Asheville

This was the view from the porch. Yes, it was awesome, even for a crappy year in leaf-peeping terms.

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The cottage we rented suited us perfectly. And it was amazingly rational. Yes, rational. Here are a couple of examples:

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1. There is a futon in the living room, so you can cram 2 more people into the house. There is also a master bedroom with a big bathroom en suite. So instead of building a powder room on the first floor, the owner built (and I mean he built - he told us he pounded every single nail) a full bath in the public area. So guests who sleep on the futon can have a full bath without going through anyone else's bedroom.

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2. In the master bath, there's a door out to the hot-tub. You can access the hot tub from the porch (ie, the public area and front door), but also from the master suite. Why is this rational? Because it means that you can dress and undress in the bathroom, step out and get right in the tub. It also means you need not drip your way through the house to find a place to change again, but can step straight into the bathroom, towel off, and get in your flannel pj's. Also, the hot tub area is partially fenced off so that children can be kept out but adults can get in, either from the public area or just from the master bedroom, depending on what you want.

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3. The closets are large and square. The genius of this is not obvious, but let me explain. Parents of babies often put them to sleep in the pack-n-play. This item is a rather large cube-ish shape. Ideally, you want babies nearby but not Right There with you. So if each bedroom has a large square closet (say, 7x8 or 6x5), you can put Baby in his pack-n-play, close the door (almost), turn out the light, and know that he's in there safe and sound. He's right next to you, but you can still turn on the bedside light, get up, etc. without disturbing him. We put Iain in the closet of Grandmother's room, so she could get up with him in the early morning, and she still got to enjoy her late-night reading. Parfait!

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4. There are two doors in the living area. The first opens to the porch, so you can easily go to and fro. The second opens in the kitchen and allows access to the driveway, grill, and trash closet. Why rational? Because they're perfectly placed for a cross-breeze. On a lovely day, about 68 degrees, you want to blow any stuffy air right out before the night closes in. And you want to smell that mountain air. No problem - smell away, and when it gets chilly just close the doors and turn on the fireplace (gas, the one disappointment).

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So. Very nice. More photos to come.