Asheville, North
Carolina:
If you can’t visit the Biltmore Estate in the spring, I
think that the next best time to visit is when it’s decked out for
Christmas! The Candlelight Christmas
Evening Tour was fantastic!
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| Mrs. Vanderbilt's bedroom |
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| Library |
We
took a special Rooftop Tour. Although it
was a rainy day and the view wasn’t the best, it was a wonderful tour that
explored the architectural history of the Biltmore as well as some unusual
vantage points.
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| George Vanderbilt's initials |
The flowers may not have been blooming in the gardens, but
the Conservatory was a real treat.
The Biltmore had everything for guests, including a bowling
alley and an indoor swimming pool. Take
a look at the arches in the pool area.
The tile work was done by Rafael Gustavino. One reason I love to travel is that you learn
something in one place and then you see it somewhere else. When we were in NYC, our lunch at the Grand
Central Station Oyster Bar featured lovely tiled arches by, guess who? Gustavino!
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| Oyster Bar at Grand Central Station (NYC) |
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| Biltmore pool -- tiled arches by Gustavino |
Asheville has lots of wonderful places to explore in addition
to the Biltmore Estate. We went to the
St. Lawrence Basilica. Guess who also
did the tile work here! 😊
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| Tile work by Gustavino |
The Cathedral of All Souls was a fascinating place as
well. Many of the stained glass windows
are in memory of people that had been special to George Vanderbilt. Although the scenes are religious, they also
represent Vanderbilt’s friends.
We knew that we would love visiting the Biltmore
Estate. However, I think it came more
alive because I had read The Last Castle
by Denise Kiernan. Thank you Stephanie
for loaning your book to us!
Next stop – Tennessee!