A great Trolley tour of Asheville

Wednesday Aug 8

Photos to follow.....trying to stay on track with the story!  

Waking up at Mama Gerties with fog below, and a lovely 67 degrees!

We had been to Asheville in 2010 on our very first trip with the rented RV  and met friends Bob and Judy, where we saw the Biltmore festooned in holiday lights.  We plan to revisit the estate, and see the current Chihuly exhibit, plus see some other sights.  After going over everything again and making a prioritized list, we decided to take the trolley tour first and get a good overview.  It proved a very wise decision!  Our driver was entertaining and full of information and anecdotes on the sights and the history, and many things I don’t believe we would have learned otherwise.  We always enjoy the trolley tours for an over view, but this may have been the best we ever took.  

The boys relaxed on the window sill while we planned our day.

Great story about this house, which is now an Inn.  The original  owners  had some marital problems, and he left and went abroad, and the woman was so concerned that the neighbors would think ill of her, that she said he had died.  She even had a funeral, and buried an empty casket!  Well, he fell ill, and one day came knocking on  the door, having returned to die at home!  Which he did, and she had the casket exhumed and buried him again!  

Home of Dr. Carroll,  who built Dr. Carroll's Sanitorium, which was later
named Highland Hospital,  in Asheville. A fire in 1948 killed 12 women patients , including
Mrs. F. Scott Fitzgerald.

Now a dorm, this building was the original Highland Hospital, where
Zelda Fitzgerald was treated for Schizophrenia.  

Oh, I need to go THERE!!

 This 100 year old firehouse served as a depository for liquor that was confiscated during prohibition.    However, it was smuggled across the street to what was then a lumber store, and served as a speakeasy, with access through a tunnel.  Now appropriately it houses Pack's Tavern shown below!

City Hall and the Court House, originally designed to look similar, lost out to political wrangling, but the statue on the corner shows the original design for both art deco inspired buildings.  The Cherokee chevron design at the top of the building on the right pays tribute to those who escaped being removed, and whose descendants still live in the area.

The monument on the corner showing original building designs. 

We had planned to do the entire route, but we were an hour in when we encountered a few things in the downtown area, and I thought we should get off and do those rather than have to go all the way around again, or try to park there.  

So we disembarked at the Grove Arcade, which had been built in the 20’s by Edwin Grove, the creator of the Grove Park Inn, an amazing arts and crafts stone hotel on Sunset Mountain within the Blue Ridge Mountains.  A really beautiful enclosed  building, but of the stores, only a few were of real interest, and there were not many people there.  I guess I had expected a bit more.  One place though advertised Book Exchange and Champagne Bar, and I had to go in.  It was the coolest place!   I would definitely hang out there with my book buddies!  

I love this place!  Wouldn't it be cool to have book group meet here for coffee and sweets! 

We walked a block or so away to see Woolworth Walk, which is an old Woolworth building which has been converted into an art gallery, but maintained the soda fountain.  Of course, we had to sit at the fountain and enjoy an afternoon treat, but we kind of over did it, with Clem ordering a banana split, and for me, a milkshake, which I managed to finish!  But oh, was I full after that!  That area was designed to be like NY, complete with a flat iron building, a Battery Park , and a Wall Street!  Asheville had been called The Paris of the South, but Mr Grove seemed to want to emulate NYC with some of his structures. 

We opted to sit at the counter, as we 

had as kids, to add to the appeal.  We both remember going to Woolworth's, where 

you popped a balloon to see how much you had to pay for your sundae, hoping you would get the 10 cent one! I think they were 25 or 50 cents at most! 

Asheville is also the second most Art Decoed.....is that really a word.....city in the country, after of course, Miami, and there were many buildings showing that influence.  The court house also sported some chevron markings at the top, to honor the Cherokee who had lived here, and are still represented today by descendants of those who escaped when they were forced to leave. 

The iron in front of the Flat Iron Building! A roadside attraction of first class in my book!

We rode the trolley for the rest of the tour, not getting off, as black clouds were menacing.  At one point, a huge bolt of lightening struck down, and we could actually feel the electricity!  Though the winds picked up, we never did get rain, but as we got back to the visitor center, it was apparent it had rained there.  And when we entered, it was dark!  That bolt had hit something right near them.   We had time for another stop, but with all the lights out, it was not really possible.  Our drive back in our car was tricky, dodging rush hour traffic with none of the street lights working!

We drove back marveling at the black clouds hanging on the mountain tops, getting back to the campground just as the winds became serious there, and witnessed fellow campers struggling to hold down their canopy.  We rushed to help, along with another neighbor, and managed to get it collapsed, then on to another we had seen where the campers were not there.  They arrived in time to take over, and it was a good thing, because we were all perplexed on how to get that one down! Back to the coach before the rain,  open the windows a bit for the cool air it brought, and eventually a nice salad for dinner to make up for the afternoon extravagance!   

getting blacker by the minute!

Wind whipping as we made our ascent to top of Mama Gerties,
this shot showing lower sites.

A lovely sunset after the storm was reflected in the coach. 

Clem tends to Sas, encouraging him to eat
a bit more before we go to bed. Encouraging him to eat at this point,
his food sometimes gets delivered to him on the couch.
But hey...he's in his 90's in cat years, a little
TLC is probably in order.