Spring Break 2011 - Day 6

If you have the opportunity to come to the Outer Banks, I recommend a trip to Manteo on Roanoke Island.  We made the hour long drive in the morning to visit the aquarium.  The main attraction is the huge shark tank and we were lucky to visit when the divers were putting on their show.  The aquarium grounds face the sound with a picnic area and a pit for the kids to dig for sharks' teeth.  One of the employees happened to come by when DD was digging and asked him what he was looking for.  DD said "um, um, shahk teef."  He was so impressed with him that he brought back a bunch of sharks' teeth for the boys.

After the aquarium we headed to the historic village for lunch and some shopping.  The village has some pretty good restaurants and great shops for housewares and original art.  Many of the stores also double as studios for the artists and you can watch them work.  Our waitress brought out a treasure chest full of little toys for the boys to choose from, a hit.  We decided to let the boys nap in the car which meant that C spent the next 1.5 hours dropping me off and picking me up at various stores so that I could shop while the boys napped.

When they woke up, we made one more stop at the third location of the Island Bookstore (I know, I'm obsessed) and we again came away with more books for the kids and some other souvenirs.  We hit the beach in the evening for our own kite festival.  The beach was empty save for us and our kites.  It was one of those moments that I'll never forget.