Biltmore Estate Buildings October 25, 2017

Jim decided to relax on the 25th, while I drove to the Biltmore Estate alone, since it was quite expensive and tiring. The exit road from our Airbnb room was scary when a car delivery truck was parked at the top of the blind hill. Screech! I missed it. 

It took 5 hours to tour the Biltmore house. It was so huge! Unfortunately, there were many workers decorating for Christmas that day, so there was lots of scaffolding and boxes everywhere. The front lawn was full of workers too. The rooms were dark; probably to preserve the furniture, so photography was strictly high speed.  The rooms were spectacular.  I couldn't imagine living in such splendor.  A visit to Biltmore Estate is quite a treat and I recommend buying tickets in advance.

Please note, none of these photos are for sale.

     Biltmore Reflection

 Banquet hall

     

Breakfast room

Salon

Music room

Horses on the property designed by Frederick Law Olmstead

 Frederick Law Olmstead, Landscape Architect

Loggia covered room

Bannister in Loggia

Library

Library ceiling, "The Chariot of Aurora" by Giovanni Pellegrini from Pisini Palace in Venice 1720's

Napoleon's chess set

George Vanderbilt, owner

Edith Vanderbilt by Giovanni Boldini

Tapestry Gallery

George and Edith Vanderbilt

Mr. Vanderbilt's Bedroom

Oak Sitting Room

Mrs.Vanderbilt's Bedroom

Italian Garden from the Biltmore

I particularly enjoyed the painting of Rosita by Ignacio Zuloaga, purchased by George Vanderbilt at age 51 right before his death from complications of Appendicitis. His wife Edith didn͛t like the painting when it arrived from the framers a month after his death, so she sent it to the National Gallery in DC. Cornelia and John Francis Cecil, George͛s daughter and son-in-law, brought it back to Biltmore.

Tyrolean Chimney Room, 18th century Swiss porcelain overmantel

Louis XV room, sometimes used as a birthing room

Stone hallway in the basement

                                     Swimming pool in the basement

Servant's Dining room

Smoking room

Gingerbread Houses in one of the stores

Asheville's Omni Grove Park Inn Oct 25, 2017

Our Airbnb host gave us a suggested list of restaurants and offered to watch Sarita for dinner. We chose the romantic Omni Grove Park Inn, complete with outdoor lighted archways and trees, an antique car, huge fireplace and three restaurants, one al fresco. It was too cold to eat outside, so we braved the long walk to the upscale and elegant Vue 1913.  Apparently several Presidents have eaten there.

The entrance was beautiful.  

An old car was in the lobby.

Visitors were cozy around a blazing fireplace.

There were several restaurants.  We would have chosen the Sunset Terrace, but it was quite cold outside.  We chose the Vue 1913 at the end of a long walk, since it seemed more romantic.  I liked the reflection of my favorite guy.

A table set up in the hallway looked nice. 

Bryson City to Blue Ridge Parkway Oct 24, 2017

The next morning, we headed to Asheville after breakfast in the cabin.  We returned to Bryson City and stopped at the “Loose Moose” gift shop, where I bought a funny T shirt showing a moose trophy on the wall, while his appalled moose friends said “Hey wait a minute, isn’t that Jim???”.  

 

I took some photos of the red caboose and the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad getting ready to leave. 

    Caboose in Bryson City

    Great Smoky Mountains Railroad

  

We drove to Fontana Lake to see an overlook and the recreation area.  Unfortunately, the lake was man made and looked it, but it was still a pleasant stop.  

      Fontana Lake

      Near Fontana Lake

We returned to Cherokee to see a little of what we missed.  Jim went to the Museum of the Cherokee Indian to learn about the “Trail of Tears” and the Cherokee who managed to escape that horror.  Since the dog couldn't enter the museum, I visited the Qualla Arts and Crafts Mutual with our dog, Sarita in my jacket, to admire the 3 striped handmade baskets made by using black walnut and bloodroot dyes.  I bought some small earrings for a friend since it was all I could afford there.  The crafts were beautiful and very expensive.  

      Museum of the Cherokee Indian

      Trail of Tears sculpture

      Blue Ridge Parkway tunnel

We headed towards Asheville from the bottom of the Blue Ridge Parkway at mile marker 469, stopping at Cowee Mountain,

     Cowee Mountains Overlook is known for beautiful light and shadow.  Next we viewed Graveyard Fields, Yellowstone Falls, and Looking Glass rock, a large half bald mountain peak. 

      Looking Glass Rock at sunset

We stopped for dinner at The Pisgah Inn, but a man told us the wait was 90 minutes and it would be better to go elsewhere. I took some quick photos of the view and we continued, only to find the Parkway was blocked!

      Pisgah Inn rockers

       

      Sunset at Pisgah Inn

So we went to the little store just down the road to ask why.  The road was partly washed out because of the Monday storm.  We picked up some snacks and sandwiches for dinner and drove back 3 miles to exit at Brevard Road, then another hour to Asheville in the dark, arriving a little after 9 pm at Andy’s Mountain Home.  The last left turn was a humdinger.  It looked like we were driving over a cliff, so Jim got out to check for a road beyond the turn.  It was there, but a little nerve wracking.  Andy had texted me earlier, saying that the River was flooding, but it receded right before we got there.