ASHEVILLE, NC - OCT 7-9, 2006
After a particularly grueling stretch of work for both McLean and myself, the always timely Columbus Day holiday came along at a perfect time for us to get away for the weekend. I surprised McLean the day before by telling her we'd be sailing our Santa Maria to the mountains to check out Asheville, NC, the Biltmore Estate and the fall foliage.
Asheville is about two hours west of Charlotte so it's an easy trip. It's not a place I would choose to live for its excitement. Asheville is an "artsy" town, with artists and musicians everywhere. And I can't leave out the "earthy" people either. In some ways Asheville never left the 60s.
But don't get me wrong, Asheville is a cool place to visit. The downtown area has been well preserved. Many of the historic buildings now sport storefront art galleries, restaurants, coffee shops and the like. I knew going into the weekend that I'd have to suck it up and accompany McLean into quite a few shops. I figure it's a sacrifice given all the time I spend watching football in the fall.
Besides checking out downtown Asheville, the other highlight of the weekend was our full day at the Biltmore Estate. I won't give you the history, but some seriously wealthy dude named Vanderbilt (yeah, you know the family) decided it'd be cool to build himself a pad in the North Carolina mountains. The estate claims that the Biltmore House is the largest home in America. I can't really prove that, but any house with 250 rooms can probably take the title. To give you an idea just how big this house is, you could actually fit our house into this house 1100 times! Can you imagine the parties old George Vanderbilt must have thrown? They'd make even Hugh Hefner jealous.
We spent the morning touring the house. In three hours we made it through 50 rooms, the only ones that are open to the public. Every room open for touring has been meticulously restored to the way it was first decorated back in 1895. Even more amazing, the house is really an art museum. Artifacts as old as 400 years are displayed throughout the mansion. Hey, Mr. Vandy needed something to spend all that dough on!
After the house, we spent a while wandering through the beautiful gardens beside the house. Not only are there gardens, but there are several greenhouses where plants are raised for later use throughout the estate. It's quite an amazing operation.
Finally we traveled across to the other half of the estate for a look at the agricultural side of the grounds. A preserved farm village where blacksmiths, farmers and dairy cows once lived has been turned into a few quaint shops and places for demonstrations.
Last but not least, we walked from the farm village over to the winery. Grapes are grown on the estate and used to make none other than the "Biltmore Estate" brand of wine. On site is a working winery, although most of their grapes are shipped off to a much larger operation. Nonetheless, tourists can view the large tanks and barrels where the fermentation process occurs. And you think your garbage disposal stinks! The tour concludes with a complimentary wine tasting where guests are invited to sample some of the over 30 wines under the Biltmore brand.
All in all, the Estate is a fascinating place. It's even more interesting if you're into history, art, grapes, or all three. I highly suggest taking the tour if you ever find yourself near Asheville. McLean and I had a fun weekend, and although the trip was short, it was just enough to recharge the batteries before heading back to work.
