This afternoon was gorgeous! After our morning on the beach with surfers (and a few bikers), we were ready for some laid back strolling. Marge, Pepper, and I ambled along the Riverwalk for a bit but decided that, as beautiful as the Cape Fear River was today, we wanted to explore the downtown shops a bit. So we turned up from the river at Market Street and went to Kilwins for chocolate-covered pretzels to fuel our exploration. While Pepper and I were waiting outside the totally awesome chocolate and ice cream store for Marge to buy the pretzels, she and I decided to check out the horse trolley parked in the center island. I tried to take a photo of the horses alone but, as you can see, Pepper moved into the center of the shot - just can't take the ham out of the dog.
Anyway, with chocolate pretzels in hand (only very temporarily, they were gone by the time we reached Front Street - all of maybe 80 feet away), we headed east. We took a right on S. Front Street and almost immediately found a cool little shop we'd not noticed before. The Italian Gourmet Market as 22 S. Front Street has been open for nine years, and we've been here for five years, but we just didn't notice it before. I'll tell ya we will for sure be back often. Proprietor Frank Delia and Sunday helper extraordinaire Anita were friendly, knowledgeable, gracious, and, this is the best part for me, totally passionate about their store and their wares. We bought some roasted fava beans and a nifty Italian spice to try tonight when we cook some fresh shrimp - can't wait. This store stocks Italian appetizers and snacks, desserts, pastas (they have a pasta club we will check out), wines, and ceramics. Frank just got back from a trip to Italy and has a selection of great-smelling handmade soap bars if you're into bath items that look, feel, and smell good. 
It was a full, beautiful day today in Wilmington. We're truly blessed with a splendid variety of quality places, activities, and people. The weather helps, too.
