Quick Trip to Louisville (September 15-18)

Had to make a quick trip to Louisville, Kentucky over a four day period. First day on September 15, was to roll to Concord from Richmond, I took this photo while at a traffic light on NC-29 in Concord following a nice Thursday morning trip. I enjoyed being back for a few hours and liked this photo of the hospital parking garage (did not have to do anything in/with the hospital, just liked the view. It was a nice day, and had a good time being back in my "other city". Patty and I got everything loaded up, and headed out the following morning to have a real quick trip to the Louisville area, was going to be a real out and back experience.
I love to ride, so apparently do these guys. Saw them in Tennessee; and from the tags they came from Canada (Ontario actually) out enjoying some of the great riding America has to offer. They were mostly Harley-Davidson motorcycles, though I do remember one Honda Shadow in the bunch. Drive was nice, always remarkable to drive though the mountains, and enjoyed the views. We also were lucky (as were these riders) to have a rain free drive both up and back-it is a lot more fun riding a motorcycle or driving a car when its not raining. Had been to the mountains not too many days before this trip, nice to be back even just passing through.
Got to Louisville on September 16. We were just there a few hours, this is the view of the city from the Indiana side of the Ohio River. Louisville is a very nice city; I lived most of my life there. As I have often stated and has been noted by a number of people, in weather, being on the river, being fond of older buildings and reusing past buildings, Louisville has a great deal in common with Richmond, VA. On the river at the bottom left you can see the square building. That is the Yum Center which is the home of the Louisville Cardinals. I believe that opened for last years basketball season. Louisville is a big fan of the University sport teams-its a real passion there.
On September 18, went to Suck Bang Blow in Concord, quiet early on a Sunday, but I like this place-the big fan is made by the "Big Ass Fan" company, and of course there are some motorcycles on display in the background. I also made a stop at the nearby Speedway Harley-Davidson, my bike is still in the shop, but I am hopeful it will be out in the next few days and I can get a ride in. It has been awhile. Fall is coming up (officially on Friday September 24) and I am certainly looking forward to that,it is one of my favorite times of the year.
Certainly was a wild four day weekend, one of the things that come up with living both in Richmond and North Carolina..and with ties to a third city. All worked out well though, and looking forward to the next, and calmer upcoming weekend!

Views of Southern Indiana

During the week of April 4 I also wandered with my wife Patty around Southern Indiana. Like the Louisville area (seen in previous post) some very old cities with an interesting history can be found there. Photo at left is the Candy Museum at Schimpff's Confectionery in Jeffersonville, Indiana. The Candy Shop (still in operation) has been family owned since 1891! The building dates to the period just after the Civil War, and they use a lot of "turn of the century" equipment to make their candy. The store has been featured on The History Channel. Some of their candy is both locally and nationally famous, and I can tell you first hand; they sell some great sweets!
View here is of downtown Louisville. When John Mellencamp talks of small towns, Jeffersonville is probably something he was thinking off (though he lived in nearby Seymour, Indiana just up I-65). The city has a great number of very old buildings though many were lost in a big fire downtown just a few years ago. Driving around though there are many historic places in the area. It is a quiet town for the most part, but is home to where the US Census is collected and also home to one of the largest inland shipyards (JeffBoat) in the US. Nice friendly people and a very interesting place to check out when in the area.
View here is from the Jeffersonville riverfront, looking back at Louisville, Kentucky. Along the Indiana side of the river are a number of very fine restaurants which I enjoyed visiting a number of while home and a number of very nice areas along the shoreline. Along the river are the communties (along others) of Jeffersonville, Clarksville and New Albany. Lots of parks, picnic areas, and a number of interesting museums can be found in those areas. It is also home to the fossil beds at the Falls of the Ohio which goes about as far back in history as you can, and are remarkable to check out. Neat to see creatures which have not lived for millions of years.
I am kind of an airplane nut, and took this photo at the Clark County Airport. The plane is a Korean War era Fury (based on the F-86 Sabre) flown by the US Navy. The airport largest airport in Southern Indiana and hosts a number of planes and aviation services. Some years ago I took (and greatly enjoyed) my first flying lesson there. The airport has been very controversial over the years, as the city has resisted funding many of the improvements it has needed. It lies officially in Jeffersonville but is also near Sellersburg, Indiana. Some classic warbirds from WWII are restored at VR Fighters located there, drop by and check out some great planes there!
Here is another look at the inside of the Candy store seen at top. Just a wonderful old place, it even has a working soda fountain. As I mentioned many more photos on my photo page. It was great to see family and friends during my visit home; Kentuckiana will always hold a special place in my heart, not just for the places which bring back so many memories, but for all the fine people I know and love there. It is a great an interesting place with a lot of things to see and do, and well worth a stop during whatever travels you may be on in the future. I hope you have enjoyed this look, and will next be taking a look at Carolina in my next post; love that area dearly as well.