Saturday, December 26, 2009

the present of Asheville

And again, again, in the old house I feel beneath my tread
the creak of the old stair, the worn rail,
the whitewashed walls, the feel of darkness
and the house asleep...
~ Thomas Wolfe, native of Asheville, NC

My gift to Paul this Christmas was a trip to Asheville, a short drive to the west, to stay in a bed and breakfast sans kids. Asheville, with it's thriving, artsy downtown and vegetarian-accomodating B&Bs reminds Paul of his former life in the Catskills and remains one of his favorite weekend getaway destinations. I also threw in a gift card to a delightful indie bookstore to round out the gift. We've spent the better part of today hitting downtown, wading through yarn at a lovely downtown yarn shop, and eating amazing vegetarian food at one of our favorite restaurants.

Yummy vegetarian food as seen by Paul's blackberry camera...not quite as pretty as with a DSLR...but still very yummy!



And the Irish brewpub in the basement of the veg restaurant. Paul's idea of heaven might just include a vegetarian restaurant sitting on top of an Irish pub.


I hope everyone else is enjoying their presents and some post-Christmas family time.


9 comments:

  1. Fun trip! We spent our anniversary in Asheville and I love it so. I could eat at Tupelo Honey every day...

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  2. What a perfect idea! I really love this. I've heard that Ashville is an artsy place. Yarn shop, B&B, bookstore, vegetarian restaurant...sounds like heaven!! :)

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  3. What a perfect gift! I have always wanted to visit Asheville. Maybe a mama's getaway next time I am in the neighborhood? ;) Merry Christmas!

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  4. Melissa--I think we ate there weekly when we lived in a-town. so many GREAT restaurants...thanks for making me nostalgic joy!

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  5. What a sweet gift Joy. How nice to reconnect as well. That is something my husband and I need to plan now that the oldest two are nearly old enough to stay with everyone. Also, the birthday photos of Finn are precious.
    Warm wishes.

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  6. That sounds like so much fun! What a wonderful gift!

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  7. My sister lives in Asheville and I know all those hangouts well! We're headed that way New Year's Eve! I love Malaprops. Have you ever eaten at Early Girl or Tupalo Honey? Oh, and I just love Sunny Pointe! Which yarn shops? Love Purl's!

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  8. I do have to say that Asheville is one of my favorite cities--what a great gift!

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  9. What a wonderful gift to give to your husband! That looks like a fun place to visit.

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