My Old Kentucky Home

To quote Bon Jovi, "Who says you can't go home?"  Well, not me, that's for sure.  After swinging past my parent's house in eastern Kentucky last week, I continued on my road trip over to my hometown...Louisville.  I love Louisville!  I was there for a training institute held at my alma mater,  University of Louisville.  Go Cards!

While I was in Louisville, I took advantage of lunch breaks and evenings to see some of my favorite things.  So, I thought I would share a photo tour of my visit.

The Thinker statue that sits on the steps of Grawemeyer Hall is the first full-size bronze cast of the work by French sculptor Auguste Rodin. Rodin personally supervised the casting on Dec. 25, 1903.

The Red Barn!  I spent so many weekends at the Barn dancing to awesome bands or running lights while sitting on a pipe at the top of a ladder.  Looking back, I can't believe I did that! 

Threlkeld Hall...my home for two years.  I have awesome memories of the lobby lizards playing spades, all night study sessions (that may have also included some time spent at the Tetris machine), and the awesome Threlkeld Athletic Club (intramural champions on numerous occasions!)

Delta with a D, with a D-E-L, with a D-E-L-T-A!

Zeta with a Z, with a Z-E-T, with a Z-E-T-A.  DZ, Hey!

 The famous twin spires of Churchill Downs, home of the Kentucky Derby.  Like many native Louisvillians, I went to Derby parties and cookouts rather than to Churchill Downs on Derby Day, but I love the Great Steamboat Race, the Pegasus Parade, and all of the other events that lead up to the Run for the Roses.

The painted horses weren't around while I was growing up, but I saw at least a dozen of them while I was driving around town.  They are all unique and so cool!  The top one here was in the parking lot of a little flower shop near Churchill Downs and the bottom one lives in the U of L School of Business building.

For Southenders like me, Iroquois Park is a great place to play Frisbee golf, attend a musical at the Iroquois Amphitheater, or just cruise around and see and be seen.

While I was in town, I took a culinary trip down memory lane and visited a few of my favorite places to eat.  It definitely wasn't the healthiest way to eat for a week, but it was the most delicious!

I was driving down 7th Street toward Shively and my van turned right in to the Krispy Kreme.  When the Hot sign is flashing, I just can't resist.  Krispy Kreme doughnut runs were a part of life at Butler High School.  I know they aren't unique to Louisville, but there isn't a Krispy Kreme near me, so a hot original glazed is still a huge treat.

Ollie's Trolley on the corner of 3rd and Kentucky, so awesome!  I love the spices they put on their fries and the Ollie sauce and mozzarella cheese on the burgers.  Close to downtown and U of L, but unfortunately only open for lunch on weekdays.  There is an Ollie's Trolley in Washington D.C., but this is the original.

Another Louisville original.  Dizzy Whizz has been operating on West St. Catherine since the 1940s and they still have actual curb service where the server comes out to your car and takes your order and then brings your food on a tray that hangs on your car. The Whizzburger with its secret sauce is definitely the thing to get.

 While in town, I also got to eat at a few of my other favorites: Mark's Feed Store (pulled pork, potato salad and buttermilk pie - Yum!), Tumbleweed (gotta be a chimichanga), Skyline Chili (because you can't get Cincinnati chili in my neck of the woods), and Hubers Family Farm and Restaurant in Starlight, Indiana.

I also found a new favorite when I met my friends, Tod and Teresa, for dinner at Ditto's on Bardstown Rd.  The Thai salmon was fabulous, but the time spent catching up with these wonderful friends that I haven't seen since my wedding 19 years ago was what made this meal unforgettable.

All of this, a great professional experience at the training institute and time with my super fun family...there really is no place like home!  

Hittin' the Road

Sorry that I haven't had a chance to post in a while, friends.  I went back to work and life got in the way (nothing bad, just busy).  For one thing, I traveled down to my parents' house in Kentucky.  It was a really enjoyable trip!  When you don't have to hurry, the traffic is light and the weather is good, a road trip can be a fabulous thing.

Sometimes when you hit the road you have a choice of which route to take.  This is the case when I drive from northeast Ohio to my parents' house in Kentucky.  The first half of the trip is all on Interstate 77, but when I get to the Ohio/West Virginia border I can choose to stay on 77 until I get to Charleston and then take 64 West.  The other possibility is to get off the highway and take Route 7, a smaller road that runs near and sometimes right beside the Ohio River.  Unless weather conditions are too poor, I always choose the much more interesting Route 7 option. 

There is so much to see that just goes by in a blur on the highway.  In the summertime, the flowers and blooming trees add color to the trip.  Black-eyed Susans, Queen Anne's Lace and Sweet Peas grow in abundance along the side of the road and as you travel south you begin to see flowers that aren't often found further north.  On this trip down Route 7, I saw a huge mimosa tree covered with beautiful, feathery flowers.  Even better, it was located on the corner of Honeysuckle Rd.  I also saw pale pink, leafless lilies called Naked Ladies, Crepe Myrtle with dark pink blooms, and Hibiscus the size of dinner plates.  Very cool.

Route 7 goes through several small towns (Marietta and Gallipolis) and a number of tiny ones like Tuppers Plains, Cheshire and Eureka.  Each of these towns offers something unique to see.  For example, the slower pace required while passing through allows you to see the historical markers.  On this trip, I learned that Gallipolis means "The City of the Gauls" and was settled in 1790 by French aristocrats fleeing France after Bastille Day and Marietta was established on April 7, 1788 as the first permanent settlement in the Northwest Territory.

I also encountered roadside stands selling homegrown vegetables (where I got corn, cucumbers and tomatoes) and dilapidated barns with Mail Pouch Tobacco ads painted on the side. Plus, small towns provide signs that you just don't see in a city.  One I saw promoted Chester Shade Days in Chester, Ohio.  Among other things, this celebration includes a community picnic (be sure to bring your covered dish and lawn chair), a pretty baby contest, a dulcimer concert, a pie auction, and the Ohio State Harmonica Championship.  Further down the road, I passed Alligator Jack's Flea Market, which would make sense if it were in Florida or Louisiana, but not so much in Meigs County, Ohio. 

On occasion, what you see along the road is a little more bizarre.  Case in point is this "landmark" in Athalia, Ohio...

...which just goes to show that you can see and experience some strange and wonderful things on a road trip, but you only notice if are open to seeing where you are at the moment instead of worrying about where you are going.  Sounds like a great metaphor for life, huh?  

More to come from my Kentucky road trip in future posts!