Vingt-Quatre

Twenty-Four. Almost twenty-five. Almost a quarter of a century! In case you can't tell, or didn't know before, I turned twenty-four on Saturday. Truthfully, I felt the same as the day before when I was still only twenty-three. I think the only thing I noticed being different this year than any other was the reaction of other people. Several times throughout our weekend trip to Asheville the fact that it was about to be, or was, or just was my birthday came up in a conversation to a waitress, or other people we chatted with in NC. Each time the person would ask me how old I was and I would reply "twenty-four". They would look surprised. I'm not sure what that means, and I didn't want to ask, but it worried me some, and that was the only difference in the way that I felt. Now, I care what people think about how old I am. Granted, twenty-four is not old, and I don't feel old most of the time (only when my contemporaries get married, have children, or buy a house do I really feel old). But still, I occupied more of my time and thoughts than I care to admit wondering what those people meant...how old they thought I was. And furthermore, I'm not sure what I wanted them to think. At twenty-four, you are still young enough to not want to be thought of as young. That is, you're still too concerned with being seen, and respected as an adult, so someone thinking I was only a teenager, or even just 21 would be somewhat insulting. I was slightly tiffed that I was carded at the Biltmore Winery. When, then, is the age that you stop worrying about that, and wish, maybe even pray, that some cashier or waitress will card you in order to make you feel younger. I suppose the turn begins in the mid-twenties, which is why it is such a confusing time. A time where you are concerned both with not being thought of as old enough, and simultaneously feeling the first effects of the pressure of time, and being worried about being too old. So, that's where I am...24, the definition of a twenty-something!

The weekend, meanwhile, was a blast. We got to Asheville in the early afternoon on Friday. It was much closer than we expected, only about an hour away from my house. We checked into our hotel and then headed out for lunch. We saw this interesting looking BBQ place, and being a family of mixed taste that can almost always agree on BBQ, we stopped debating where we should eat, made the first of our many U-turns in Asheville and went in. It was called Barbacue Inn and had a sign with a big pig on it. The restaurant was strange in that, to order, they gave each person a long sheet of paper with boxes next to menu items and everyone has a pencil on this swivel thing in the middle of the table and you check off the things you want. It was different, but efficient. The food was okay, but the service and atmosphere was great. They also make amazing hush puppies. Then we got lost for a while trying to find a mall. Then we found a different mall, The Biltmore Mall, instead of the Asheville Mall the waitress had directed us too. The Biltmore Mall ended up being really neat though because instead of the usual department stores and twenty variations on Gap, they had a bunch of crafty/homemade/Appalachian interesting places to shop. We bought some fun and unique souvenirs. After hours of shopping we were in the mood for a light supper and dessert, so we went to The Cracker Barrel, which happened to be right behind our hotel.

The next day, my birthday, we awoke bright and early, got ready, and headed over to breakfast at The Moose Cafe. We got a package deal with our hotel that included tickets to the Biltmore Estate, and breakfast each morning at The Moose. It was a very good place to eat. The kind of down-home, country, biscuits and gravy or grits and eggs kind of place we'd frequent if we lived in Asheville. After breakfast we went to the mansion. It was breath-taking. It would take too long, and be too boring for my poor readers if I went through the entire, day-long tour, so I'll just mention a few highlights and general impressions. The neatest thing I learned about the estate was that it was a working farm then in 1895 and still is today. I also liked that they treated their servants extremely well for the time period. They were ahead of the times in terms of technology too, having electric lights and indoor plumbing long before it was the norm. I had too many favorite rooms to name them. My favorite feature of the house was the basement with its indoor, heated, and lit swimming pool which reached a depth of 9 1/2 feet and that had two door-bell type things at every entrance so that guests could ring if they wanted a drink or snack or were ready to get out and needed assistance from their attendants.

After touring the house for about three hours, we headed over to the Biltmore Winery. We did a quick, self-guided tour of the production there. I want to go back sometime and take the "Behind the Scenes" tour in which you can actually walk into the different areas of fermentation, etc. I'm also inquiring about potential employment at the Winery. That would be amazing. After the tour, we went to the tasting room! We were given four featured wines to try, and then allowed to pick up to five more from the wine list. I really liked every one that I tried, but particularly liked : The American Riesling (a semi-sweet white), the Zinfandel Blanc de Noir (a Rose, that the wine server suggested for picnics and with pizza), the Pinot Grigio (a dry white that is always one of my favorites) and my favorite of all the ones I tried, the Limited Release Merlot which was barrel aged in French and American Oak (a full-bodied red, which probably isn't most people's favorite, but I like red wines, so it is mine). We didn't buy any wine there, but found out that they sell it at several retailers here, in SC, so that will be remembered in the future...

We also visited a barn and village area on the estate and saw huge horses, a lot of cute little mules, some chickens, etc. There, we also visited the Blacksmith's shop and watched him make a beautiful leaf keychain out of iron. He was very talented and entertaining as well. We bought a keychain in the Mercantile after the demonstration.

Tired and cold, we returned to our hotel to warm up and relax for a while. Later that night we went to Carrabbas for my birthday dinner. I got to pick the restaurant. It has become a tradition, the last few years, for my best friend to take me to dinner there every March. This year, we weren't able to be together then, so I hesitated about going without him. It was neat that he happened to call while I was there. I missed him being there, but it was still a very nice time with my family...except for when they made the people sing for me, but at least we got a free dessert out of it.

I was once again, overwhelmed at my amazing friends, that called me periodically throughout the day. I was touched that they thought of me and called to wish me well. I'm blessed to have such good friends. Merci.

My sister gave me her present while we were at breakfast that morning. She got me a frothing pitcher which I've really needed since getting my Espresso machine at Christmas. Now I can froth it up like a pro...or at least now I can't blame it on the equipment. She also got me two pairs of silver earrings...probably so I'll stop borrowing hers ;-) They're lovely...thank you!

We almost froze to death in Asheville...for some crazy reason we decided not to bring our jackets or long underwear even though we usually still wear our jackets here at night. It's not like we were going into the mountains or anything.

Sunday after breakfast at The Moose Cafe, we visited the near by Farmer's Market. We were surprised it was open year round. It was pretty neat and we look forward to visiting it in the busy season when the produce is local and there are more vendors. We then headed back home.

Sorry this post is so terribly long, I tried to be brief, but there was alot of stuff to cover. I am working on posting the pics from the trip if you're interested in seeing them. They'll be posted on my Bebo site, listed in the Links. They'll probably be up sometime tomorrow...Tuesday the 7th.

***All of the pictures are now posted on my Bebo site, as promised. Feel free to click on the link and take a look at them. Let me know what you think. I don't have any pictures of the inside of the mansion, since pictures were prohibited, with the exception of the one they take of you and try to sell you for about thirty bucks...but that's another story.***