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After the Kentucky Derby on May 1st, we had a month before our 3rd and final race at the Indy 500 on May 30th. As we said good bye to Louisville, we made 2 interesting stops before leaving Kentucky. The 1st was Berea known as the Folk Arts and Crafts capital of Kentucky where we had a southern inspired lunch at the historic Boone Tavern and then walked the Old Town area. The 2nd was a finger licking good meal at the original KFC’s Colonel Harland Sanders Café in Corbin.
We then crossed into Tennessee, on our way to the southeastern town of Gatlinburg. Our timeshare was in a scenic, peaceful location in amongst the trees next to a fast running creek. This was in sharp contrast to the crowded and fun amusement park atmosphere of downtown Gatlinburg. We enjoyed our week there with the highlights being several visits into the Great Smoky Mountain National Park, the famous Appalachian Trail, an incredible dinner at Blackberry Farm voted one of the best food and wine resorts in the country and a visit to the Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies.
Then we headed back north to our next timeshare in the small southern Indiana town of French Lick. Much to our surprise, there were 2 world class resorts located within a mile of us. Both French Lick Resort and West Baden Springs had fascinating histories going back to 1901 and both had just completed massive renovations to the tune of more than $500 million. We were especially impressed with West Baden Springs and its huge rotunda. To give you perspective, its 200 ft. in diameter dome is larger than the U.S. capitals dome that is 128 ft. in diameter. When we walked into the atrium area with its 5 stories of French windowed hotel rooms and its colorful chandelier-ed dome we were amazed by its size and beauty. Who knew that this place once referred to as the Eighth Wonder of the World was tucked away here in this unassuming town in America’s heartland.
Other interesting places in the Hoosier state were Clifty State Park near Madison- high above the Ohio River, Amish Acres in Nappanee, and the town of South Bend- home of Notre Dame University, the College Football Hall of Fame and the Studebaker Mansion.
Then it was on to Indianapolis and our last week before flying home. As we drove on to the racetrack at the Indy 500 we could not believe that we were actually lapping this 2 ½ mile stretch in our rental car with its 100 years of history and tradition. How fun that they allow the public to do this! Also during the week, prior to the famous race, we saw everything from vintage Indy cars circling the track with their proud owners at the wheel to this years open wheel cars making their way around the track during their practice sessions. We visited Gasoline Alley where the pit stops would be on race day and to the garage area where the likes of Helio Castroneves and Danica Patrick were hanging out with their race cars. Chuck even got down on his hands and knees and kissed the famous bricks which designate the start/finish line and is a long standing tradition here at Indy. The downtown parade was also a lot of fun. Because we had reserved seats we didn’t have to fight the crowds to see the floats, marching bands and Indy drivers. One evening we enjoyed dinner and the wonderful company of some cruise friends who had recently moved to a hotel residence in downtown Indianapolis. What a location; with the state capital, the Colts stadium, the Pacers auditorium, a symphony hall, museums, restaurants, and shopping all within walking distance. When we arrived on race day at the Indy 500, there were similarities and differences to the 2 other races we had attended. First, there were over 250,000 in attendance which was almost as many people as both Talladega and the Kentucky Derby. We also heard a statistic that the racetrack area was larger than Churchill Downs, the Rose Bowl, the Coliseum, Yankee Stadium and Vatican City combined. Wow! The events leading up to the actual race; the national anthem, the flyover, the loudspeaker announcing “Ladies and Gentlemen, start your engines”, and the excitement of the crowd were as exhilarating as the previous races. When the highly trained drivers and their finely tuned, aero-dynamic race cars traveled around the track at 225 mph you could understand why the Indy 500 is considered by many drivers and fans to be among the crown jewels of motor sports. The driver Dario Franchitti led the way most of the race and barely won when he almost ran out of gas and crossed the finish line on fumes. A side note, Dario is married to Ashley Judd.
As we end our “Around the World in 86 Days” adventure we will leave you with one of our favorite sayings “Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away”! Thanks for joining us.

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