Take Me Out to the Ball Game

You can’t fully embrace life in the Bull City without a visit to the Durham Bulls, the Triple-A affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays. Made famous by the 1988 movie Bull Durham, the team draws in record crowds all season long, often filling its 10,000-seat downtown stadium designed by the architects of Camden Yards. It’s a baseball lover’s dream from the traditional seventh-inning stretch to roaming vendors selling cotton candy, peanuts and cold drinks. Arrive early to check out the restaurants next door in the refurbished AmericanTobacco Campus.

Eat Local. Eat Well

This advice is easily followed if you visit the Durham Farmer’s Market, open Saturdays year round and Wednesday afternoons in the summer. Located at the new Pavilion at Durham Central Park, the market features more than 50 vendors, all located within 70 miles of the market. As you weave through the bustling crowds, you’ll find produce, meat, eggs, flowers, plants, baked goods, pottery, jewelry and artwork. If you’re hungry after shopping the stalls, stop by the neighboring Piedmont restaurant, which serves only local, seasonal food often fresh from the market. 

An Afternoon Delight

For both students and locals, there’s no better place to have an afternoon picnic or study session than the Sarah B. Duke Botanical Gardens. You can sunbathe on a blanket or throw a football on the spacious South Lawn or grab a seat with a book along the terrace. Watch the garden’s resident ducks and geese from one of the bridges over the pond in the Culberson Asiatic Arboretum. Hidden throughout the garden are benches and secluded nooks and crannies that make you feel like the grounds are all your own.

Chow Down

When in North Carolina, do as the North Carolinians: eat barbeque and lots of it. And one of the best places in the state just happens to be the legendary Bullock’s Barbeque off Hillsborough Road.  They serve authentic Eastern-style pulled pork barbeque with tangy vinegar style sauce, hot and crispy hush puppies, Brunswick stew, and Southern sweet tea.

Get Away From It All

The beautiful Eno River winds it way through Durham offering a quiet, scenic respite from busy streets.  There are several access points to the Eno River State Park where you can hike, fish, canoe, and daydream. Two local favorites are the hiking trails at the Fews Ford Access and Durham’s city park, West Point on the Eno.

A Taste of Summer Year Round

Durham is home to its own gourmet popsicle stand that offers water- or cream-based Mexican paletas. Locopops is known for its unusual flavors such as Mojito, Pistachio, Cucumbers and Chile. They also serve basic fruit flavors, and everything is made in house with fresh ingredients. Because of its popularity, the owners expanded from their original shop on Hillsborough Road to five additional locations across the Triangle.

Working Out

Known by locals as the Golf Course Loop, the Al Buehler Cross Country Trail is one of the best places in town to get a good workout. The hilly three-mile gravel trail circles around the perimeter of the Washington Duke Inn and Golf Course. The heavily-shaded trail is maintained by the Office of the Duke Forest, which oversees 7,000 acres of privately owned land in Alamance, Durham and Orange counties that is used for recreation and research purposes.

Downtown Delicacies

For beignets as good if not better than the famed ones from Café Du Monde in New Orleans, stop by Rue Cler, a Parisian-style restaurant in downtown Durham. The beignets at Rue Cler are made to order so these bite size donuts sprinkled with powder sugar come out hot and ready to melt in your mouth every time. Who knew that something that only costs $7 per dozen could be featured in Food and Wine Magazine?

Shop and Stroll

There’s no better place to spend a lazy afternoon perusing shops than Ninth Street. It’s a great walk-able shopping district that can meet anybody’s needs from fine arts at Zola Craft Gallery to beautiful bouquets at Ninth Street Flowers and more. And of course you’ll want to venture over to gorgeous Brightleaf Square in downtown Durham, which offers spectacular dining and a wide array of shopping options.

Fresh Air and Food

Known for its hearty sandwiches and fresh baked goods, Foster’s Market is often packed to the brim during the weekday lunch hour and weekend mornings. The gourmet food market café has been a staple in Durham since it was opened in 1990. The food is to die for, but eating it on the market’s large front porch makes the experience even better.