Christmas at the Biltmore House

 Many years Trish and I try to visit the Biltmore House in Asheville during the Christmas season.  This year we got to go there again.

At this time of year, in addition to dozens of Christmas Trees and overall fantastic decorations, there are musicians placed at various locations throughout the house.  These singers are in the Palm Court near the front door of the house.

With its triple fireplaces and seventy foot ceiling, the Grand Dining Hall takes some time for your eyes to explore and take in.  The giant tree here is almost at tall as the ceiling.

All throughout the house Christmas is in charge.  It takes us about two and a half hours just to walk through looking.  It takes us many days to remember the beauty of the whole visit.

New Orleans Food.

 Royal Street is parallel to Bourbon Street.  With our hotel on Royal, we are right in the midst of French Quarter delights…especially food! At the Monteleone Hotel, the Carousel Bar is the center of things.  To actually get a seat at the revolving bar, you would have to arrive well before noon.  But, we were seated nearby and enjoyed crab beignets and fried chicken sliders…as well as Old Fashioneds!

Just down the street is the French Quarter Beignet Shop.  Each morning we would hop out of bed, run down the street and get coffee, hot chocolate, and hot beignets to go, then take it all back to bed for a late morning.  Delicious! 

Brunch at noon was at the famous “Breakfast at Brennan’s,” just down the street.  My favorite was Eggs Sardou, poached eggs on deep fried artichoke bottoms with Bernaise sauce.  We had to go back and take a nap after that!

We finished our culinary delights with dinner at Mr. B’s Bistro, another Brennan Family restaurant.  

It is a good thing we didn’t need to leave early the following day since it took a long night’s sleep to recover from all of our eating.  What wonderful days!

 

New Orleans!

 When I was a college student I sang in the Davidson College Male Chorus and we went in tour each year during spring break week.  My senior year our tour included New Orleans.  

We sang at the piano bar at Charlie Cantrell’s Pat O’Brien’s and then we had the night on our own.  It was an evening of discovery for college-age boys.  We never told our mama’s about our adventures among the bars and clubs of Bourbon Street!  

We stayed at the Monteleone Hotel on Royal Street, so, when Trish and I had the chance to stop over for a few days between jobs in Texas and Georgia, the Monteleone was our home!  Of course, the wonderful old hotel with its Carousel Bar has been remodeled more than once in the past sixty years since I last stayed here.

The Royal Street location is perfect for walking the French Quarter.  The December weather was wonderfully mild and the street musicians were out as we wandered away the days.

We spent two evenings going to Preservation Hall to enjoy two different groups of older New Orleans Musicians.  This place was here when I cams sixty years ago and is as alive now as then.

We had a great time as we began our Christmas Season for sure!