LAST DAY IN NEW YORK

We came to the NY Public Library to find a loo, so thought we may as well "do" a final report as well. We had a sunny day in Nashville and spent most of it at the Belle Meade Plantation (Christine ripping down the curtains and doing a Scarlett). We returned the hire car at the airport without any scratches (a miracle after 1000 miles of driving on the wrong side of the road), boarded the plane to Philadelphia (ndirect flight to NY), then had a two hour delay for the 30 minute connection to NY, which ended up being on a propellored plane! With a booking for a 7.00pm performance at Lincoln Centre, the prospects looked grim, but a WILD drive by a crazy mini-bus driver made it possible to throw our luggage in the hotel and be in our theatre seats by 6.55pm. It was worth it, as "War Horse" was a spectacular production.

Our final day has taken us to the Museum of Modern Art where we naievely thought we could walk in to a major exhibition of de Koonig(?), but the crowds were too great, so we're enjoying walking around before heading off to JFK at midday.

See you all soon.

FINE AMERICAN CUISINE

This was a case of taking a photo rather than a bite!

MEMORIES OF THE CATSKILLS

Here's Liz and Joe's mountain retreat at Roxbury

GOODBYE TO SEWANEE

Here is Barbara and Bill's lovely house to which we must say goodbye.

LAST WEEKEND

We're trying not to do a countdown, but just enjoy our last few days in Nashville and New York before boarding the plane on Wednesday afternoon. We'll have no Thursday and be home on Friday.

THERE'S A BEAR IN THERE

We're back from the Smokies and pleased to report we saw a bear at close quarters. We'd seen evidence of bears in the Catskills, but no sightings. We can return home contented. The physical beauty of the Smokies is in stark contrast to the infrastructure that has grown in the local area to house the tourists - lots of tacky motels, shops and "attractions" such as Dollywood (closed on Tuesdays, sorry Maryanne). The advantage, though, is that food and accommodation are cheap (our motel was $46 a night - big room, free breakfast)

A couple of hours from the Smokies is the Biltmore Estate, displaying in spectacular fashion the wealth and imagination of the Vanderbilts. Why not have a full pipe organ in your dining room? Luckily it was being played while we were there. We had a great day, roaming the estate, ending up with a wine tasting to size up what is being produced there.

We're back in Sewanee and, on Sunday, will move on to Nashville.

We invite anyone reading this to make a comment - ANY comment would be appreciated!

OFF TO NORTH CAROLINA

We're about to depart on a four day excursion, taking in the Smokey Mountains and the Vanderbilt chateau (plus 8,000 acres of gardens, vineyards and forest) in NC, the Biltmore On the way we plan to visit the gift shop of Dollywood (at Maryanne's insistence) to see what Ms Parton has to offer - could be an uplifting experience.