(Birthday) Weekend Recap

Guys, I had a seriously terrific birthday.  Asheville never seems to disappoint.  Here's a recap that includes rich, white people; the best mountain town in NC; where they used to do pow-wows; and insane asylums!! :)

Blame Downton Abbey

We left on Friday morning to take off to Asheville.  Where we live is only about an hour and a half west of the "Paris of the Mountains."  Our ride up was great.  We had sunshine and seventy-five degree weather.  (Yes, it is November!)

My husband's company offers up discounted tickets to various spots around North Carolina and Tennessee - he took advantage of the Biltmore Estate tickets for this trip.  I am a lifelong NC resident so I have been to Biltmore before (hello fourth grade field trip).  Honestly, I hadn't gave Biltmore a notion since fourth grade but after watching Downton Abbey...

I hate I missed the Downton Fashion exhibit in the spring at Biltmore

There were times when I was comparing certain features to what those crazy Crawley's were doing over at the old Abbey.  Guess what?  I was not the only one!  A group of girls ahead of us were making connections to good ole Downton too ha!

Biltmore is the largest residence in the United States and it does stand alone in it its grandeur. I won't go into historical facts and figures, you can do that on your own time.  Let me share with you that my personal thoughts on the house is....I just don't care for it.  It is a bit gaudy and a hint of Gothic scary so it isn't something I think is fabulous.  With that being said, I can totally respect the craftsmanship of that castle in the mountains.  The stone and wood carvers really did a phenomenal job and their work is the true beauty of the estate.

My favorite part of the house?



The greenhouse.

Duh.



A side note:  This was the first weekend for Christmas at Biltmore.  We didn't purchase tickets for an evening/candlelit tour but I can imagine all those trees (I quit counting at 30) looked magical.

My birthday lunch was at the Stable Cafe which is at home in the original horse stables.  I was unsure about eating lunch there.  Seriously, it was my birthday I wanted something Southern Living Exclusive.

Let me just say that our lunch was out of this world.  We ordered a platter that consisted of mountain charm - a quarter of a rotisserie chicken, a rack of ribs, about a quart of pulled pork barbecue.  That's all fine and dandy but I eat more veggies than meat so you can imagine by delight over the most mouth watering turnip greens, sweet pickles, and mashed sweet potatoes.

To top it all off - a generous slice of sweet potato pie with the best meringue I have ever had (and I do not eat meringue!) - and it was FREE because it was my birthday!



After walking the trails and a stop at the winery (get their Cabernet) for some tasting we bid adieu to that little Vanderbilt shanty.  Oh and if you're thinking that winery looks like a dairy then you are correct.  They re purposed the dairy in a very lovely way....ahhh Cabernet.

Downtown not to be confused with Biltmore

Lunch was around 3 so we weren't very interested in anything meal wise until around 10 that evening.  We have visited Asheville before and therefore ready to go enjoy the Downtown area before the rains came in the next day.

If you have not visited Downtown Asheville then you should add it to your bucket list.  This girl simply adores Asheville and that is a HUGE statement.  OK, I am about to share a secret with you.  Get ready for it.

1,2,3...

I hate the mountains.

It goes back many years ago when we went up there quite a bit.  My mom worked on a degree in Boone, NC at Appalachian State and I, to this day, am not a fan of App or really spending more than two hours in Boone.  No offense teachers of the universe I just don't get high on the high country.

Asheville, well it is different.



I don't feel like I am in the mountains when I am there.  The way the town is set up you really feel you could be anywhere.  When I say anywhere I mean more like some place in Europe.  Yes, it is referred to as "The Paris of the South" so that should give you a fine idea of what this mountain town is like.

Art is everywhere.

The best food imaginable is everywhere.

It is a true laissez-faire aura over the entire city.

The sad part is that there are homeless people sleeping in corners.  So I can paint you a beautiful portrait but I have to be honest too.  As caught up as I can get in "loving" it and seeing it in rose colored glasses - there are still human issues in those enchanted streets.



So we took to Downtown Asheville around ten in the evening for our dinner snack.  When we stumbled upon The Southern Kitchen - a favorite.  The last time we were there we stopped in for drinks and I ran into a friend from high school.  Small world problems I tell ya.  This time it was less crowded and a beautiful evening for a buffalo chicken panini (myself) and chicken noodle soup (the hubby).

We sat under a cloudy night sky and ate and drank (try White Zombie beer an Asheville IPA) and did what we love the most ---- creeping.  Ha!  People watching.  A table of young college kids probably from UNC-A; a bachelorette party; a little date night off some type of Sorority formal; a table of sixty somethings; and us.

Oh and a bear of a bouncer.  The man was huge.  I can attest to his hugeness because he literally picked me up and spun me around for my birthday.

Rain is a good thing

Saturday brought a lazy girl (me) and a lazy husband.  I really adore hotel rooms.  Yes, I get excited about hotel rooms.  I also get excited for breakfast in a hotel room.  This birthday was great.

I threw on some clothes and ran down to get a cinnamon roll and coffee then popped back up to my room only to put on my pajamas again and curl up on the couch and watch television (and text my bestie.)

Around 11:30 that morning we decided to let the housekeeping staff do their job and we went back to the Downtown area.

We walked and walked and walked.

We ate the best pizza.  Barley's Taproom & Pizzeria that is all you need to know. Our slices of pizza pie were unbelievably good.  We love a good crunchy crust and we got it!  The toppings tasted fabulous as well.

We walked and walked and walked.



We devoured samples of honey.  Asheville Bee Charmer is a store you need to visit in person or online.  It is fabulous and they have a great selection of honeys and bee products (pollen granules anyone?)

We walked and walked and walked.

We drank coffee and shared a slice of red velvet cheesecake (hubby loves red velvet.)  This stop was at World Coffee, the fabulous chick at Asheville Bee Charmer suggested we check it out for good coffee.  The staff during our visit was overwhelmed and it was obvious in the service but the coffee was good and the cheesecake was pretty good (not a red velvet fan).

Then came the rain and two lost people.  (Us)

It really sucks when the temperature is steadily dropping, it is raining, and you totally forgot where your truck is parked.

Thanks to my GPS we were back at our vehicle in a mere six minutes.

Thanks to my GPS we were then taken on a strange back road that took us to Biltmore instead of back to our hotel.

I remember this place



My husband was done with Downtown after that adventure and suggested we go support the Cherokee Nation.

I was for it, I mean why not?  It is my birthday weekend and in North Carolina when you think Native Americans you think....Harrah's.

You must know I had never been to a casino before.  As of recent I had been inquiring to a couple coworkers and friends about it but I had never really had that deep interest in a casino.  Prior to this trip my gambling history was a pretty good one.  On a cruise ship I won over $1,000 at a Black Jack table (on a whim) and on a gambling boat I won $600 on a slot machine.

My thinking:  It is my birthday, let's win some money.

Chances are the majority of you who read this blog aren't travelers to Cherokee, North Carolina.  The ride up is nauseating.  It conjured up memories of 20 years ago when I was on a trip with my father's side of the family.  We were traveling that same road and we were all "green in the gills" - NC Mountain Roads are the devil.

First off these paths are so incredibly narrow.  One side has you hugging a rock and the other side is a drop off to the pit of hell.  Perhaps you have heard the term it term:  they followed a black snake to build the road...oh you haven't?  My bad.  It means that every two seconds you are on a turn or curve that has your body screaming out STOP NOW OR I WILL SHOW YOU DIGESTION IN ACTION.

As we were traveling I kept thinking to myself:  I survived this before, I will survive this now.

After the I'm-going-to-spew-fest we were in Cherokee and the only thing you saw was....the casino.



I remember Cherokee before gambling came to town.  It was head dresses, exhibits, and tomahawks for $10.  Now it is a big, fat, piece of the Caesar's Palace franchise.

We went into the casino and I felt like I had entered a shopping mall for the elderly.  I didn't hear the winning sounds you would expect to hear in a casino.  Hell, I didn't hear the stuff I heard in a cruise ship casino.  No bells, no whistles.  Instead I heard the same music that I hear when I grocery shop and saw a bajillion internet cafe machines.  Each seat donned by a spry 80-85 year old woman, sipping coffee and smoking a Marlboro.

 I can tell you I have a good history with is this one "casino" er gambling fact:  if you are gambling you are drinking for free.

Well not in Cherokee.

Maybe it is the way the natives can get back at the non native people - charge us regular price for alcohol while we slip $5 bills into the machines of loss.  Talk about a modern day trail of tears...

I gambled a very small amount to never hear a ding, ping, ring, or see flashing lights.  I was done.

My husband did OK.

We left barely speaking to one another.  Way to divide us, Cherokee...what happened to peaceful life and all that jazz?  Oh wait Caesar's came to town, I forgot for a millisecond.

I left thinking, "how do I get a receipt for my donation to a worthy cause?"

It turns out reservation gambling casinos do not have to follow the same gaming rules and laws as those in Atlantic City and Las Vegas.

Keep that in mind when you want to blow your money.

Better yet, if you feel the need to go to Cherokee after reading this then just email me and you can send that money to me instead of pissing it away.  I will even send you pictures of all the cool stuff I was able to do with that money you were going to burn.

Celebrate your crazy WNC style

Sunday...ahhhh.

I lay in my hotel bed watching a Hallmark Christmas Movie.  That is the life and yes I just typed that.

We packed up and checked out.



Lunch was at the place near us - Stoneridge Tavern (very good burger!)  and then we slipped over to the Asheville Outlet Mall.

We did well.

A stop at Starbucks and then we hit 40 to come home.  (Not a fan of the caramel brulee latte, too sweet for me.)

On the way home we went through Black Mountain.  Here's the deal I've always heard that crazies went to Black Mountain.  When I say crazies I mean crazy people and when I say went I mean for treatment.  It turns out I was ALL wrong.

Black Mountain, NC offers the Black Mountain Neuro Medicine Treatment Center for the care and treatment of persons with mental incompetency and Alzheimer's Disease.  Not crazy people.  I wanted to put this correction out there for all of us who were raised thinking Black Mountain was for people with really bad disturbances.  It is not.

This is an old post card of Broughton Hospital....what do you think?

Just minutes away we were in Morganton which is home to Broughton Hospital - a state ran mental health hospital.  If you are from the Western part of the state then you know all about Broughton.  I know teachers who were trained there because they specialized in teaching children with disabilities of behavior, emotions, and physical/mental handicap in the 1970's.  You should take a second and research the history of Broughton Hospital - it is highly interesting.  The first patient was a doctor.  So for all of you who have left your doctor's office and said the doc was a quack...well there ya go.

I don't know what it is about mental hospitals but if they were built in the 1800's I am captivated by them.  Maybe it is the architecture?

All of this crazy talk is culminating to this point - between Asheville and Hickory it is like a mental health hurricane.  Various buildings with names on them had me Googling and finding out the whole area is somehow based on or related to mental health.

Put that in your pipe and smoke it.

No, don't.  You'll end up a patient there.

Anyway, who thinks it would be cool to take a tour of the Broughton?  Maybe next birthday?  A tour, not a stay....

So there's our weekend in a nut shell (bad choice of words after that last section, sorry!)

Visit NC guys.