Asheville Scampin'

I've been trying to write some posts for a few days now, but it just doesn't seem right after the recent shootings in Connecticut. I've felt terribly sad for the victims and their families as most people have. I can only imagine how the victim's parents and their loved ones must feel, and it turns my stomach inside out. Eventually I hope they will find peace in their lives. It's a tragic reminder to me that we have a limited time on this planet and to make the most of it while we're here, and in that vein, I'll get back to blogging and tell you about our recent camping trip. 

Tobacco Barn Antiques

Before we left Asheville, we went to a great antique mall--The Tobacco Barn. This place was HUGE and had a great variety of merchandise. North Carolina appears to have more flea markets and antique malls than any other state I've been to. If we had stopped at every flea market and antique mall from Atlanta to Asheville (normally a 3 & 1/2 hour drive), it would easily take a week to get there. I'd like to do that sometime with my mom actually! We'd need a big o'l truck though. And I'd have to figure out how to get stuff back to San Francisco, sigh.

The Black Walnut B&B Inn

So back to Asheville . . . we stayed in the most wonderful B&B I've ever stayed in: The Black Walnut. Usually when we go to Asheville we stay at the Grove Park Inn, which is great, but but this B&B tops that. It was soooo comfortable, beautiful and the food was amazing (a delicious gourmet breakfast is included as well as afternoon tea, wine and hor'devours). The innkeepers, Lori and Peter, are incredibly friendly and hospitable--every night they would join the guests for afternoon tea and every morning they made the gourmet breakfast themselves. Another great thing about the The Black Walnut is you can easily walk into downtown. It was hard to get pictures of our room even though it was gigantic--a king bed, an armoire, a dressing table, a sitting area (with two chairs, a sofa, and a coffee table) and our luxury bathroom, but here are a few from our room and other details inside The Black Walnut. For more info and to see more pictures, go to their web site.

Details inside the inn.





Our room, the Walnut Room.



The grounds all around the inn were beautiful. This picture is of a lily and coy pond with little waterfalls.

Craggy Trail in Asheville

On our second day in Asheville, we packed a lunch and headed for the Craggy Gardens Trail. It was foggy and cool and the trail was so beautiful. The fog was rushing through the woods and over us. I wish the pictures could capture the fog moving, but at least you can see that it was there. We took the Blue Ridge Parkway to get to the trail head. If you're not up for hiking if you're ever in Asheville, at least take a drive along the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Biltmore in Asheville

We've been in Asheville, NC for the last few days. We thought we'd make a little vacation out of our Atlanta trip and spend some time here. If you've never been to Asheville, it's like a mini Boulder, CO with a dash of San Francisco--at least that's how I'd describe it. The people here are very laid back, earthy and funky. Asheville is really just a lovely southern town. Here are a few pictures from the gardens at Biltmore--the largest privately owned house in the US (owned by the Vanderbilt family). It's truly incredible. Everything in the house reflects, as best it can, the period it was built--the early 1900's. It has an indoor pool (which I imagine was quite something for the time), a bowling alley, a series of 3 fireplaces in the dining room that could easily fit a pickup truck in each one, beautiful furniture (including amazing upholstery and wallpaper in a number of the rooms), a huge pipe organ in the dining room and a wrap around porch along the back of the house that provides a beautiful view of the mountains. And those are just a few highlights. We've visited the house three times, and each visit is just as enjoyable as the one before because there's so much to discover here. Unfortunately, people aren't allowed to take pictures inside the house, but we took quite a few in the gardens. If you visit Asheville, don't miss Biltmore.