I decided to re-watch the movie, “Hannibal” this morning, early this morning. It’s 3:32 am on Saturday, March 9th, 2024.

I didn’t remember all the interaction between Ray Liotta’s character and Clarice at the start of the movie. But, one thing I noticed right away was how Biltmore looked as Clarice was driving up to the front door. There were large, old trees lining both sides of the front driveway. When I first visited Biltmore in spring of 2004, those trees no longer existed. I have seen another old movie where these trees were still prominent. I think I read that there was some type of “tree disease” and they had to be removed.

I just looked and “Hannibal” was released in 2001, so just three years later those impressive trees would be gone. They change out the garden at least four times a year, and on my first visit the garden was mainly freshly tilled soil (reddish clay maybe, no, fortunately I had a photo, see below). I don’t recall, but it seems like a grounds keeper told me I had just missed the Spring flowers by about four days. I guess I felt cheated. I think my Biltmore ticket cost about $65, although that may have been for a year’s ticket (unlimited visits, but extra for the Christmas tour). Whatever the cost, I decided to pay an extra $35 on top of my daily ticket price with the plan that I would come back to see the different seasonal plantings. And, I did, for summer, fall, winter and then the next spring 2005 to see the flowers I had first missed. I also paid extra for the Christmas tour, but really didn’t think that was worth the cost.

Oh, seems like I bought six extra yearly tickets as presents and gave two to Jim Kelley, Ray Sharpe and Jeff Mitchell. Jeff and Robin Mitchell may have been the only couple that took advantage of these tickets, and Robin was pregnant and the visit apparently more harried than you would like. So, these gifts in my mind, go down as one of the worst presents I ever tried to give my friends. Peppermint Bark was a good gift I gave to another family.

Now, it is March of 2024, and I just realized that I have not revisited Biltmore in twenty years, although I did visit it 5 times in 2004. I have been to Asheville several times since 2004, but never to Biltmore again. But, I haven’t been to Asheville in several years, probably since before Covid. I’m 70 years old, but seem relatively healthy and have been losing weight and keeping my Blood Glucose Levels down.

I also enjoyed Asheville for “Trillium a Bistro” where I enjoyed “Curried Apple” soup, and alligator sausage, gravy and polenta. Not sure if I had ever tried polenta before that time. Trillium didn’t last that long, but I did end up making my version of the apple soup, which is pleasing, both hot and cold, and vegetarian or with chicken. I had a good experience at Dobra Tea where I enjoyed a pot of Assam Bhramaputra without any sugar or cream. I still have a couple of cakes of Pu-Erh tea that I bought there years ago. But, this tea is an acquired taste and something entirely different from the black teas I grew up with. I have visited the WNC Farmers Market in Asheville quite a few times. I first became aware of ramps on one of my early visits. But I also tried various cheeses from another vendor, and eventually tried three different beans from Cara’s Corner Market (also facebook). I wrote about my beans excursion. All three looked delicious in the pictures I took, but the truth was that all three fell short in taste. It made me realize that the popular beans, butter and black eyed peas, had proved “the survival of the fittest.” These less popular bean varieties had failed to be as good flavored as the more popular ones. I bought some “gumbo file” powder there, which I added to some soup and I enjoyed some clove hard candy, which I later found online and still have a good sized jar. I just don’t eat this candy because of the high sugar content, but I do like the flavor. I’ve enjoyed my visits to “New Morning Gallery” in Biltmore Village. I think I’ve bought at least a couple of pottery mugs or bowls there. I’ve enjoyed my visits to the “Southern Highland Craft Guild Center” and getting there from “the back way” along the Blue Ridge Parkway, from Weaverville. I think I may have bought my special “alien” mug there, but I’ve also bought mugs at Mangum Pottery.

The WNC Farmers Market

---

The North Carolina Arboretum

Mangum Pottery in Weaverville, NC

I enjoyed eating at the eclectic Stony Knob Cafe about three times. I think I first saw a booth upholstered in Ostrich Skin there and thought of having one of my chairs done maybe in red dyed Ostrich.

The Stony Knob Cafe

The “Back Way” from Weaverville to the Blue Ridge Parkway (take a right here)

Walking up to the Southern Highland Craft Guild Center

If you come down the Blue Ridge Parkway (not from Hwy. 70) and turn into the Guild Center you may think you are deep in the forest but in fact you are very near the Veteran’s Hospital, and there is even a nursing home right next to the Center, but you can’t drive around to get to it. Come off the Parkway onto Hwy. 70/Tunnel Rd. and head back toward Asheville, you will quickly come to the VA Hospital and across the street, the East Village Grille.

East Village Grille on the left and the VA Hospital on the right.

I’ve enjoyed several visits to the East Village Grille and had a very good Philly Cheesesteak with fries, and another time, a good Pastrami on Rye and fries. With the Cheesesteak, I noticed another customer had a ruby red sauce, and I asked for some. I think it cost me about 35 cents extra, but they brought out a small black plastic cup of “Tiger Sauce.” It was delicious and I ended up buying some from Amazon, both for myself and for Christmas presents one year. Tiger Sauce had an “original” flavor but later they had a “Habanero – Lime” flavor which I liked even better. I think they discontinued the new flavor, but may have brought it back eventually. I still have several bottles of Tiger Sauce but just don’t use it because of the sugar content. But, if I remember, I may open a bottle for my next hamburger, steak or chicken dish. **Elsewhere I have recorded the VA Hospital “lawnmower man” incident.

---

I visited Asheville for a one day trip, staying overnight at a Quality Inn about a month before Hurricane Helene came through and devastated the place. It was a wonderful visit. The motel rooms had been renovated and I even had a quiet flush toilet. I saw black bears on the Blue Ridge Parkway and wild turkeys almost in downtown Asheville the next morning and the morning air was cool which was a welcome change from what it had been back in Fayetteville. And, the last place I visited before leaving town about noon the next day was the New Morning Gallery which is in the Biltmore Village District and where a bunch of water and mud came through five weeks later. What a gift that visit was!

I’ve written about this elsewhere, but I made a leisurely detour up to Asheville and also on the way back. It definitely wasn’t all Interstate. I guess as much of a “leisurely detour” as one can make going from Fayetteville to Asheville in a day, and then then the next day from Asheville back to Fayetteville. I saw a parachute team coming down in Maxton that morning.