AP Travel News – Whether it’s the weather, or nearby Bristol Raceway, or numerous venues for seniors to pursue, Johnson City appears to be reeling in retiree’s by the droves. The City is also a great college town too! How many places have hot dog stands whose building looks just like one?

Barbara and I enjoyed Johnson City immensely. Our first impression as we drove into Johnson City was that the area is surrounded by scenic mountain ranges. We came in from our farm in Crossville during prom weekend. Lots of youngsters, and the liveliness and vibrancy of youthful exuberance was contagious. We met several locals, and had lots of fun during our day, and evening in Johnson City. Over at Wautagua River and Lake, there was fine fishing for trout and smallmouth bass, the restaurants are fun, offer great tastes, and top-notch for visitors and locals.

We enjoyed our overnight stay at the new Carnegie Hotel, and had an excellent breakfast at Wellington’s. The hotel had been originally built in 1891. After checking into the hotel, we had dinner at Cafe LOLA, a Bistro;”where the traditions of French cuisine, meet the flavors of fine American cuisine.” The Tapas were a bit beyond compare. The homemade tomato bisque soup very memorable. Check their website: www.cafelolabistro.com. We then enjoyed a dessert visit to the quirky, eclectic, “Cootie Brown”, known for incredible pizza’s, and off the charts pies and cakes. Check out their site www.cootiebrowns.com For a visit, to Johnson City contact: www.visitjohnsoncitytn.com I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the far deep past. A past that reaches back into Paleontological times. We visited and viewed the bones of ancient dinosaurs and mammalians at the new museum at the East TN. State University, Natural History Museum Visitor Center;the Gray Fossil Site. This site was a thriving ecosystem at the end of the Miocene epoch, about 4-7 million years ago. This is a fascinating place and always worth a visit to view “them old bones”. www.grayfossilmuseum.org.