South end and other random meanderings

 Today we decided to hang in a definitively teeny bop aka Gen Z neighborhood at the south end of Charlotte's downtown (called uptown).

This is what local city planners might call gentrified neighborhoods.  Converting old mills and foundries that once dotted the low rent district of the industrial city into brick edifices with concrete floors and new glass all around.

Multiple small locales all connected with narrow lanes and barely allowing two cars to pass this network of up and coming eateries, bars, pastry shops with a healthy dose of Aromatherapy and CBD/ Bong shops complete the scene.

Here are some views of the landscape.  

At lunch we tried Emmy Squared pizza (a NY like taste in a deep dish preparation)... ours came with spicy Calabria peppers and basil over a dollop of cool Burrata cow cheese.

Demographic was largely white people in their 20s with a canine of varying shape, pulling them around in all directions.  Women were in uniform that was largely made of expensive Lululemon tights and airpods with a thermos water bottle in one hand.

Those that were not sweating were in everything couture..YSL to LV to other letters of the alphabet that cost more than a paycheck for most Americans including those that were toting them.. buying things they don't need with money they don't have..

For those that intend to not drink and drive there was a $500 for two hours - drink and cycle - operation we saw come by.  Chatted with the guy who told us he stopped at couple local bars to let the riders have their fill and then come back and join for goofy stuff as he motored his contraption through downtown and French Quarter.

Then we strolled some more and then drove to a local business park to watch a metal sculpture created by a Czech sculptor ... the likes of which we saw during our Prague trip.. In Europe he created a Kafka bust 10 stories tall.

Here it is something similar.. except no one in this neighborhood probably would know what Kafka is.

The project was commissioned by a descendant of mad King Ludwig of Bavaria .. something of a royal that lived among us .. died recently.  His name is Count Arco who developed business parks and malls here.