Freedom has come at a slightly additional expense (to the company), as I leave the company suite and move into the Hyatt Regency Greenville on Main Street. The Hyatt is a fairly old hotel and looks like it was renovated in the 1990s, compared to the Marriott which was built only a few years ago.
I don't care really too much about the hotel as long as it's comfortable, because being downtown makes a world of difference. It is strange how all hotels seem to look the same in the end.
Being the sister city of Kortrijk, Greenville is even smaller, and almost everything is on Main Street. Here, it will be cheaper and easier for me to eat and socialise here rather than being stuck in that expensive hotel where a cheap dinner starts at $25! Besides, in my new location I can now scare the locals with my long hair and strange accent; People think I'm from Maine, for some reason.
On Fridays, they block off the end of Main Street and have free open-air jazz concerts just outside the Hyatt in a small square. This is now right at my doorstep!
At the other end of the award winning Main Street is Reedy River, where there's a waterfall within Falls Park, which is nice but very modest. I went for a quick walk around the area and it struck me that the place was excessively clean, and has plenty of old people that are afraid of some guy with long hair taking photos.
Oddly, for such a small area, the park actually has a suspension bridge over the waterfall, spanning 110 metres at a height of 60 metres. I didn't spend too much time there because yet another thunderstorm was arriving, so I started to head back.
Walking around a few of the side streets uncovered quite a number of bars and restaurants, but I really have the impression that Main Street is the glue that holds it together, just like the entrance to Disneyland. The only difference is that Main Street has some nasty traffic problems and probably needs to be pedestrianised. Interestingly, embedded in the pavement are several famous thought-provoking quotes. This particular quote from Carlo Goldoni stood out for a few reasons — see if you can guess them all!
Despite the relocation, I'll be heading up to North Carolina tomorrow for something definitely interesting, which should be a good break from a week that's actually been significantly busier than I ever anticipated.
More fer y'all t'morrow!
