5.14.11 – Maifest (Covington, Kentucky)

The last time I was at Maifest I was still in college and thought schnapps was something desirable to drink. Ahh, how times change. I'm not crazy about crowds, and I've never liked beer, so I hadn't bothered going back, but the boyfriend wanted to go and the draw of potentially good sweets was enough of a lure for me.

What I remember from before was food, booze, and rides. That's still the predominant part of this loosely Germanic-based festival (the people in Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky love festivals). There were bands and street performers, along with sadly bored vendors selling all sorts of things that people interested in beer and funnel cake were not buying. I myself managed to fight off the urge for funnel cake due to my frugality -- why spend $5 on it when it's just going to go to my hips. Luckily the storm held off until we got home.

5.7-11.11 – Asheville, North Carolina

We spent the Mother's Day weekend at Kent's family's home in Asheville (There's a waterfall in their backyard!). I'd never been there before, but had heard from friends that it was beautiful, and that was definitely the case.

Luckily there was time on the trip to stop at Panera for some safe fast food and at Berea's Kentucky Artisan Center for a little shopping expedition. It seemed most appropriate during the drive to listen to David Sedaris, talking about the years he spent in North Carolina. Our first stop in Asheville was to Thyme in the Garden to pick up flowers. This was no run of the mill flower shop. I felt I was in someone's well cared for garden, with lawn furniture and even a hammock to rest on. They had the most gorgeous peonies, and a fuchsia hat I plan on trying on next time we go down.

Mother's Day itself was spent at Biltmore. The pictures and clips do not do it justice. It is an amazing place and even after the seven hours spent there, we did not see it all.

A day downtown seemed a good way to end the trip, although a slight driving incident, conveniently enough, prolonged the downtown sightseeing. I loved the ornate architecture (inside and out) and the whimsy of the flat iron sculpture in front of the flatiron building. The only downside to the trip was the oppressive heat, which was present, surprisingly, in Cincinnati when we got back. All in all a very good trip and one I hope to make again.