Touring UNC--Chapel Hill

Last night, we decided to take advantage of the 80 degree (as opposed to 100+) weather to tour UNC's campus. Of course, it didn't hurt that there are no students there yet, so it was quiet enough to take photos. Here's a highlight of my favorites:

The Forest Theatre! This theatre is an outdoor, stone amphitheater built into the hillside on campus. It's beautiful, and if you come visit me, it's one of the first places I'll take you, because I'm a theatre geek. I was in heaven!! Look at that stonework! Oh, and guess what...if you're not Mormon, and planning on a temple wedding, you can reserve it to get married in! Beautiful.

We let the kids go onto the stage and yell to listen to the amplification of their voices, then we talked a little about the plays that might take place...definitely planning on going back.


Now, the Coker Arboretum and Botanical Garden. Again, I was speechless, in a state of bliss... The stonework and plantings were amazing. Check out this cast iron gate:

This was a tunnel of vines, built up over a wooden structure, but you have to be there to really get the effect.

Some got creative in how they laid stone. I love how it looks like the leaves on the vine it was next to.
Big leaning tree. Stephen tried to fix it, but... No, kidding. I just thought it's branches were beautiful.
A little man-made creek, lined with stone. Very pretty, the water was trickling down it.

The sundial at the planetarium is HUGE! Zach is standing next to some detail work on the metal hand of the dial. We are studying Earth/Space science for homeschool this year, so we'll be visiting this planetarium quite a bit, I feel...



Here we are at the well. It's the symbol of UNC. For many years, this well was the sole water source for the 2 dorms surrounding it. It's at the heart of campus. The photo is kind of blurry--but I had to include it. Zac took it for us. :)



Just admiring the detail in the stonework...

Here Stephen stands at the place where a protester drove a car into a group of students the weekend he was interviewing here. They weren't protesting him...I'll have to ask him if he remembers what the protest was about.