Featured Blog: Glorious Spring, Where Is It?

People are asking, "Where is Spring"?  Come on now, we had two days of summer a week or so ago.  What more do you want?  This is, after all, unpredictable Minnesota.

But ... I have seen SPRING.

The first two weeks of April a friend and I travelled to the southeast.  We watched for every sign of the elusive Spring.  First we noticed the snow was gone, then, small patches of green along the roadways.  We searched for life on the barren tree limbs.  In Tennessee we started seeing a faint glow of light green on the branches.

A light rain greeted us in Nashville.  The next morning as we visited The Hermitage, Andrew Jackson's home, there was green overhead and beneath our feet - not much, but perceptible.  A few daffodils were starting to bloom in the garden.  Pansies had been planted, tulips were budding.

We wanted to drive through a part of the Smoky Mountains, but there had been a land slide not yet cleared, so that treat was out.  The highway from Pigeon Forge to Asheville, NC did provide a taste of the hilly, squiggly, wild flowered beauty of the area.

Outside Asheville is the Biltmore Estate, the private home of the Vanderbilt Family.  The house is magnificence personified.  The staff is highly trained and more than gracious.  We shopped the shops, had a delicious lunch in The Stables, then walked parts of the grounds.  Unfortunately Spring hadn't quite arrived so the gardens weren't in bloom.

We found Spring in Augusta, GA.  The azaleas were prolific and gorgeous.  The redbud and dogwood (the kind that has actual flowers) were in full bloom.  Carpets of tulips greeted the visitor.  Yes, there were beautifully maintained lawns and greens.  It was a site to behold for Spring hungry eyes.

Of course, we had to come home.  We made the most of that part of the trip as well.  In Atlanta, GA we saw a fantastic iris in bloom.  It was in a protected area, but really, iris in April!

Travelling as a tourist is my idea of a fantastic trip.  I love little side roads offering unique sites, fun places to eat tucked away in quaint villages, Visitor Centers with Art Fairs, even the ducks at the Peabody Hotel in Memphis - ridiculous, but they built a reputation on those birds.

Soooo, I did experience Spring.  No spring in my yard for the roses are still buried, the tulips and daffodils are only trying to bud - but that's okay.  In all its glory, I have seen SPRING.