When Jake Wakefield first heard of Asheville, N.C., he thought it was just another mountain… When Jake Wakefield first heard of Asheville, N.C., he thought it was just another mountain town in Appalachia.

“Boy, was I wrong,” Wakefield laughs, now five years after he decided to move to this hidden North Carolina town. Perhaps calling Asheville a “town” is a bit of a misnomer — it’s really more of a big little city. It’s just that Asheville is so many things that it’s hard to pigeonhole it as anything specific.

“When I first came here, I stumbled upon Asheville. I couldn’t figure out exactly what kind of place it was. And now, five years later, I still don’t know exactly how to describe it. And I know that’s exactly what I love about it.”

Wakefield may not be alone. This city — or town, depending on who you ask — has attracted hundreds of artsy refugees from the deeply conservative surroundings of Tennessee and inner North Carolina. With the help of the University of North Carolina at Asheville as an anchor, the town has become quite the liberal enclave and escape destination for young people.

From Illinois to Georgia, 20-something’s like Wakefield have decided to relocate here for the open-minded atmosphere and beautiful environment. Wakefield, who is a Knoxville, Tenn., native, said that it was “like a breath of fresh air, in more ways than one.” And for others, the lure of Asheville is even harder to describe.

“Life is just better here. I don’t know what it is, but I’m sticking around,” said Lizzie Meyer, a frequent customer at one of the many locally owned coffee shops. Unlike Jake Wakefield, Lizzie Meyer came to Asheville to study at the University of North Carolina’s branch campus. She says that her parents felt safe sending her here and that, more importantly, she knew she would never be bored. But what was the selling point for Meyer? One reason: “There’s no Wal-Mart in town!”

In fact, one is hard-pressed to find any corporately owned business in downtown Asheville. While there are patches of big business lining the roads leading here, the downtown section is virtually corporate-free. That means a healthy dose of artisan stores and off-beat shops fill the streets, and (best of all) many quirky restaurants can be found along any city block.

“I had to adjust to the Asheville style of eating,” said Wakefield, who frequently dines at Salsa’s, a tiny Mexican-Caribbean restaurant on Patton Street in the heart of Asheville’s downtown. At Salsa’s, diners might not know what they are eating, but they know that it’s good.

Instead of the diluted ethnic foods typically found at chain restaurants, this town has an eclectic mix of authentic native foods ranging from Mexican-Caribbean to Irish to French. But hungry customers beware: Asheville restaurants have sporadic hours of business. The safest bet? If you bring your appetite to Asheville, you better come early.

The reason for the unusual hours may be that this is a downtown area. That is, people come here to work during the day, so shops offer most of their business during the daytime. Asheville does have a rush hour (albeit, much less than most other cities), and downtown is occupied by businessmen and other professional employees during the weekdays. Both Merrill Lynch and BB’T Bank occupy sizable office buildings. But this is just another reason why Asheville is so difficult to all-inclusively describe.

It’s an artsy college town, a professional employment area and a wonderful place to live. With such a diversity of character within the city itself, it seems like a mere bonus that Asheville is nestled in between beautiful mountains. Even though Jake Wakefield had never imagined that he would simply happen upon such a unique place during a road trip to the Outer Banks, he has decided to spend his life here. As for Lizzie Meyer, she says that she just wants to absorb all that she can during her college years here. As she put it, “It’s not like I’m just living here, I’m enjoying here.”

With all of the different nooks of this warm, big little city, it should be easy for anyone to find a way to enjoy the variety of Asheville, N.C.