Blowing into the Hemlock

Blowing Rock is my new favorite vacation destination. It is a clean, cute and perky little town nestled in the mountains, not on the road to anywhere. This gives Blowing Rock a timeless feel; timeless yet not backwards. There is no lacking for Wi-Fi, clean water, quality food,  and educated, friendly residents. I think this was one of the appeals to the city; it was timeless yet not primitive. It was not as isolated as Gilligan's Island, and we did not have to build cell towers out of coconuts. Yet it felt deeply safe, peaceful, sincere, genuine. Deep like the Marianas Trench. When you are in the mountains, you feel connected with infinity. This spiritual undertone is all around you, especially in the Blue Ridge Mountains .

There were so many highlights during our weekend at BR, that I am going to have to divide this into multiple posts, like I did my Bardstown visit.  One of the best things about the weekend was where we stayed; the Hemlock Inn. It was a short walk from the Inn to North Carolina's oldest continuously operating bar; the Antler Bar. On the way out of town, the hotel owner and host directed us to a museum and hiking trails that once was the home of the inventor of denim. This represents a scattered taste of Blowing Rock, like a Whitman's candy sampler without the crappy fake cherry nougat center. 

Front of the Hemlock Inn

I don’t recall ever thinking that a hotel, motel or B&B was the highlight of a trip. Hemlock Inn is worthy of being one of the highlights. I've done tons of traveling. To me, a hotel is a rental bed; just a place to crash, and a place to strategize the next day's expedition. I don’t stay in a hotel to see the hotel; I stay to see the city. I am looking forward to staying at the Hemlock again. The Hemlock Inn was my fiancé's find, and it really was fantastic. Of course, hemlock is a poison, so I am not sure why she was googling it. 

Porch at the front of the room at the Hemlock Inn

Garden Area in front of the room at the Hemlock Inn.

Picnic Table at Hemlock Inn

Brian and his wife Donna are the owners of the hotel. They are extraordinary hosts. The two things that stood out about the Hemlock was the beauty of the Inn, and the quality of the service. Brian and his wife bought the hotel in 1994. They retired from their employed positions and moved to Blowing Rock to run the Inn. They added on to the Inn, doubling the size, but kept the style authentic to the original 19th century structure. You can't distinguish the old part from the new. Brian, Donna and their staff were fun, friendly, and informative, and made sure all of our needs were immediately met throughout our stay.

Brian and his dogs

Brian and his dogs

The Hemlock is around the corner from downtown. It is a short walk to numerous beautiful parks, great shops, restaurants and bars. One of our favorite places was the Bistro Roca Antlers Bar. The Antlers Bar is the oldest continuously operating bar in North Carolina, and remained in operation during the prohibition years. It opened in 1932.  The food is exquisite and the service outstanding. The menu is seasonal and mostly local, with such items as wood fired sweet potato salad with duck bacon, bison tamales, eggplant frites, and wood fired trout with asparagus. The ambience matches the food. It has an old time mountain/woodsy feel. Decorated, of course, The walls of the entire place are covered with black and white photos of puppies. 

On the way out of town, we decided to stop at the Moses Cone Memorial Park. Because how can you go to Blowing Rock and not pay homage to Moses Cone, right? I had never heard of Moses Cone before this trip, either. Although this is only a testament to our lack of decent history education in America. This fellow invented denim, and became a very wealthy philanthropist because of it. His company was worth a million dollars in 1890. He was known as the "Denim King" and was the worlds leading supplier of denim. King Cone built a beautiful mansion on the top of a mountain outside of Blowing Rock. They named it "Flap Top Manor." He died two years later at the age of 51 in 1908. He helped start an academy that later became Appalachian State University, even though he only had a high school education himself. His wife and her sister lived at their estate for another 39 years after his death, and they traveled in the most elite of circles, becoming friends with the likes of Picasso and Matisse. I'm pretty sure Mrs. Cone and her sister did not spend the rest of their lives weaving denim at the Flat Top Manor Denim Loom. The local hospital is named after Moses Cone, and their mansion in the mountains is now a national park. The minute you see the view, you know why they established a home on this plot of land. 

The invention of denim in the mountains of western North Carolina also explains why most blue jeans are blue. The plant named indigo grows in abundance in these mountains. The dye called indigo is derived from these, and is the same as the color named indigo. Not coincidentally, the chemical identification and method of extraction of dye from this plant happened at the same time, by the German Chemist Bayer (inventor or Bayer aspirin). And Moses was a first-generation American of German descent. As someone who is half German by heritage, let me give a double shout-out to German innovators. Go Germans!  I never leave home with out a bottle of aspirin in my blue jeans pocket. Just saying. Ach du lieber.

The Moses Cone estate is in hundreds of acres of beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains. There are many miles of hiking trails. On this particular vacation, we had already had 3 long hikes (about 20,000 steps on the Fitbit each hike). We told Brian about some of our toughest hikes; big elevation changes and narrow rocky paths next to drop offs. He recommended the Moses Cone hike to his grave in the middle of a meadow most of the way up a 4,500 foot elevation peak. While it was not narrow, steep and rocky, it was super long, and continuously uphill for two hours, and ironically ended up being the biggest elevation of any of our hikes that week at 80 floors on the Fitbit. The two key destinations along the way were Moses Cone's burial site and a place called "Observation Tower."  Having been to "Chimney Rock" and "Looking Glass Rock" and "Devil's Head," we assumed this would be some cool natural formation. After two hours of sweat-drenched hiking uphill in heat and humidity slightly above acceptable human parameters, we see the four-story tower man-made structure, and of course, had to climb it. I did not completely wear out my sketchers, but by the end of the week, either half an inch of sole was worn off or I was half an inch shorter. 

Moses Cone Mansion

The View King Cone had from his home

Moses Cone grave marker, or as I call it, the "Cone Stone"

Moses Cone grave marker, or as I call it, the "Cone Stone" 

Path to the top of the mountain on Cone Estates

Path to the top of the mountain on Cone Estates

The infamous tower at the top

If you want to go to one of the most beautiful and coolest places in the world, vacation in the Blue Ridge mountains. 

Bardstown Spiritually

Bardstown is charming city well worth the visit. Established around the time of the revolution, it boasts America's oldest stagecoach stop. It is a relaxing and enchanting place to spend an afternoon strolling about, visiting shops, restaurants and bars.  It is also, I discovered, a place to be greatly inspired and connect with God. This is one of the most well kept secrets about this city, and this is the last of three posts about Bardstown.

Spirituality. It is my viewpoint that everyone is on their own path. The individual's path needs to be respected. Some people look at your path and if they don’t like the way it looks, the things you see, or the direction it is going, then they want to knock you down or push you in another direction, or destroy you for being on a path they don't like. Those people are called fundamentalists, and they are dangerous in any religion; Christian, Muslim, Pagan, Martian Overlord, Flying Spaghetti Monster, Church of the Jedi ... Doesn’t matter. Trying to control another person's beliefs is wrong and doesn’t work. Faith is one of the things human beings are willing to die for, so you are a fool to try to change it. I am more than happy to tell you about my own, if you want to know, but I'm not here to sell it to you.

I discovered a rich spiritual heritage in Bardstown. I am a reporter. I am not an evangelist or a crusader. I report this rich spiritual heritage of this city with reverence, respect and a little bit of awe. But I am not trying to convert anyone. In fact, the faith I pay homage to here, is not my own.

Bardstown has a rich Roman Catholic history, and is a very important place in American Catholic history. In fact, this is largely understated. There are three significant Catholic institutions here. Bardstown really ought to be a Roman Catholic pilgrimage site. Yet I came upon this realization for myself, merely by observing a confluence of forces. Lets put this in perspective…this is the buckle of the Bible belt. Protestants, Baptists, Fundamentalists, Pope-haters, and Uncle Jed shooting up some grub. In this setting, it is surprising indeed that Kentucky would play an important role in American Catholic history.

St. Joseph Proto-Cathedral  

St. Joseph Proto-Cathedral  

I am not Roman Catholic, I am an Orthodox Christian. I have lots of friends and family who are Roman Catholic, and I respect their Christian journeys. I also recognize the profound impact the Roman church has had on Western European history and culture, and thus also the rest of western civilization. While I choose to be Orthodox rather than Catholic, I have respect for Christians who follow this tradition. In spite of its many dark problems and regrettable bits of history, I have respect for many of the deeply spiritual adherents I have known. Unfortunately, most American lack awareness that the Eastern church; the Orthodox church, has had an equally profound impact on it's regions of the world, but the US is a descendant of the west and most of our citizens are woefully unaware of Orthodox Christianity. We are the products of our heritage in some ways, and this leaves us ignorant of global truths and other paths. I guess the nut does not fall far from the tree, whether it is an eastern or a western nut, I am not saying.

In my quest for Bardstown enlightenment, I learned a lot about Roman Catholic spirituality, history and terminology. The Roman Catholic significance begins with St. Joseph Basilica. The cornerstone of the church was laid in 1815. The church is a Cathedral, and since it was the first cathedral in the area, it is a proto-cathedral. In 2008, Pope John Paul II designated it as a minor basilica. A Cathedral is the principal church of a diocese, and usually where the Bishop resides.

A Basilica is a church that has been granted special privileges by the pope. The word derives from Greek and means "royal house." There are two kinds of basilicas; Major and Minor. There are only four major basilicas, all in Rome, and these include St. John Lateran, St. Peter, St. Paul Outside the Walls, and St. Mary Major (Santa Maria Maggiore).

Minor, or lesser, basilicas are significant churches all across the world (including Rome) that are given special ecclesiastical privileges. Minor basilicas achieve designation due to multiple reasons. These would include any combination of these: historical significance, architecture, art, impact as places of worship. Inside you will find three physical indicators that a church is a lesser basilica. One is the presence of the conopaeum — a yellow and red striped silk canopy (traditional papal colors). Another is a bell called the tintinnabulum. These will be It is mounted on a pole and carried processional, at the head of the clergy on special occasions. Minor basilicas also have the right to display the papal symbol (crossed keys) on banners, furnishings, and the seal of the basilica.  There are close to 1600 Basilicas world wide, and 69 in the USA.

The fact that this church was the first cathedral west of the Allegheny Mountains is significant because this means it was the first time a Roman Catholic Bishop was needed west of the original 13 colonies. Roman Catholicism in the USA was spreading to the west and taking a hold, and Kentucky was the first place to prove it. The Diocese of Bardstown was established in 1808, and was the first inland diocese in the USA. In 1841 the head of the diocese was moved to Louisville, which is still the current seat. St. Joseph's designation was changed from Cathedral to Proto Cathedral, to honor her place in local history; since the Bishop no longer resided there, it could not be further referred to as a cathedral.

Visit them for Mass, and check out their website.

St. Joseph Basilica 

Another significant institution is the Abbey of Gethsemane, a Trappist monastery. An Abbey of course, is a home and workplace for monks or nuns. A monastery is specifically for monks. We also have monks and nuns and monasteries in orthodoxy, as they were developments that happened before the schism around 1000 A.D. that resulted in two churches; the east and the west. A Trappist monk is one of the Cistercian, founded in 1664 and are notably austere, with rules that includes remaining silent for much of the time. So austere in fact, they have to play Pokémon Go with no sound.

A view of a small part of the exterior

Inside the church on the monastery grounds

Inside the church on the monastery grounds

A prayer and meditation chapel at Gesthamane Monastary 

There were many parts of the Abbey that were open to the public. Of course, there were very large areas of buildings and land that were only for the monks, as I would hope to be true, to allow them the peace and silence they need for their prayers, contemplations, meditations, so they have the internal spiritual strength to later give back to Catholic society; writings, counseling, guidance, or other ways of bolstering the Roman Catholic community.

The grounds were beautiful and peaceful and quiet. There was a chapel open to the public. We went in for prayer and mediation. We were in a loft, looking down. There was a solitary monk in robes kneeling and praying in the front. It was a very peaceful experience to consciously be in the moment. 

We also visited a lovely store with numerous handmade food products, made by the monks. These group is locally known for their excellent cheese. I was also impressed to see the numerous icons in the store, icons that were very similar to or sometimes even identical to the icons of my orthodox faith. Roman Catholics do not traditionally use icons nearly as much as orthodox, and seeing these in the store gave me a sense of the closeness of my traditions and faith to that of the roman church.

The Abbey offers spiritual retreats, and being Roman Catholic is not required. Visit them in person, or at this website.

Visit the Abbey of Gesthemane, and their website. http://www.monks.org

An amazing social institution exists in the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth. Started in Bardstown, KY in the 1800s, it is now a global charitable network that provides education, clean water and medicine to impoverished villages all over the world. They fight against human trafficking and for the environment. The depth and breadth of their impact is staggering, and I would direct you to their website to learn more: Sisters of Charity  http://www.scnfamily.org  Rather than go into detail about their phenomenal work, I will simply tell you about my experience at their world headquarters.

SCN, like the monastery, has an expansive tract of land. Rolling hills and trees, dozens of beautiful buildings set a scene of a pastoral and serene place to meditate and pray, as well as to create concrete plans and make the world a better place. Plans that actually get acted on, and effectively executed. The architecture was grand, as well as the interior. We had an impromptu tour by one of the sisters that had been there for decades. It could have lasted all day, but we only had a couple hours. One of the amazing things about the place, is it was set so far back from the road, that you would never know it was there driving past, and yet it was an enormous facility, larger than some small towns.

While I am not Roman Catholic, I am in awe of the impact of these Roman Catholic institutions from Bardstown; the positive impact they have on the world, as well as the Catholic community, and their significance in history.

Bardstown and Bourbon

Bardstown is a charming city well worth the visit. Established around the time of the revolution, it boasts America's oldest stagecoach stop. It is a relaxing and enchanting place to spend an afternoon strolling about, visiting shops, eateries and bars.  There is too much to share about Bardstown in just one post, so I have divided it into three. We learned a lot about bourbon, since Bardstown is the bourbon capital of the world. We had a wonderful dinner train ride. We enjoyed just walking around town, seeing the houses, visiting the shops.

As a new Kentucky resident, I must confess I don't like Bourbon. This might get me deported back to the USA, but I have to be honest. Yet, it is deeply ingrained in the culture, and for good reason, so I had to try a bourbon (followed by a lot of choking and gasping and a fake smile) in Bardstown. Bardstown is genuinely the epicenter of Bourbon. It was perfected here in the early 19th century by a Baptist preacher named Elijah Craig. (Trying hard not to be snarky about this. Being Orthodox, we don’t have rules against alcohol, but do not condone abuse). I like beer and wine, but distilled beverages, especially whiskeys (of which Bourbon is a subtype) and more especially bourbons taste like antifreeze to me. No, antifreeze mixed with stomach acid. But I do not judge anyone else for liking it; each to their own.

The Bourbon aficionados (i.e. snobs, i.e. antifreeze/stomach acid aficionados) will tell you that "true" bourbon can only be made in the region of Kentucky in and around Bardstown, due to the  natural limestone filtered water in the area. There are more bourbon distilleries here than anywhere in the world. A few big houses from this area that might be familiar to you, if you like bourbon, include Heaven Hill, Barton, Jim Beam, Willet, Ridgemont Reserve, Evan Williams, Makers Mark, and 4 roses.

While I don’t care much for bourbon, I do like all the things you can make with bourbon, especially with chocolate. Whiskeys in general are a nice flavor pallet contrast to chocolate. We spent some time in the Kentucky Bourbon Market place, and thoroughly enjoyed the shop and talking with the owner. We learned a lot about bourbon from her. The store has a boutique with a large selection of bourbon foods including bourbon balls, cakes, caramels and truffles, sauces, spices, and many other delicious gourmet food items. They also have a Bourbon tasting bar and a B&B upstairs. Visit them in person, or at this site: Kentucky Bourbon Marketplace

 

For the evening, we enjoyed a ride on the My Old Kentucky Dinner Train. Of course, like any good dinner train company, they have special events like murder mystery dinner rides and a bourbon sampling excursion. We went on the standard narrated dinner tour. Let me clarify … the tour was narrated, not the dinner. I don't like it when the waiter announces everything I am eating. (and now he is chewing his asparagus).  By the way, if you eat too much asparagus it can make you urine smell really bad. And if you eat too many beets, you will have red BM's. If you eat a large beet and asparagus salad, you might think you are dying.

The dinner train was fun and romantic. The narration was interesting. We passed through the heart of bourbon land, and went through the middle of a Jim Beam's distillery. The thing that impressed me the most was how massive and sprawling the facility was, and I realize I only saw a small fraction of it. Also fascinating was the white buildings where the bourbon is aged, and the black mold that grows on them. Apparently, it is better for the bourbon to leave the mold on the buildings (I suspect Old Jim just used this as an excuse to his wife about why he did not clean his buildings). Because of this effect (right, Jimmy. I don't wash my car because I am afraid the bumper will fall off. Really.) you will see countless huge white buildings, as big as industrial farm barns, that were white… with various stages of black mold coating on them. We also got to see "train wreckage" that was actually where the Harrison Ford escape scenes of "The Fugitive" were shot. 

As far as the train ride, it was beautiful and peaceful. The food and service was outstanding. 

Visit them in person or online: My Old Kentucky DinnerTrain 

While there is fun in and around Bardstown, just walking the streets, we saw house after house of cute colonial style homes. There were a lot of nice coffee shops and restaurants. We had lunch at an enchanting place owned by an eastern European family with thick Bosnian accents. The food and service there was outstanding. I am looking forward to eating there again. Visit them in person or online: Kresso's Restaruant.  

 

Downtown homes with colonial charm.

And one final little cool tidbit that you could almost walk right over is an old cobblestone path. It is all that remains of the original road into Bardstown from the east. It served as a military road, and a road for settlers and wagons. A turnpike was constructed below the cliffs in 1830, leaving this road abandoned. All that remains is about thirty yards of path.  

Bardstown, Hauntingly Charming

Bardstown is a charming town and well worth the visit. It offers interesting historical tidbits, great restaurants, a rich religious heritage, a delicious and entertaining dinner train, and it is the capitol of the Bourbon world. It is also a fun town for the paranormal aficionado (also a nice place to visit if you happen to be a ghost … so if you are a ghost reading this post, I can recommend popular places for poltergeists). In fact, it has so much to offer, I am going to write three separate posts on it. It's like Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows; just too much to put into one movie and do it justice. 

I'm not a big paranormal fan, but then neither am I a fan of normal. If you are interested in ghost hunting, Bardstown has a lot to offer. Most of the paranormal activity is centered in two buildings that are right next to each other; the Old Talbott Inn and the old jailhouse (now the Jailer’s Inn). I did not personally see any paranormal activity, but I saw some normal activity at the train depot, and it made me very nervous. 

The Old Talbott is the oldest stagecoach stop in America (or so they claim. I did not see any stagecoaches stop while I was there), and thus many famous and influential people have stopped there, if at least for refreshment if not for a bed. It was built in 1779. The list of historical figures that have visited or stayed at the Talbott is worth a visit to the Inn. Abraham Lincoln stayed there when he was five. His parents were in a land dispute, and losing the case propelled them on to Illinois. Stephen Collins Foster spent time there. He was the song writer who wrote My Old Kentucky Home, Oh Suzanna, Camptown Races, Beautiful Dreamer, and Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair. John Fitch, inventor of the steamboat, hung out there often. King Louis Phillippe of France stayed there during his exile, along with his two brothers and other nobles of his court. Legend has it that his entourage painted some of the murals on the wall. A century and a half later, Jesse James holed up there because his cousin was the sheriff next door and helped hide him out. One night, Jesse was drunk and thought the birds in King Phillippe's mural were attacking him, and he shot several holes in the wall that are still there. There is plexiglass over the holes, so I could not stick my fingers in them. I asked, and they would not let me.  

Wall with Jesse James' bullet holes: (Painting was burned off in a fire)

Old Talbott has excellent food, and service, and the longest list of Bourbons I have ever seen. I don’t like bourbon myself, but if you do, you should go here. They have close to 100 different bourbons on the menu. If you aren't seeing ghosts before the list, you will be seeing them by the time you get to the ones that start with “C". 

Next door to Talbott's is the old Jailhouse ,which has since been converted into a bed and breakfast. That's right, you spend the night in jail. Which might happen anyway, when you are done with Talbott's bourbon list. Some of the doors still have the bars on them. I was not allowed to bang a tin cup on them and yell for breakfast. Between that and sticking my fingers in the Jesse James holes next door, I am actually not sure I am welcome back in Bardstown.  A few rooms have been preserved with the metal cots, and the staff gives a tour every evening, telling stories. The breakfast was delicious, and I am sure much better than what the prisoners had 100 years ago. The jail opened in 1819, and was in use as a jail until 1987. There is a drunk tank, and a wall outside, in the back where executions took place. The hanging wall is now a pleasant floral garden where they serve breakfast in conducive weather.  And they are very quick with the service; they do not leave you hanging. The chef executes a great egg casserole. 

The inner most room of the Jailer's Inn was a women's cell. There are no windows here, and no quick exits. Most guests can't sleep through the night in this room, and most report creepy noises at night in this room. Many people report seeing Jesse James, a lady in white, orbs of light moving about, unexplained noises throughout the night in many of the rooms, objects being moved, furniture visibly jumping up and down without reason, shadows with nothing casting them, among many other strange experiences. I was also seen running around with a white sheet over my head, with eye holes cut out. Again, I don’t know why they asked me not to come back.  

The pre-revolution Inn and the old retired jailhouse are, of course, natural set ups for ghost stories. I highly recommend a visit to these two places, as well as other Bardstown Highlights that I will be posting about soon. 

This is the back wall, in the back yard, where inmates broke stone with hammers, and where the hangings were held off that wall. 

This is the wood ceiling of our bedroom for the night, and the former high security room. The extra beams in the ceiling were to make breaking out harder. It was a second floor room, and they would remove the ladder at night, so there was no way down from the second floor. There were no stairs; only a ladder that would be placed as needed.

This is a nice courtyard in the back, where you can be served breakfast, with the view of the hanging wall and quaint courtyard and well. 

A couple photos of our lovely room. All the rooms are different, and all are equally appealing. 

Please visit the websites... and moreover visit them in person!  The Talbott Inn and Jailer's Inn:


Talbott Inn


Jailer's Inn