We're in NC!

Here are the pictures I mentioned in yesterday's blog. I think the falls speak for themselves. The building on the upper right in the KFC I mentioned.

We arrived in Asheville, NC about 1:30 Sunday afternoon and got set up under a beautiful maple tree. The trees on the mountains coming through Kentucky, TN and NC are beautiful. We stayed in camp aside from a short foray into Swannanoa to see about a Sunday paper. I was HOPING for a News and Observer, but got the Asheville Citizen Times.

Today (Monday) we went into the city and had our first Bruegger's Bagels in 5 months. They're as good as we remembered them, but the price seems to have gone up. YIKES! The morning brought us tornado warnings and a three minute spirt of very heavy rain and wind. End of story. After breakfast we went to the Asheville Mall and walked around. Ate a bowl of soup at the deli and then got some supplies at Wal-Mart. The sun's out now, and the temp is in the 60's.

Not sure of plans for tomorrow -- Mast General Store? Biltmore House? Stay tuned!

Corbin, KY

We arrived at the Corbin KOA yesterday afternoon (22nd) and enjoyed the beautiful weather here in southern KY. Our neighbors have a 1976 Airstream and 4 cute little kids. They were busy preparing their campsite for today's Halloween festivities. They want to win the best decorated Halloween site. They're busy helping their Mom decorate, and very excited about the hay ride and the "weenie roast" after dark tonight. They range in age from about 8 to 3. All white blondes!

This morning we drove 20 miles to the Cumberland Falls State Park to see the "Niagara of the South". It's claim to fame (aside from being the highest falls) is the "moonbow" that is evident at night when the moon is full. Unfortunately, while today is a full moon, tonight the sky is cloudy, so no moon :-(. It was so beautiful there today with the trees in full color and the sun in perfect position to take pictures. I'll have to post them another time, as they're still on the camera. We spent most of the morning there, tromping from one observation site to the next and taking pictures.

After lunch we drove to the site of the original gas station/restaurant that Colonel Saunders started here in Corbin, KY. When the depression hit and people weren't traveling as much, he decided to sell meals to boost his income. He developed his famous chicken recipe right here in Corbin on highway 25w which at the time was the main road between the north and Florida.

The rest is history! The site has a KFC restaurant, and the eating area is a replica of the original KFC.

We leave tomorrow for Asheville East KOA in Swannanoa for several days.

Louisville, KY

We arrived in Louisville on Monday afternoon and found our KOA which is right across the river from Louisville, on the Clarksville side of the Ohio River. It is definitely a different campground -- not a blade of grass to be seen. The sites are all paved and the space (very little) between campers is gravel. It's definitely an URBAN campground! However, it's extremely convenient as I don't believe we had to travel more than seven miles in any direction to see the attractions we were interested in.

HOUSES: We stopped at the Thomas Edison "house" -- I use the term loosely, as actually Thomas Edison rented only one room in the house in the year that he lived there. He worked nights as a telegrapher for Western Union and got fired after only a year for spending his time doing experiments instead of doing his job. The room has been designed using period pieces and the remainder of the house is now a museum showcasing many of the inventions made by Edison.

Farmington Historic Plantation (1815) was the home of Lincoln's friend Joshua Speed, whom Lincoln roomed with in New Salem, Il. The Speeds owned 60 slaves and had a hemp farm of over 500 acres, selling rope, twine, and burlap-type bags. Lincoln visited the Speeds after he and Mary broke up.

Whitehall House was a 4-room brick farm home that was purchased in 1909 and the wife of the new owner took the simple home from a square brick home to a 16 room mansion with huge pillars inside and out and the final owner, Hume Logan, Jr. Mr. Logan was a collector of French antiques, and he filled the home with them. When he died at the age of 94, he deeded it to the city of Louisville with the caveat that it must be opened to the public to enjoy. The gardens are beautiful and this home is the site of one or two weddings per weekend.

Historic Locust Grove was built in 1790 and was the last home of Revolutionary War hero George Rogers Clark, older brother of William Clark of the Louis and Clark Expedition. General Clark lived in Clarksville until he had a stroke and was no longer able to take care of himself. His sister and her husband, owners of Locust Grove, took the General into their home and he died there nine years later. Locust Grove was a farm -- growing corn, beans, potatoes, and hay as well as many varieties of fruits which they sold in Louisville. While we were there the house had costumed interpreters in the kitchen and one doing spinning demonstrations. The cook was making a blueberry cake over the coals of the fire in an iron dutch over. Smelled wonderful. She explained why the bottom portion of her dress was wet -- to prevent it catching fire as she worked among the ashes. It was probably the best tour of houses we took.

Other Sites:

Falls of the Ohio Interpretive Center is a nature and environmental center located at the Falls of Ohio State Park. The park is noted for it's 350 million year old fossil reef. Exhibits related to the history of the falls from prehistoric times to the present. After touring the Center we walked down to the fossil reef, but did not stay to go out onto it.

Kentucky Derby Museum was our last sight-seeing adventure in Louisville for this trip -- there's soooo much more to see we'll likely have to return another time. We had a walking tour to see the paddock area, the alley that takes the horses and the jockeys out to the track (the bricks are made of old tires to protect the legs/ankles of the horses) and we were down by the track and the seating areas of the racetrack. Inside the museum we had a movie showing the 2010 Kentucky Derby, the various hats worn by the owner's wives, the jockey colors, trophies and many multi-media shows -- very interesting!

Tomorrow we're on our way to Corbin, KY for two days and then into North Carolina!

Indianapolis, Motor Speedway & Conner Prairie

The picture on the left is of the Soldiers and

Sailor's Monument in the center of Indianapolis. The picture on the right is the Morris-Butler Mansion which I mentioned yesterday.

On Saturday we went to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, home of the Indy 500, the Brickyard 400, and the Grand Prix of motorcycle racing. We took a bus ride on the famous track, and saw the communications Pagoda, Gasoline Alley, the brick start/finish line, and then went inside the museum to see the many race cars that are there. They also had exhibits of the trophies and of the scoring devices. There were exhibits of the various broadcasters who have announced the races too. Went back on Sunday to get souvenirs.

Sunday afternoon we went to Fishers, IN to the Conner Prairie Interactive History Park. The park takes visitors back to the 1800's and is divided into an Indian village (Delaware), Conner's Homestead, a 1836 village with costumed interpreters, and an 1859 Lafayette, IN balloon ride.

It was fun to talk with the various interpreters, and I learned that the fingerless gloves I bought in Amana, IA were called "muffetees" in 1836! Several of the girls were knitting them. There were also demonstrations and discussions with a blacksmith, a woodworker, a homemaker, a guest at the Inn, and a teacher. There was also a lady playing a dulcimer, and she did a great job of playing the old songs.

Tomorrow we will travel to Louisville, KY -- we're going from race cars to race horses!

Indianapolis, Indiana

We arrived at the Indianapolis KOA east of Indianapolis on Tuesday, October 12. We spent the evening on the web looking for things we'd like to see while we're here. On Wednesday we ventured out to find a Hardees (thank heavens for the GPS system!) and ended up finding a Wal-Mart, a Panera, a Kroger Grocery Store AND Hardees! After breakfast at Panera's (we changed our mind), we went to the White River State Park -- a metro area with many attractions to explore. We decided to visit the Indiana State Museum as our first stop. We enjoyed the museum, but when we came out it was raining...and we had two blocks to walk. Jack had left the truck windows open, so we came back to wet seats as well as our wet clothes and hair! Found our way back to the KOA and had supper.

Thursday we had breakfast at Hardees (best cinnamon-raisin biscuits I've had in YEARS!) and then headed into downtown Indy to the James Whitcomb Riley Home. It seems that Riley, the Hoosier Poet, lived for 23 years as a guest in the home of a baker and his wife and their daughter and her husband. Riley wrote over 1000 poems including Little Orphant Annie. The house is one of the finest Victorian preservations in the US (according to the travel magazine). The furnishings were beautiful and were all authentic to the home!

From the Riley Home, we drove to the Benjamin Harrison home (23rd President of the US) and toured the house. Another couple was on the tour with us, and the tour which should have taken about an hour extended into over two hours. At that point the other couple was arguing over whether to buy one or two candlesticks (one was cracked), and at what price would they be sold. After 20+ minutes of waiting while they argued, we excused ourselves and went to lunch (2:30 p.m.!).

Today we toured the Morris-Butler House. This house was in the north east section of Indy, and from 1959 - 1963 was deserted and very run down. Eli Lilly and a committee of like-minded people bought the house, repaired it, and filled it with beautiful Victorian furnishings . We enjoyed the docent who led the tour -- very personable. She suggested we tour the capitol

so we drove into downtown and were lucky to find a parking meter about a block from the capitol. It was tough to get in -- the security was very strict. Jack was wearing his big western belt buckle and his hat with all the pins both caused the alarm to sound. He was "wanded" and even had to raise his pants legs to show the tops of his socks! We spent a couple hours looking through the 4 floors. From there we went to the Soldier's and Sailor's Monument in the center of downtown. It's 284 feet tall and is a tribute to those in the armed forces who died in the Civil War. Eli Lilly has provided a free Civil War museum under the monument with the focus on those from Indiana who served.

Tomorrow we're off to the Hall of Fame Museum, which houses one of the most diversified collections of antique and classic passenger automobiles and racing cars in the world. Stay tuned!!!!

The Land of Lincoln!!!!

We arrived in Springfield, IL late Tuesday afternoon and planned our excursions into Lincoln country. So much to see! Thankfully we allowed enough time to tour and to rest. Good thing -- Jack got a cold so isn't feeling the greatest.

LINCOLN SITES: We started our Lincoln tour by heading to the Lincoln Presidential Museum which is a modern building built in late 1977 with the Lincoln Presidential Library across the street in a mirror image building. The Museum has two special effects theaters (one on the Presidential Library and one on Lincoln's years in the White House and the Civil War). We had two paths to follow: Lincoln's early years by entering through a log cabin and with displays show casing his early years as a store keeper, his courting and marriage to Mary Todd, and his life in Springfield as a lawyer and legislator. By entering the White House, we were taken through his years as President of the United States and the effect of the Civil War on Lincoln.

We walked a few blocks down and visited the Lincoln and Herndon Law offices. The next day we went to the National Park Service's Lincoln Home National Historic Site. The main property is the Lincoln home where the Lincoln's lived for 17 years and is amid a scenic and historic neighborhood. The National Park Service offers free tours of the house. The house contains many pieces of Lincoln furniture, and it was moving to be able put my hands on the stairway bannister and know that Lincoln had likely put his hands on the same piece of wood! Two neighboring houses are also open containing information on the neighborhood and the inhabitants' relationship with the Lincoln's. We also visited Lincoln's tomb in Oak Ridge Cemetery. The tomb is a 117-foot monument and contains the tombs of Lincoln, wife Mary, and Tad, Eddie and Willie.

OTHER Springfield Sites:

Old State Capitol where Abe delivered his famous "House Divided" speech in the Hall of Representatives. His body lay in state there May 3 and 4, 1865.

Dana-Thomas House:

This house was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright in 1903-04 for Springfield socialite and activist Susan Lawrence Dana. The house has all the furnishings designed by Wright and is known for it's beautiful art glass windows and use of space.

Illinois State Museum:

This library contains exhibits on the state's natural history and arts. I especially enjoyed the paper weight collection!

Korean War National Museum:

This museum contained donated pictures from some of the many servicemen who served in the Korean War and provided a timeline of events of the war. One of the most interesting DVD's was of the group of military people who travel to the various war sites of all wars to find, bring home, identify remains, and return them to their families.

Vachel Lindsay Home:

Vachel Lindsay , a Springfield poet, author and artist was born here in 1879 and died here in 1931. The home remained in the family for 80 years and was acquired by the state in 1991. Abe and Mary Todd Lincoln visited the home often when they lived in Springfield during the mid-1800's when Mary's sister and her husband owned the house. The house was built in 1840.

The two pictures are of our Lincoln touring: One is of us in front of the Lincoln home, and the other was taken at the Museum where the Lincoln family invited us to have our pictures taken with them. The statues are said to be the correct height of the Lincolns.

Amana, Part 2

Brrr! Saturday lived up to the forecast! We woke up to temps in the 30's-- 32 to be exact! The campground came around last night and turned off everyone's water. Good thing our tank was full of Worthington water, and we could still brush our teeth and wash up! We went to the Amana Bakery and had yummy pastry -- mine was a blackberry braid. WONDERFUL! Then we went outside and waited 40 minutes to see the Oktoberfest parade. The streets were crowded with people waiting. As in other parades we've seen, the kids made out like it was Halloween, as most kids went home with at least half a grocery bag of candy! Best part of the parade was the Shriner OOMPAH band :-)

We went to the Woolen Mill and the Furniture Store, and many other shops before heading back to the trailer for lunch. After lunch we went to Middle Amana to see the Community kitchen and the Arts Guild building. The guide in the community kitchen was very interesting -- girls started working in the kitchens at the age of 14, and there were 62 community kitchens in the seven colonies.

We went to Mass in Williamsburg at 4:00! I WANT THAT PRIEST!! We had Mass, sang 4 songs, the Responsorial Psalm, the Sanctus and Angus Dei and had a speech by a member of the parish regarding the Annual Bishop's Diocesan Appeal AND WE WERE STILL OUT IN 40 MINUTES!!!!!!

Sunday we ate breakfast family style at the Colony Inn. We didn't realize that it was family style until we were seated, and decided to stay. Our breakfast consisted of: Orange juice, mixed fruit cup, toast, 2 wonderful thin pancakes, and a platter of 4 eggs, 2 sausage patties, bacon, and a bowl of fried potatoes. We waddled out of there and walked for an hour to work some of it off! Stopped at the craft fair at the campground and after lunch we drove to West Amana to see Opa's Barn (closed) and stopped at the Festival barn to listen to the music for an hour. For supper we went back to Amana and had supper at Ronneburg restaurant.

On Monday we drove to Homestead to see the little colony and then spent the day at the campground. Tuesday a.m. we ate breakfast at Ronneburg's and had more of those yummy pancakes. Then back to pack up and hit the road to Springfield, Illinois and Abe Lincoln!!!!

Amana, Iowa Oktoberfest and more!

We drove from Worthington to Amana, Iowa on September 30. It was a 314 mile, six hour trip and we arrived about 5:30. We registered at the Amana RV campground (huge!) and spent the evening perusing the brochures we were given. We're staying until Tuesday -- maybe longer.

We decided to have an apple strudel for breakfast from Hahn's Bakery in Middle Amana and then went walking in the town of Amana. We visited an antique shop -- kids, don't sell any of my glassware without getting it appraised! I saw stuff I'm still using going for good prices! We visited many shops, but in the leather shop I found a purse I liked. Ate lunch in a cafe and then went to the Heritage museum where we spent a couple hours. Stopped at the meat shop and picked up some brots and summer sausage; the winery where I got some great plum wine :-) and then went to the Festhaus to listen to the Oktoberfest band and ate a great meal of brots, hot German potato salad, and cherry strudel.

It was beautiful today, and we were able to walk about without jackets or sweaters. Tomorrow and Sunday are supposed to be in the 40's! BRRRRR!!!!