Beautiful Asheville!

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I have to be honest, moving from California I had my own reservations about how North Carolina would be. How will the people be like? How fun the place is going to be? And will I be able to call it my home? But every city, every town and even the countryside I have been to in the Carolinas has surprised me! And our recent trip to Asheville was no different. I had been hearing about this small town in North Carolina for ever! Every time I spoke with someone coming back from a trip to Asheville, they were gaga about the place and I and A would decide that we should go. We’ve been living in NC for more than two years now and Asheville is barely a couple of hours away from here and we still couldn’t plan a trip. This fall was no different – visiting Asheville had been on the top of my list and we finally did!

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This Saturday we made this small trip and saw beautiful Asheville. Beautiful and colorful is what it is. As soon as we entered the town, it somehow reminded us of San Francisco. Lot of color, people with vibrant clothes, narrow downtown streets with small restaurants, musicians playing on the roadside and at this time of the year some gorgeous fall color! It was amazing to see all of that at one place.

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This past weekend the town, just like a lot other towns all around the world, was celebrating Halloween so people were in a fun mood. The peak of fall and trees resplendent with color made the whole experience even more beautiful.

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Now wherever a foodie goes, the first thing they look for is food! So being a loyal food lover I had to do my fair share of restaurant hopping. I was surprised to see that Asheville had some of the best restaurants I have been to. With best I definitely don’t mean fancy restaurants with shiny silverware and tough to pronounce menu, but I mean some really fun places to hang out with friends and taste some really good food. Recommended by my friend Julie, we tried this Indian restaurant called Chai Pani in downtown Asheville. If you like Indian food and if you are in Asheville or anywhere close, go to this place!

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I promise you’ll love it. I did! Everything from the decor to management to food is fun. Special props to some awesome photographers whose work is showcased at the restaurant. Some of them made me want to go back to my country and capture some real beauty of India through my camera too!

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This little bakery on the corner of the Pack Square street by the name of Sister’s McMullen was another treat! A couple was serving homemade cupcakes and brownies with some freshly brewed coffee and this was where we had one of the best Chocolate ganache and raspberry jam filled cupcakes.

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Some interesting photo ops too!

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Long story short.. With Asheville we got way more than what we had bargained for! I’d love to go again and bring back even more beauty back.

31 Comments

  1. Hi Prema,

    Just discovered your blog and were thrilled that you enjoyed your visit to Chai Pani. Thanks for the love and the great pics.
    Next time you’re in Asheville please stop by and say hi!

    Warm Regards,
    Meherwan & Molly Irani
    Chai Pani Owners

  2. I, too, love when a new place I visit, meets all the expectations, and better yet, exceeds them. The shots are really lovely. Thank you for sharing.

  3. Those Ginko trees are looking just like the ones in my neighborhood in San Francisco and the mountains like the sunset in my home state of Minas Gerais in Brazil. I have yet to visit NC and I feel I am going to like it. Your pics are fabulous as always. Thanks for sharing, Cheers!
    Heguiberto

  4. Love this post! And I LOVE Asheville – so much that I went twice last year! Did you try French Broad Chocolate Lounge? And my other favorite is Zambra. And The Laughing Seed.

  5. I have heard such wondreful things about Asheville and your pictures are stunning! My friend just moved to NC and I am hoping visit after the New Year. Perhaps I can encourage her to make road trip?

  6. Your photos are gorgeous, as always. I love the picture of the dog! I’m glad you finally got to go out and visit that town. I’m sure you will be returning often now that you know how great it is!

  7. Yay! I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Sommer (A Spicy Perspective sitting right above me in your comments) is the one that originally posted about it and had me convinced to try! You captured some really beautiful snaps as always. Glad you had such a nice time!

  8. Hi Prerna – I just discovered your blog, have subscribed, and I’m really glad that I did! My brother and his daughters live in Asheville, which is a really beautiful town, and when I arrived in September to visit we went to Chai Pani for lunch. It was delicious. There are lots of other really good restaurants too…Take care, Michele

  9. Gorgeous pics! And, you even captured my favorite trees in Asheville in their full fall glory (the giant ginkos on Wall Street are amazing)! I am glad to see that you love our funky little city as much as we do. Happy travels!

  10. Saw this thru Shulie, caught my attention cause my sis lives in Asheville plus I love Indian food! You’ve done a nice job using Blogger! Hope to get some tips on Indian food.

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