Asheville, NC - Biltmore House and Gingerbread Houses

My husband rocked Thanksgiving this year! He cooked the turkey, and made amazing stuffing and apple pie from scratch.

We went to Asheville, NC for a short weekend trip Thanksgiving weekend- we went to a German restaurant for dinner one night, and my husband was in HEAVEN.

Jaeger Schnitzel (so good) with potato salad (not as good). We also got this interesting "salsa salad" and soured red cabbage. Definitely an experience! It was pretty authentic.

Stephen's beloved spaetzle, roladen and sauerkraut.

We visited a fancy hotel to look at some gingerbread houses that were in a national competition- the people who participated did not mess around! I was amazed at the talent and creativity! This really looked like a box of ornaments!

I loved this playground- it had all of the "modern amenities" that playgrounds have these days... and I liked the fun, bright colors.

Just one of the hard core gingerbread houses- you could look in the windows and see beds, nightstands, lamps on the night stands, etc.

I liked this french - style marketplace...

So how does someone think- oh yeah, gingerbread house competition- I'm going to make a sewing machine, and spools of thread and ribbon, pins, buttons, etc. ...?

Here is a shot of us driving up the "driveway" to the Biltmore house- a 2-mile-long driveway, mind you- it goes under the Blue Ridge Parkway, a beautiful highway that spans across North Carolina and Virginia (maybe more than that; I can't remember all of the details).

Welcome to the Biltmore House- this was a "vacation home" for family and friends of the rich and famous. It was all decked out for Christmas. Such an amazing place to visit!

The back porch...

View from the back porch. No inside pics- they weren't allowed. Guess you'll have to go see it for yourself. =) So nice to see mountains again!