I called on the Vanderbilts

 I woke up this morning in Ashville, NC and above was the view out of my rear window.  Sigh Me and I both sat and stared out for the longest time--mesmerized by the moving water.  I don't think she had ever actually seen a river up close before.
Then, after breakfast, I decided to call on a nearby neighbor.... 

It's the Vanderbilt estate and the one true castle in this country.  It is not a National park or monument or State park but it is designated a National Historical Landmark and is open to the public as a museum.  It is also the largest privately-owned home in the US.   

In the 1930's the family opened it to the public in an effort to raise enough money to keep it running. And no wonder.  There is a staff of 1800 people!  I've lived in smaller towns than that.  The castle was built by George W. Vanderbilt with his inheritance as the son of William Vanderbilt, and it almost bankrupted him--poor boy. The castle has 250 rooms and is 135,000 to 175,000 square feet.  I don't know why the 50,000 square foot discrepancy--I think they didn't know whether to count the basement with its swimming pool, game room and bowling alley.

 

The castle is built atop a large mesa surrounded by three ranges of mountains..The Appalachians, Blue Ridge and Smokies.  The Estate is now 8000 acres though it was much larger when George was alive.    A large part of the land was donated to the Park service and is now part of the Pisgah National Park.
There is also a small village and a winery that I missed altogether.



The present owners of the house are William Cecil I and William Cecil II, the grandson and great grandson of George Vanderbilt.  However, I don't think they've slept here since the '50's.  There are 104 bedrooms in the house but strangely enough only 38 people can sit at the dining room table at one time. Either they never filled up all the bedrooms or else everyone ate in shifts.

One rather weird fact--George built the house when he was single and then met his wife a few years later.   I wondered if she knew when she said 'yes' that her life was going to be spent running something akin to a rather large hotel.

"High Five"

Another query--all these marble statues, here and in all the other mansions I've seen--Who carved all of these?  The marble pits of Italy must be nearly exhausted by now.  And  surely they can't be mass produced so how did so many expert carvers come to be?  Just asking.

I am still stunned by wisteria--it is so prolific and the blooms are larger than any I've ever seen.

Consider yourselves lucky--they would not let me photograph anything in the house.  I think I am going to start boycotting the places that won't allow photos-even when there's no flash.
 But the grounds were amazing enough anyway.  My final thoughts--the castle is over and above  conspicuous consumption.  There seemed little point in creating something so lavish and massive.  I am quite sure George never slept in more than his own bedroom or sat in more than a handful of chairs.  But now it draws the tourists--including me--so what is the difference between a castle and Disney World anyway?

And then there are the gardens...

 

There is simply no way to describe the beauty and color of the gardens.  Azaleas, dogwoods, peach, cherry and wisteria--all in full glorious bloom.


Say, "Ahhhh"
My next posting will feature the conservatory--for my aunts. So stay tuned.

This week was supposed to be their tulip festival--

However the tulips are just about to keel over.  This winter has been so warm that the tulips bloomed three weeks early. There won't be any left by the weekend when the festival takes place.

 The weather was warm and the sky slightly overcast but it is supposed to dip to freezing tonight.  She might get a little chilly.

George built this ramp (it goes up for 3 turns) to get his horses and carriage to the top of the hill. The bricks are spaced perfectly for the horses gait and the sides of the ramp are smooth for the wheels of the carriage.

One of the walking trails came to this bridge and waterfall.  So I parked and walked out on the bridge then looked back...

and there sat Halcyon II, my little castle,  nestled in the trees.  Boy, I feel so lucky today.

Ron's great handiwork

Please hang in there folks...I am down in a deep valley and Internet service is spotty at best.  I'll be on the road tomorrow and should be getting better service.
Now to show you the great things Ron did for me.....


First of all, this table had a base that had to be set up in front of those drawers.  When it was in place the drawers could not be opened and the table took up all the space between the bunks so everything felt too crowded.  It was also very cumbersome to put up and take down.  So Ron removed all the underneath hardware, I put one of those rubber gripper sheets on the top of the drawers and the table top sits there just fine plus it doesn't feel like it takes up the whole place.  I simply slip the table top under the mattress on one of the bunks to store it. (and I am working on it right now)

I needed some place to hang wet towels at night to dry.  In this high-humidity climate I have had to be very very careful not to put away anything wet.  Mildew will develop fast and be miserable if not impossible to live with. At first we thought of a clothes line but that meant putting hooks into the bulkhead which is mostly padding so we were stumped until Pat Davis suggested a shower spring rod.  It works perfectly and can be quickly taken down and stored at night.

Sigh Me has one very annoying habit I cannot seem to break--she sharpens her claws.  I would never have her de-clawed on the off-chance she might desert this rocking ship some day--sans claws she would not survive in the great outdoors.  I found this box of stuff at Pet Smart that cats are supposed to love and will leap on obediently to sharpen their claws.  The first time Sigh Me saw it on the floor she curled up on top and went to sleep.  So I covered it with catnip.  She curled up on it and slept for the entire day.  So Ron suggested Velcro-ing it to the cabinet door.  So far she just looks at it then strolls over to the passenger seat and sharpens away.  So, for now I am covering everything in sheets and hoping she will give in to my wishes...yeah, right.

Wow, Ron got the TV antenna hooked up and showed me how to channel it into the computer.  So now I can watch 'Dancing with the Stars'!  Suddenly, I knew why I have lived for 7 months without TV. It stinks!  I know there are some good things on TV and I'll let you know the minute I find one of them.

And he gave me another table.  This one is on a hinge right behind the sink.  The post that holds it up can be removed and the table is hinged so it will drop down flat against the bulkhead when not in use.  It is a great place to set things when cooking.

Two hooks and a shock cord now secure my oven when traveling.

And dowels that act as stops so stuff will quit slamming up against the sliding door and jamming it.

Little tabs on the kitchen drawers so they will stay closed underway...

and dividers in the silverware drawer so everything doesn't rush to the back and jam the drawer whenever I make a corner on two wheels. Calm down, kids, I'm kidding.

Ron also updated and cleaned up my computer, checked the van motor and showed me how to better secure my bike.

And the 'crowning touch'...a new stove.  First Ron took the old one apart and tried his best to fix it but we found out they don't make those parts anymore.  So we had a new one rushed to us and it is a beauty.  Now I am back to gourmet cooking (Weenies and beans, boiling water, etc)--life is grand.

For all of this I thank all three of my kids who chipped in and helped Ron spend four days in North Carolina working on my want list. And especially to Ron, I am so grateful for all you have done to make this trip easier for me.  I really do hate to be one of those obnoxious bragging mothers but I have to say it...I have the greatest kids in the world!  Ron, Janice and Tom--you are the best!

A huge 'Thank You' to the Davis Family

Ron arrived in Charlotte, NC on Wednesday--ready and eager to get started on the long list of 'odd' jobs.  


The Davis family--Pat, Susan, Kelsey, Samantha and Buddy--allowed us to move into their home, garage and driveway for four days of mess and confusion.

 
And they kept smiling!

Susan celebrated her birthday while we were there...

And Samantha baked a very yummy sweet potato cake for the occasion.

It was a real luxury for me to sleep in a king sized bed in one of the guest rooms in this absolutely lovely home. This is the back yard view.

And playing ball with Buddy was one of the fun perks.

But I think Pat was beginning to wonder if we weren't going to sneak off with Buddy when we left.  It's one thing to move into one's house, use a fellow's shower and borrow his tools--but there is something altogether evil about usurping the love and devotion of his prized 'buddy'.  So Pat looked a bit relieved when Ron packed his bag and I backed the RV out of the driveway and waved goodbye.  Sigh Me was relieved too.

Thank you so much, Davis family, for the wonderful hospitality and assistance.  Ron would never have been able to do so much under any other circumstances.  And I really hope we meet again sometime.

The Latest News Flash

 

Food, Sigh Me and Stuff

On the way through South Carolina I came across this antique shop.....


If you pronounce this word with a southern drawl it has at least two syllables...try it. I have noticed lately that my speech is getting slower and even caught myself saying, 'ya'll' in the grocery store today.

An example of honesty in advertising...and it must work because I wasn't the only one that stopped to take a picture.  This business is owned by the fire chief in this little town.  While I was taking my pictures he pulled up in his car and chatted for a minute.

He informed me that his sign has been featured on Jay Leno's show as well as half a dozen other TV talk shows. He said he was heading to church but if I wanted to hang around he would come back and open up in about an hour.  I was sorry I couldn't wait, I suspect I would have learned a lot about his town and probably some gossip about a few of those 'dead people.'

But I have to get to Charlotte by the time Ron arrives.  My wonderful little two-burner stove has stopped working altogether and I am now eating nothing but cold stuff unless I am in an RV park and have electricity to operate the microwave.

And speaking of food--I have noticed how long some foods will last these days.  See that nice slice of whole wheat bread above--it is two months old! And there is not even a tiny speck of mold on it.  I remember when bread did not last more than 3 or 4 days before it started turning green and growing fuzzy stuff.  This morning I had two slices left in the bag and I had electricity!  So I made microwave french toast!

Whip one egg,  2 or 3 tablespoons of milk,  a dash of vanilla and a tablespoon of sugar or sweetener until frothy and well mixed.
Soak two slices of bread in the mixture--turning the bread to make sure it is well covered.
Microwave on high until egg is set.  It won't be as brown as it would if you did it on a griddle but it still tastes good.

Maple syrup and fresh fruit are my favorite toppings.  And it was all done in one dish!  And It was so easy and ready in minutes. But I still miss that gas burner.

I have no idea what this is--The only clues were two cut-out initials--RH.  How do you hang curtains?

Sigh Me let me put on her vest and leash so she could spend an hour lying in the sun.

But she still acts silly in it--she goes so limp you wouldn't think she had a bone in her body.  I have seen a couple of cats now that walk on a leash so I think I'll keep working with Sigh Me and see if I can get her to go walking with me.

Ron comes tomorrow morning for 3 or 4 days and we will be busy working on the RV--so I probably will not be taking pictures or posting for a few days.  Don't give up on me--I will be back!

Pushing north

I am finally able to post to the blog...it has been a tough week since leaving Jacksonville.  First of all, the computer, MiFi, and general Internet access have been spotty at best.  But relief is on its way!  Ron will be flying into Charlotte, North Carolina on Wednesday to do some work on the RV and on my computer so I am trying to get there as soon as possible. I am so thankful he is willing to do this for me. There is nothing seriously wrong at this time but a lot of little aggravations (like no stove for cooking!  Okay, so a little diet wouldn't hurt a bit.)


It has been a mad rush through Georgia and South Carolina (I plan to go back and explore a little more later) but the first thing I noticed were the bridges--wow! are they impressive!

Like great sails floating over the rivers.

And, of course, churches everywhere.  Someone told me that there is a competition between churches and Waffle Houses to see who can build the most.

I had to check out this one....

Teeny, Tiny.

And more of those bridges! Why don't they  provide pull-outs in the center of the bridges so we can stop and take pictures?   I slowed down to 20 miles an hour to get this picture and the guy behind me was most unhappy.

Can you tell I'm in the south? And I don't think they are sons--more like great grandsons.

I stopped here to take a nap--life on the road sure is rough.

Then I saw this classic old building--and the burned out house next door.  I have noticed a whole lot of burned out houses and buildings and am starting to wonder if there is a pattern somehow.

This is the absolute best time to be traveling in the south...The flowers are exploding everywhere...

I was surprised when I saw morning glories growing wild in Florida but....

wisteria grows wild in South Carolina!

The flowering trees make the most modest of houses charming.

Fruit and vegetable stands are popping up everywhere....

And I could not resist the strawberries.