseph an experience for his birthday. I try to always give him a tangible gift as well, but I feel gifting him something that he loves or has always wanted to do, & especially something we can do together, is good for our relationship & more unique than the average birthday gift that fits inside a cardboard box.

The first birthday was only two days after we started dating. I fretted over what to get him. What do you get someone you have only been dating for two days? We weren’t even “official” yet. I didn’t want him to think I ignored his birthday, but I also didn’t want to get something over-the-top & scare him away. I settled for a $10 Dunkin‘ gift card because our first date was at a Dunkin’. He loved it, & we spent our next date getting coffee once again & driving around in his car. It happened to be that date that I fell in love with him, so I’m still pretty proud of that birthday gift, despite its small size.

For Joseph’s next birthday, we were in the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. I gifted him a five senses gift, which included something fun for each of his senses: A candle for scent, a sweet treat for taste, a soft blanket for touch, a book for sight, & a playlist for hear. The playlist included a song for every month we had been dating, & we spent the evening driving around in his car once again, listening to the music.

The following year, the COVID-19 pandemic had lessened its hold on our lives, & we were finally able to go out again. This time, I gifted him concert tickets to his favorite band, The Avett Brothers. We spent a night in Philadelphia & made a little trip out of the event. After that, I didn’t know how I would top my last gift. Seeing The Avett Brothers had been a bucket list item for Joseph, which meant the next gift would have to be quite good to even measure up to the last.

When we had planned our trip to Delaware last year, I had noticed that there was a zip lining place close to where we were visiting. Neither of us had ever been zip lining & both wanted to go, so I excitedly researched the spot. Disappointed, I realized that the place had already been booked up for the dates we were visiting. I made a mental note to remember this place, & should we have a chance to return to Delaware, I would make reservations for us.

As Joseph’s birthday neared, I remembered this & found the website of the zip lining place once again. The dates were available, but the thought occurred to me that if this was going to be the best birthday gift yet, it would have to be more than your average zip lining course. I researched some of the best places to zip line in the United States, & I found one in North Carolina that looked promising. As we are also trying to visit all 50 states together, I decided to make it a weekend getaway, including hiking, visiting a main street, & eating a local restaurant (the other requirements we must cross off in order to officially say we “visited” a state).

On Friday, April 29, Joseph’s birthday, we got in the car together & drove the eight hours to North Carolina. At the time of planning, I hadn’t really considered just how long eight hours in the car really is. In the past, Joseph & I divided up the states together in lists that said how long of trips to each one would have to be to make it worth it: a day trip, weekend trip, week-long road trips, & states we have to fly to. North Carolina was on our Day Trip list, so I had thought it would be a quick trip. I realized now that we may have been a little ambitious when making that list. I was beginning to worry that spending just one full day in North Carolina would not be enough time, & that my birthday gift would be a flop. 

Despite the length of the car ride, Joseph & I had a good time driving down. We listened to music & the podcast Stuff You Should Know. We talked about our plans for the weekend, the shows we have been bingeing together, & events in the coming months. Around five hours into the drive, we stopped at Mt. Airy, North Carolina for a bite to eat & to walk the main street.

Mt. Airy is one of my favorite main streets that we have been to. The buildings were all different colors, & different artwork, including murals, statues made of brick, & painted instruments, lined the streets. Mt. Airy is where The Andy Griffith Show was filmed, & although we arrived too late to visit the museum, we still got our fill of memorabilia & souvenirs on display. My favorite was the old squad car parked on the street that had a photo of The Andy Griffith Show characters in the windshield.

We stopped for dinner at Mi Casa on Main, a Mexican & Californian cuisine restaurant on the main street. The ambience was an interesting mix of Mexican & American, with candy skull painted skeleton figurines & early 2000s music playing on the radio. We started with chips & homemade salsa to share. Then, for dinner, I ordered the taco salad with shrimp & Joseph ordered the BBQ Pulled Pork Primo Tacos. To say the food was delicious would be an understatement. The portions were huge & we had more than enough food. Everything had the perfect level of spice, building a slow burn in the back of our throats as we ate. The taco salad was piled so high with ingredients, I could barely mix in the dressing. Topped with black beans, grilled corn, fresh tomatoes, shredded cheese, crispy tortilla chips, & a creamy salsa dressing, every bite was bursting with a fresh blend of flavors. Joseph’s tacos did not disappoint either. The BBQ was the perfect, North Carolina BBQ you would hope to get in a Mt. Airy restaurant, nestled into a tortilla with a creamy coleslaw, friend onion strings, & sweet & hot candied jalapeños. I don’t think I could dream up a more iconic yet inventive blend of American & Mexican flavors.

When Joseph went to the restroom, I secretly told the waitress that it was his birthday, & near the end of our meal, she brought out freshly fried churros covered in cinnamon sugar & drizzled with a raspberry sauce that soaked into the hot dough. It was the perfect blend of sweet & sour, & we ate it with gusto.

After dinner, we returned to the car to drive the remaining three hours to our Airbnb. I had reserved us a spot in the Bearwallow Highlands mountain range. It was a windy drive up in the dark, but we made it safely to our cabin-style Airbnb. Exhausted from the long day, we dropped our things, toasted to Joseph’s birthday with a glass of wine, & climbed into bed.

The next day, we got an early start, wanting to beat the heat & get in as much hiking as we could before our zip lining reservations at 2:00. We got in the car & headed to Chimney Rock State Park. As we drove up the windy, mountain road, I could just make out the American flag perched at the top of Chimney Rock. It was so much higher than I thought it would be! Chimney rock, I learned, has an elevation of over 2,000 feet! The hike from the Four Seasons Trail, however, was only 1,000 feet of elevation, which was still a rather strenuous hike. For the first half mile, we had a slow incline, but the last half mile consisted solely of stairs that seemed like they would never stop going up. Legs burning & panting, we climbed slowly up the face of the rock. 

It was a glorious moment when we finally stepped out onto level ground & found we were over 2,000 feet up in the air, looking down at the lush, tree-filled valley & the windy, blue water of Lake Lure. The wind whipped the American flag above our heads, & it was at this moment that I took a step back & realized just how beautiful our country is. I never knew that North Carolina had mountain ranges like this. Whenever I thought about the state, the image of sandy beaches came to mind. But this state, like so many others we have visited, is nuanced in all of the best ways, & it has some truly stunning views, if you’re willing to do a little hiking to get there.

We still had some time to spare, so we decided to pull our tired legs up another 200 feet to Exclamation Point. Once we got there, we still had another 25 minutes left to hike out, so we hiked & ran just over a mile to the top of Hickory Nut Falls, a waterfall that drops an impressive 404 feet! The rushing water & cool breeze greeted us, & we spent a few minutes enjoying the serenity before jogging back to Exclamation Point & beginning our descent back to the parking lot.

We had just enough time when we finished our hike to grab a quick bite to eat before our zip lining trip. We left Chimney Rock & found that the park is situated directly next to a main street that we had somehow overlooked on our way in. Chimney Rock Village is a quaint street filled with local shops & restaurants. We decided to visit Broad River Inn, which features a restaurant that serves rustic pizzas, artisan sandwiches, & more! 

To start, we ordered the Chef’s Bruschetta to share. As someone who comes from an Italian family, I have had my share of bruschetta, so when I say that this was the best version of the dish that I have ever had, I don’t take that phrase lightly. The tomatoes were chopped finely & mixed with fresh red onion & feta, piled high on thick, artisan bread that had been slathered in olive oil & toasted, topped with a large basil leaf & drizzled with a tangy but sweet balsamic glaze. I nearly ordered another plate to have it all to myself.

Our lunch was just as impressive. I ordered the Salad of the Day, which was a bed of greens topped with sliced pear, candied walnuts, blue cheese, & a balsamic vinaigrette. Every bite was a new medley of delicious flavors. Joseph ordered the BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwich, which was laden with North Carolina BBQ sauce, topped with a tangy, homemade coleslaw, & served alongside homemade potato chips. Satisfied from our meal, we walked down to the street to get coffees from Coffee on the Rocks & then headed to Canopy Ridge Farm for zip lining.

At this point, I was starting to get nervous. My lunch, which had settled so nicely in my stomach before, was now bubbling angrily with anticipation. I have a fear of heights, & the idea of hanging precariously so high in the sky was beginning to terrify me. When we arrived at the adventure park, we were walked through the safety measures & put in our harnesses. Together, we rode in a jeep up a tall hill to the first platform. 

I shifted uneasily as we received our instructions, & I watched the others go before me. As each member of our group took off, I felt the anxiety build. When it was finally my turn, I stepped up shakily. 

One of the guides connected my harness to the zip line. He could tell I was nervous, & joked about how it had been revealed that I had been the one to book us this trip. 

“It was for his birthday,” I laughed. “I didn’t really think about the fact that I would have to do it, too.” I looked out at the zip line, & was surprised to not see much of a drop. With a deep breath, I took a step off of the platform, leaned back into my harness, & flew off into the treetops.

The ground quickly disappeared beneath me, dropping 100 feet down. I screamed with excitement. I loved the feeling of the wind blowing through my hair as I raced down the line. I felt like I was flying, & it was exhilarating.

All too soon, the ride ended, & I waited eagerly for my next turn. The tour consisted of six zip lines in total, some of which we had to hike to. Our guides were funny & entertaining, & throughout the course, they give us different challenges to complete. Twisting & turning down the lines, falling back into trust falls off of the platforms, & learning to flip upside down as we soared were just a few of the tricks we learned. The tour ended far too quickly. By the end, I was already talking about when & where I would want to go zip lining next.

We finished earlier than expected, so once we were out of our harnesses, Joseph & I shared some Dippin’ Dots from the store & then made an impromptu drive to Asheville. The streets were busy & packed with people. It was a beautiful night, perfect for walking the city streets & getting a bite to eat at a rooftop bar. Joseph & I got onto a waitlist for a restaurant & then perused the shops while we waited. We popped into one traveling trunk show where a henna artist was doing tattoos, & we each got a bear paw on our left arms (a tattoo we have been wanting to get for a while).

When our table was ready, we headed back up the street to Strada Italiano. We sat at the bar in the sister restaurant, Social Lounge, which was decorated to look like a speakeasy. Despite the busyness of the restaurant, our bartender was attentive & entertaining. To start, we ordered the Arancini & a drink each: The Botanical Bliss for me (a blend of Ketel One grapefruit & rose vodka, peach syrup made in house, fresh lemon, & prosecco) & the Plums & Roses Old Fashioned for Joseph (plum-infused Four Roses bourbon blended with homemade basil stem syrup & Peychaud’s & Angostura bitters). The drinks were perfectly mixed & went down far too easy. The Arancini was served in a sherry tomato cream sauce with pecorino romano & a balsamic reduction. The balls themselves were fried to perfection – when we cut inside, steam rose from the delicious blend of creamy mozzarella cheese & soft risotto. 

For dinner, Joseph ordered a Meat Toppings Pizza with spicy & sweet sausage, & I have to say, as much as I don’t enjoy meat pizzas (I like vegetables better), it was one of the best pizzas I have ever tasted. The crust was crunchy on the outside & soft in the center, the sauce was balanced to not be too acidic (as so many tomato sauces can be), & the meat & cheese blended beautifully in every bite. I ordered the Salmon del Giardino, a grilled salmon served on top of a bed of arugula, topped with bruschetta & preserved lemon & scallions, & served with a delicious, creamy risotto del giorno. For the first time ever, Joseph took a bite of my food & said he liked what I had ordered more than he liked his own dish. The salmon was cooked so perfectly it tasted buttery. The risotto was soft & dense, & the tomatoes & arugula gave a refreshing pop in every bite. I was full halfway through, but the dish was too good not to finish.

We went for a relaxed walk through the streets lit up by streetlights before finally returning to our car & driving back to our Airbnb. At this point, we had been active for almost 12 full hours, & we were exhausted. 

The following morning, we woke up early, eager to get in a little activity before our long drive home. We packed up our belongings & headed to the Bearwallow Mountain Trail, which was only a few minutes away from our Airbnb. The trail led us through the forest & up the mountainside to a field where cows grazed. It was there that we saw the most amazing view from our trip. Impossible to capture on camera, it was one of those breathtaking views you have to drink in, knowing you’ll never get to see it again. A haze hung low & had settled just above the miles & miles of forested mountains that rolled into the distance. The wind whipped at our clothes, chilling us to the bone as we stared out at the picturesque view. It was the perfect way to end our brief but packed trip to North Carolina. 

Standing there with Joseph, I smiled to myself. At this moment, I knew I had succeeded in giving him the best birthday gift yet. The fact that I had succeeded in not just topping the prior year’s gift, but that I had shown him just how loved he is, made me the happiest I had been all weekend.

I just don’t know how I am going to top this gift next year.