I'm back! Back to work, back to my daily responsibilities, back to my ultimate reality! Christmas was wonderful! It really was an exceptional trip, with quality time spent with dear friends and family, and the beginning of plans that promise a really lovely 2017. As many of you know, I spent Christmas in Florida this year, but on the way there, I stopped to spend some time at the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina.

I have wanted to see the estate ever since I saw the movie "Richie Rich" in 1994. I was 12! So 22-years of build up, and I finally got to see this incredible estate nestled in the magical Blue Ridge mountains of North Carolina. Now, when you see pictures of Biltmore Estate online, (or if you got to see the movie) you see these wonderful professional images of the full width of the house with no obstructions or distractions. Something like this:  via
Marvelous Right" But in reality, when you get there, it's impossible to view the house like this. There are ropes and tour vans, and people galore! So, fair warning, most of the photos that I captured were of anything I could grab above head height. I suppose it's silly to say that this was a disappointment, for how else do you control tours" But from the photography aspect, I was sad that I didn't get a chance to capture a photo like this for myself. 

This is what my view of Biltmore looked like. Beyond the bus to the left was a valet parking tent, and on the right, another ...