Day 1: Wednesday, November 19:
We were up by 3:30 A.M., showered, fed the cats, loaded the car with our luggage, and were on our way to Scottsboro by 4:30 A.M.
We stopped at McDonald's in Scottsboro for breakfast, where I ordered a sausage, Cheese, and biscuit. Hubby ordered a sausage, egg, and cheese bagel, and a large Diet Coke. Spent $8.19.
We arrived at our pickup location and boarded bus 1045, operated by Christian Tours LLC out of Rome, GA, driven by Barbara Dudley, around 7:15, with our guide, Angie Himburg.
One lady was running late. We were on the road by 7:30 A.M.Our first stop was Sweetwater Farms in Philadelphia, TN.
We stopped for a restroom break and to shop.
It was a working farm that sold a variety of cheeses and let you sample them.
We bought a block of sharp cheddar cheese and a box of Elk Savory Spring Onion Crackers. Spent $10.36.
We stopped for lunch at Bush Bean Restaurant around 12:57. Hubby and I both ordered the roast beef with creamed potatoes, carrots, baked beans, and cherry pie.
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| Pot Roast, creamed potatoes, carrots, roll, baked Beans |
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| Bush's Best Origin Baked Beans |
After the meal, everyone toured the Bush Bean Museum. We were there until 2:50 P.M.
We boarded the bus and headed to Asheville, NC, arriving at 4:40 P.M.
We are staying at the Villa Hotel on the Biltmore property. We were greeted by the hotel manager, who gave a speech about the hotel and the surrounding area.
Our luggage was taken off the bus and delivered to our room 8378.
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| Bus 1045 Christian Tours LLC, Rome, GA |
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| Room 8378 |
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| View of the Sunset from our room. |
We dropped off our backpacks and went downstairs to enjoy a complimentary glass of red wine.
Next, we walked to Antler Hill Village. It was getting dark by this time. We stopped at the Creamery for a banana pudding waffle cone and spent $8.56.
We walked to the Antler Hill Barn and through the Wine Tunnel.
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| The Wine Tunnel |
We sat near the fire pit, then returned to our room. We ate some cheddar cheese and Savory Spring onion Crackers we bought at Sweetwater Farms.
We watched Wheel of Fortune, and then I took a shower and went to bed.
Iphone Photos
1640 Sweetwater Valley Farms, Philadelphia, TN at 10:45 A.M.
1668 Knoxville @12:08 P.M.
1669-1673 Town of Dandridge @12:51 P.M.
1674-1740 Bush Bean Restaurant and Museum 12:51-2:56 P.M.
1741-1744 Asheville, NC @4:36 P.M.
1745-1871 Biltmore House, Village Hotel, and Antler Hill Village 4:37-6:38 P.M.
Receipts
Bush Bean, Dandridge, TN, bought lip balm: $ 1.37
McDonald's, Scottsboro, AL: $8.19
Sweetwater Farms, Philadelphia, TN, bought a Block of Cheddar Cheese and a box of Savory Crackers.
Creamery @Antler Hill Village, Asheville, NC, bought a banana pudding waffle cone.
Day 2: Thursday, November 20:
Today we are eating breakfast on level two in the kitchen Cafe.
I ordered gravy, biscuit, sausage, and water.
After breakfast, we walked around in the Antler Hill Village, but nothing opened until 11 A.M.
We returned to the hotel and waited for our bus tour and guide, David, at 8:30 A.M.
We rode around the Biltmore grounds for about 1 hour, with our guide explaining the property.
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| Our group leader, Angie, took a group photo in front of the Biltmore House |
We returned to the hotel and toured Antler Hill Village again. We walked down the hill to the barn to visit the animals there: chickens, goats, and pigs.
We toured the Biltmore Legacy Museum and ate lunch at Cedric's Tavern.
Hubby and I split a lobster roll with chips, a jar of dill pickles, and a Diet Coke. Our server, Chris, asked if we were celebrating a birthday or an Anniversary, and I laughed and said we both just celebrated one in October.
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| Happy Anniversary, written in Chocolate with two chocolate truffles |
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| Happy Birthday, written in Chocolate with two chocolate truffles.s |
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| Half Lobster roll and chips |
Our birthdays are just a day apart, and our Anniversary was the last day of August. We enjoyed the lobster roll, which was loaded with large pieces of delicious lobster. It was more than enough to feed two people. As we were finishing our meal, our server, Chris, brought out two platters, each with two chocolate truffles. On one platter, in Chocolate, was "Happy Birthday." On the other platter, in Chocolate, was 'Happy Anniversary.
At 1:20 P.M., we boarded the bus to tour a replica of Tutankhamun's tomb and his treasures at Amherst at Deer Park.
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| King Tutankhamun's treasures |
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| King Tutankhamun's treasures |
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| Tombs |
We were given an audio to listen to as we toured the replica of the Tutankhamun display.
British archaeologist Howard Carter discovered the Boy King's tomb fully intact in 1922.
Inside the tomb was a golden mask, jewelry, furniture, statues, weapons, and King Tutankhamun's mummy.
The Egyptians believed that the souls continued to exist after death. Extensive rituals and offerings were performed to aid the king in his journey and ensure a favorable afterlife.
After the Tutankhamun exhibit, we continued to the Biltmore House, Gardens, and gift shops.
The Conservatory closed at 5 P.M., so several of our group headed there. Many stairs led down to the Conservatory. Most of the outside gardens were dead and were being dug up, but the Conservatory was filled with beautiful flowers and plants.
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| Plants in the Conservatory |
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| Plants in the Conservatory |
After touring the Conservatory, we returned to the Biltmore House gift shops and shopped until it was time to eat at the Barn Cafe.
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| Chocolate Moose |
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| Pot Roast |
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| Squash Soup |
At 4:30, we entered the Barn Cafe and were served roast beef, creamed potatoes, carrots, a savory cream squash soup, and cherry pie.
At 6:15, we lined up to enter the Biltmore House, which was decorated for Christmas.
Inside, we saw several bedrooms, dining rooms, a library, and a group of children singing in the foyer.
Each room was roped off, and each rope guided you where they wanted you to go.
Hubby took the elevator back down to the first floor, and there we met one of our members, who said, "Have you seen the basement?" We said, "No."
We walked down a long hall that led to the Basement.
We saw a swimming pool, a gym, a pantry, a freezer/refrigerator, servants' quarters, and a storage area. We also saw the Halloween Room.
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| Swimming Pool |
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| The long hallway leading to the Basement |
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| The Halloween Room |
We walked back upstairs and out the exit door. We walked to the area where the shuttle was to pick us up.
There were too many of us to fit on the shuttle, so the guard called a van to pick up the last 15 of us and take us back to the Village Hotel.
I picked up three chocolate chip cookies in the lobby to take to our room. I ate two cookies and drank a Diet Coke, then showered and went to bed.
Iphone Photos
1872-1875 Breakfast @7:42 A.M.
1876-1883 Biltmore House Bus Tour @9:29-9:42 A.M.
1884-1891 Village Hotel @10:23 A.M.
1892-1899 Farm Animals @ 10:54-10:57 A.M.
1900-1924 Museum @11:06-11:10 A.M.
1925-1929 Cedric's Tavern 11:41-12:01 P.M.
1930-1933 Village Hotel @12:37 P.M.
1934-1966 Tutankhamun: His Tomb and His Treasures at Amherst @Deerpark 1:19-1:48 P.M.
1967-1979 Gift shop & Biltmore House 2:15-2:55 P.M.
1971-1973 Stable Cafe @4;14-5:01 P.M.
1974-1975Ticketss
1976-1979 Biltmore House 6:36–6:57 P.M.
1980-1981 Tickets @8:56 P.M.
Receipts
Coke Machines 3:60 and 3:60
Cedric's Tavern $63.67 served by Chris
Postcards $6:36 Amherst Ashville, NC
Tickets Tutankhamun tomb & his treasures 397262484 at 1:45 P.M. @ Amherst @ Deer Park
Tickets: Candlelight House & Grounds Tour @ 6:30 P.M.
Canon EOS R6 Photos
6236-6264 Biltmore House & Grounds Bus Tour 9:30-10:09 A.M.
6265-6283 Antler Hill & Village 10:35-10:56 A.M.
6284-6381 Tutankhamun: His Tomb and His Treasures at Deer Park @1:44-2:44 P.M.
6382-6417 Gardens & Conservatory @2:59-3:39 P.M.
6418-6424 Biltmore House outside @3:33 -3:40 P.M.
6425-6589 Biltmore House Inside 6:18-7:52 P.M.
Day 3: November 21, Friday:
I was up at 5 A.M., worked on my journal and photos.
We packed our bags and set them outside our room at 7:00 A.M.
Took a shower, got ready, and went to the kitchen Cafe for breakfast.
I ordered one scrambled egg, cheese grits, bacon, apple butter, biscuit, and cranberry juice.
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| Breakfast |
Loaded onto the bus at 8:15 and were on the road at 8:30 A.M. We traveled to Knoxville.
We stopped at Love's for a restroom break. Our next stop was to ride the Star River Paddle Boat in Knoxville, Tennessee, on the Star of Knoxville.
It was pouring rain when we arrived. We were a little early, so we sat on the bus until the rain stopped.
We unloaded the bus and headed to the pier, but as we were getting off, one of the ladies slipped and fell onto her face. She had a large, swollen bruise on her face.
They had prepared a buffet-style meal for us to enjoy while we cruised on the Star River Paddle Boat.
We ate pot roast, corn, carrots, creamed potatoes, baked chicken, biscuits, and baked apples.
When we finished, several of us walked to the bow for a better view.
The windows on the lower level were covered in rainwater.
It had stopped raining, but it was still a little cool and breezy.
I discovered that the pipes on the boat were warm, so I backed up to one to keep warm.
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| Lunch |
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| Paddle Boat |
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| Downtown Knoxville |
Along the way, I saw a bald eagle, several Great Blue Herons, an old railroad track, the Tennessee Football stadium, downtown, and a bridge.
After our ride, we loaded back onto the bus and began our journey to Scottsboro. We stopped one more time at Love's in Jasper, TN, where Hubby bought two Diet Cokes and a large order of fries at the adjoining McDonald's.
We played Bingo on the way to Scottsboro, and everyone won something.
When we arrived in Scottsboro, our group leader said to let the party with the woman who fell out first.
They were from Wetumpka, Alabama, and they were going to take the woman to the doctor.
We put our luggage into our car and began our two-hour journey home.
Hubby dropped me off, and he went to his sister's for Thanksgiving. I was too tired.
I uploaded some of my photos, took a shower, and went to bed.
Iphone photo
1993-1994 Breakfast at Kitchen Cafe, Asheville, NC @ 7:47 A.M.
1995-2015 Travel I-40 Cherokee, NF Hartford and Pisgah NF Clyde, TN at 9:37-9:51 A.M.
2017-2049 Meal & Riding the Star Paddle Boat @12:03-1:16 P.M.
2052-2961 Travel through Chattanooga, TN at 3:52-3:56 P.M.
Receipts
McDonald's, Jasper, TN, bought French Fries for $4.18
Bought two Diet Cokes for $5.07
Vending Machine: Mountain Dew $3:60
