Do you remember The Andy Griffith Show? Me too! Who could forget Andy, Opie, Barney Fife, Aunt Bea, Floyd The Barber, Gomer Pyle, his cousin Goober and all the gang?! The show was created by Andy Griffith and filmed in Mount Airy, NC (Griffith's home town) and, since it was on our way home today we stopped by for a visit. It's just like Mayberry!
Friendly, hospitable folks greeted us every few steps and we strolled around the shops, meeting super people everywhere. As usual, Zuma attracted a lot of attention.
Dotted along the sidewalks, in front of sponsoring shops are large decoratively painted fiberglass fiddles and banjos:
We stopped by Floyd's Barber Shop which remains fully operational and had men waiting for a shave and a haircut. It's the real deal, not staged. Complete with the original barber chairs, it looks exactly as it did on the tv show (sadly, we learned that Floyd The Barber passed away last week in his early 90s):
Everything looks like Gomer was filling a car with gas and just left his truck there! Nothing is contrived, it's all just 'there' for people to wander around and peruse. No rules, no charge. No worries.
The Police car is parked out front and, for a small fee, a wannabe Barney Fife gives guided tours. The people who were on the tour while we were there said it was great!
Next door is the Police Station complete with the original desk, telephone and other props ....
.... and of course, the famous jail cells:
We'll be sure to stop pushing the remote button to watch the Andy Griffith Show when we scamper by the black and white re-runs.
Naturally, Zuma sniffed out the two pet stores on Main Street so we had to go into both to check out the toys and treats!
At The Dapper Hound Zuma taste-tested some yummy peanut butter dog cookies from the kindly shopkeeper and had a nice visit. Zuma loves the cookies and she is pretty fussy so we bought a small bag for the road. Dog.Pringles. She can't have just one!
She also attempted to shoplift some duck chews (see jail photo above) so we bought four for the road.
The owners are charming and true dog lovers. A sweet, tiny one pound Chihuahua sits on a throne-like bed behind the counter, which fascinated Zuma as she adores tiny dogs. Since there is a 129 lb weight difference, we spared the darling little lady a possible heart attack.
We bought a big red stuffed dog for Zuma which she cheerfully carried down the street:
I think we'll call him Opie. It took a while to trundle to the car as she was so excited about flinging her new toy around, showing off.
Thank you, Mayberry! What a fun place.
Or, as Gomer Pyle would say, "Well .., Gawwww-leeee!".
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