Goober Says Hey!

Yesterday we took a road trip. On the other side of this mountain…also known as Pilot Mountain, lies the sleepy little North Carolina town of Mt. Airy. Andy Griffith based a lot of the people and places from his TV show on some of the people and sights from his hometown. This year marks the 50th Anniversary of the Andy Griffith Show and we decided to see for ourselves what Mayberry Days is all about.

People lined both sides of the street as they made their way up and down Main Street. We jumped right in and and enjoyed the fun of spotting landmarks like The Snappy Lunch Diner (pork chops are their specialty and way too crowded for us to get into today) and Floyd’s Barber Shop.

Goober says Hey! My husband was the first to spot Goober. Guerilla blogging photo. Goober was posing with another festival go-er and I snatched a photo of him rather than wait my turn. :)

And then we also ran into Ernest T. Bass. Looks like he has a regular gig here.

And here is Sheriff Taylor’s Police Car. Actually, we saw several of these old police squad cars as we walked up and down the Main Street.

Barney Fife!! We spotted Barney posing for pictures on the sidewalk. Bad photos. We were still in the car and by the time we got our car parked…Barney boy was long gone.

But no worries. I spotted a much younger Barney coming out of a diner and I have to say he was the cutest thing I saw all day!

And we found Otis the town drunk! It’s not easy to see but the key to his jail cell was dangling from his wrist. :)

The sign on the Blue Bird Diner said closed but it was anything but. The place was packed. Pork Chop Sandwiches are a big deal here.

Aunt Bea’s Catering, Barney’s Cafe, and it’s hard to see but that was Opie’s Candy Shop and it was packed with people too.

And plenty of souvenir T-shirts to pick from.

I don’t say “Daggumit” very often but you will catch me saying “my dogs are barking!” from time to time.

It was a fun way to spend an afternoon. I think the really big crowds come for Saturday when there is a parade and some of the original actors from the show make an appearance. I believe the BBQ contest is on Saturday along with some other festivities. Yesterday was good enough for us. We don’t like huge crowds and it’s still pretty hot here weather wise. We got our taste of Mayberry and when the time comes to move away we can do so with a clear conscience. We’ve experienced both the Lexington Barbeque Festival and now Mayberry Days. Another big check off our list. :)