Biltmore Estate, Ashville, North Carolina

Small background on me: I used to live in Oxford, Mississippi. That was probably one of the most adventurous times of my life! I experienced a new culture and got to travel and see a different side of America that I had never seen before!

One of the locations that I visited was the Biltmore Estate in Ashville, North Carolina. This 'house' is the largest private home in America. It was built from 1889-1895 in the beautiful Ashville area by George Washington Vanderbilt II. This house featured 178,926 square feet of living space and 250 bedrooms! Vanderbilt had been visiting his mother often in the area and decided that this would be the perfect place to build a "summer house." During construction, Vanderbilt would go on extensive buying trips over-seas to furnish his new home. The house is full of amazing pieces from tapestries to furniture to artwork. Unfortunately, when you are on the tour, photography is prohibited. They will stop you!

The front yard complete with a fountain.

This was the only picture that I got in the house. I was politely asked to not take photos after this one!

A view of the "back yard!" Over 8,000 acres!

Looking for something fun to do while visiting the estate? Yes, there are places to eat on the estate and there is a winery and you can go wine tasting, but go across the street and check out the McDonalds! It's themed after the estate and even has a baby grand piano!!

 

John Lennon, New York City, New York

Last summer I traveled with my family to the East Coast and I saw so many wonderful opportunities for future blog posts! I didn't know at the time that I would be composing this blog, but I still had the curiosity to visit all of these amazing sites. I will do my best to get as many of them up as possible.

John Lennon. When I say his name, what do you think of? The Beatles? That boyish look? Those round glasses, long hair, and Yoko Ono? John Lennon is an icon in history that will remain with us forever.

On the evening of December 8, 1980, John Lennon and his wife, Yoko Ono, were returning back to their residence at The Dakota Building in New York City to say good night to their 5 year old son, Sean. Lennon was approached by a man named Mark David Chapman. Lennon had recognized him from earlier in the evening when he was signing autographs for fans outside of the famous apartment building. Seconds later, Chapman pulled out a .38 and shot towards Lennon 5 times. One passed over his head and went into a window and then two more were lodged into his back and two into his shoulder. Lennon staggered up the stairs and into the lobby of the building proclaiming "I'm shot. I'm shot." A couple of police officers rushed him to Roosevelt Hospital where Lennon was pronounced "dead on arrival." Lennon was cremated two days later and his ashes given to Ono. She then decided to spread his ashes across the street in Central Park. The area that she spread his ashes in is now called Strawberry Fields and there is a memorial to Lennon with the words "Imagine" in a large circular design.

The Dakota Building located on West 72nd Street

Lennon went through these gates after being shot. Ask the guards standing at the gate for more information. They get asked a lot! While you are also here, take it in for a moment that along the sidewalk is where Mark David Chapman paced back and forth after he shot Lennon.

Directly across the street is the Imagine memorial. There are many fans there daily paying their respects.

A view of the Dakota from Strawberry Fields.

Grateful Dead House, San Francisco, California

I'm a BIG music junkie. I always have been! I love exploring new genres, bands, artists, everything! I love going to concerts and I even recently attended my first big music festival: Coachella!

So the reason for my small background in music is that you will find that I love to visit historical music sites. It could be anything from a venue to a recording studio to a grave.

Back in January of 2014, I visited the Grateful Dead house in the Haight-Ashbury district of San Francisco! Several members of the band (including Jerry Garcia) and other associates lived here during the 60's. In 1967, police came and arrested the residents for marijuana possession on the property. Lucky for Garcia, he wasn't home at the time! The band moved out of the house in March of 1968 but not without a farewell concert performed in the back of a flatbed truck!

The house is located on 710 Ashbury in San Francisco, California. There's insignia on the sidewalk in front of the house that you can locate to help you identify the house. It's only a short walk from the main area of the Haight and Ashbury district. This is one of my favorite parts of the city and I highly recommend it for the inner hippie in all of us!!!

Steven Stayner, Merced, California

The other night I drove to Merced to hang out with my cousin. We went to dinner and had a great time! Since it's Merced and it's not exactly entertainment Capitol of the world, I decided that we needed to do some exploring and see what was unique to Merced. I got online and ta-da!!!! What do you know! I found something!!!

Back in December of 1972, a 7 year old boy named Steven Stayner was kidnapped in this small Central Valley town. His kidnapper was an associate of Kenneth Parnell. Parnell changes his name to Dennis and began brainwashing the boy. Over the next 7 years, Parnell repeatedly molested and sexually abused the young man. When Stayner started to reach puberty, Parnell began looking for another victim to kidnap. He then kidnapped a 5 year old boy named Timmy White in Ukiah, California. Stayner felt bad for the young boy and didn't want him to endure the suffering that he had gone through. So on March 2, 1980 when Parnell was at work, the two boys escaped and eventually ended up at a Ukiah police station. When asked for their identities, Steven revealed Timmy's information and about himself said "I know my name is Steven." Parnell was arrested immediately and the boys reunited with their families. Steven Stayner went on to try and have a normal life, but his past always haunted him. He did eventually marry and have a family, but his tragic story ended on September 17, 1989 when he was in a fatal motorcycle accident.

If you visit Merced, there is a statue in Applegate Park of Steven and Timmy. It was dedicated in their honor in August of 2010 to bring hope to other families with missing children.

Stayner is buried in a local cemetery in Merced. If you go to the far back and towards the left, there is a section called "Garden of Peace." He's in spot 140 (identified on his headstone) and is buried next to his grandfather.

Welcome!

Welcome to my blog!! After MUCH encouragement from one of my very, very bestest friends, I've decided to start a blog and chronicle all of my odd and crazy journeys that I go on.

I frequently like to visit places that are not your normal tourist destinations. One might call these locations "tourist traps." For me, they're just another crazy location that I like to visit! I often like to visit random places where some sort of pop-culture phenomenon has occurred. For example, if someone was murdered there, arrested, had a drug overdose, or some other infamous event has occurred there, then I've probably tracked it down! Not all of my destinations are of some creepy catastrophe; some are positive places and have a happy ending!

So, welcome! I hope that you enjoy all of my random knowledge that I have to share! Comments, suggestions, and thoughts are welcomed!