Biltmore

Since we moved to NC, Travis and I have wanted to go to Biltmore.  We have been a lot better about making trips recently (I think it is directly related to the kids and their behavior), and we found a good weekend in January to head over.  Audrey and I did a unit study on the Vanderbilt family and Biltmore in school, and it really gave both of us so much more appreciation for it.  We parked the car in a parking lot and then walked over to the house.  It was all woods until they cleared and you saw this gorgeous picture!  I couldn't help but imagine what life was like 100 years ago.

The architectural detail is breathtaking, I have never seen anything like this!

We were not allowed to take pictures inside the house (shocker), but I took as many outside as I could.  They have audio devices that you can listen to throughout the tour, they had kid versions, and the kids LOVED it!  I was shocked with how well Phoenix did (he is always good now, but he was really into the tour).  It was straight out of history, and it was absolutely incredible.  

They have a huge greenhouse with flowers growing year round.

There was a petting farm, and a blacksmith.  It was really cool to see him do his thang, he said that Biltmore sought him out and recruited him to come work there. He and a few cousins are among the last traditionally trained blacksmiths.  He comes from a long line of blacksmiths on both sides of his family.  

We ate at the Bistro on the grounds, and I was unfortunately disappointed.  The service was excellent, but the food was OK.  I found out that you can do a horse riding tour around the land, for a pretty reasonable price.  Note to self:  do that next time I go.  

Biltmore was like stepping into one of my beloved historical romance books, or onto the set of Downton Abbey.  It was out of this world.  I am a history geek, so I am not sure if everyone would fall in love with Biltmore as much as I did.  After going to Biltmore, Travis said that going to Europe would be "pretty cool", which is huge. Up until this point he has only ever wanted to do tropical beach vacations, and I have been dying to go to England for years.  On the way home Phoenix said "I miss Biltmore.  I hate our house, our house is so ugly!  I wish it would get old and die!"  I guess it is hard to compete with a huge house that has an indoor swimming pool.  Audrey was not really looking forward to going to Biltmore, she liked learning about it, but she couldn't imagine that walking around a big house would be fun.  She loved every minute of it though.  She actually scolded Travis for moving on to a room before she was finished with the room she was in.  We all had an awesome time there, and we will definitely visit again!