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Planning a vacation for our
second anniversary(is it already 2 years?!), Raj took the wrong
weekend off and we went on the vacation a whole week earlier.
Though my first choice was Gatlinburg, the place we went to
last year, Raj wanted someplace different in the mountains,
so Asheville it was. The rain spells and cold summer this year
ensured that the leaves would turn color early this year.
Opting
not to stay in hotels or the Bed & Breakfast inns that
are so common in Asheville, we stayed in a little cabin in
Hendersonville, a 20 minute drive from Asheville. We visited
the Biltmore Estate, built by George Vanderbilt in the late
1800's. Though it is nothing compared to the grand palaces
in India, the decadent luxury of the place stiffled us. Ugh,
how filthy rich the place was and they still charge $36 for
admission! It was paying to feel envious and sick! The tour
of Biltmore house, estate and the winery took us a whole
day!
We drove along the Blue Ridge
Parkway upto Grandfather mountain marvelling at the beauty
around us. The fall colors were in full bloom along the parkway
and we stopped in several places to soak in the beauty and
serenity. We went on top Mt. Mitchel, the highest peak east
of Missisippi in the US, at an elevation of 6684 ft. The overcast
sky and the high winds made it a surreal experience and it
felt like walking in the clouds. Our visit to Chimney rock
was a lovely drive, but I couldn't do any climbing when my
vertigo started playing up. :(
After shopping(yippee!!) at
a local crafts store and walks in the quaint downtown Asheville,
we were on our way back. I drove the entire return journey(can't
still believe he let me); Raj was navigating with the maps
and of course, we lost our way (I am sure he failed geography
in school, he just cannot read maps :))
Though it rained the entire
time of our stay, that did not stop us from enjoying as it
had done in Jamaica! Here, among the mountains and inside the
car, the rains and clouds only enhanced the mystic beauty of
the mountains.
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