French Licks in French Lick Indiana

French Licks Ice Cream and Coffee is a GREAT little treat store in French Lick!  It is connected and linked to the Bear Hollow Wood Carvers shop.  You can visit TWO very unique local shops together!  AND, they are also right next to the AMAZING French Lick Museum!

We went in and found a very sweet young lady running the place, assisted by a young man and they were both full of enthusiasm!

The young man was literally, very young....  I'm thinking maybe 5ish or so.  He was contributing a lot to the work load and seemed happy to be helping out!

The young lady was VERY helpful and fun.  We noticed after she enthusiastically made our treats, she stayed busy cleaning and wiping down counters.  She was non-stop!

It made us think.....  We had stopped at another
independent coffee shop a few weeks earlier.....  in another town.  That coffee shop was disorganized and sloppy in general.  The young person working there had the personality (and work ethic) of a rock.  We noticed someone order an iced coffee, and the worker said they could make one, but it would take a few minutes.  We thought about how, in a few hours, we could clean the shop up and have it working smoothly.  Too bad the owners and staff didn't feel the same way.

French Licks (and their staff) had an entirely different attitude.  They obviously took pride in what they were doing.

Anyway, French Licks gets our highest possible recommendation.  The place serves nice treats and has a lot of heart.

French Lick Resort and Pluto Water in Indiana

We visited the French Lick/West Baden Springs area again recently.  Its funny, we went there a few years ago and LOVED the area, and the historic hotels....  and we had been itching to get back for some time.

On this trip, we stayed at West Baden Springs.  The French Lick Resort is number two to one other hotel in the region.....  and it is only a mile away from its more over the top sibling hotel.

BUT the French Lick Hotel is still an amazing place to see.  When you are in the area, you MUST see both.

We did spend a lot of time exploring the French Lick Resort again (here is where I mentioned it in 2016).

There are several nice shops in the massive structure.  Lots of restaurants too.


SEVERAL display cases show off the hotels impressive "Pluto Water" collection.  The area and the resort are forever linked to the water that used to be bottled in the area, most of it sporting the mascot Pluto (lets be honest though, thats straight up the devil).  I'm certain that a product using a red horned mascot would not go over these days.

Which makes the old bottles and packages associated with Pluto Water so cool.

A cousin of mine has recently gotten me interested in collecting casino chips.  I don't think this will be a collection that I will get obsessed with, but I can definitely see myself picking up a chip or two at a cool, historic place like this when we travel.

So, on this trip I briefly ran in to the French Lick Casino with the one goal of buying a couple of chips.

There is a brief scanning area (I had to empty my pockets and walk through a metal detector).  I then made my way to the cage area and and ended up buying a few chips.  A very nice lady working there told me about a few variations, and I bought a couple more chips than I originally planned to.

West Baden Springs Hotel in Indiana

West Baden Springs Hotel in Southern Indiana.....  This place is just ridiculously perfect.

We stayed here a few years ago and loved it.  We have been talking ever since about getting back, and we FINALLY made it!

We arrived early on the Friday of a three day weekend.  Our room wasn't quit ready so we strolled around.  They did give us access to the pool area, so we went and checked that out.  We walked around the rest of the lower area too, and checked out the shops.

Over the next couple of days we would spend a lot of time in the atrium area just relaxing, reading, people watching, listening to live music, etc.  There are a lot of people that stop by just to see the atrium and the hotel seems fine with that.

In fact, I was talking to a friend who has been to French Lick many times just to do a day trip,  That sort of thing is not uncommon.  Even if you don't have the time to stay, it is worth a visit.  Come and hanging out, enjoy one of the restaurants.  Buy some postcards!

On this visit, we had a great room on the sixth floor with a balcony looking out over the atrium.  It was something special.  We could open our balcony door in the evening too and listen to the live music...  again, this is a great and rare treat.

We were in our room each night when staff came by to
do turn down service.  They were always friendly and sweet, and left extra waters or other needed items when asked.

We also spent some time in the morning and evening setting on the HUGE and comfortable porch!  There are tons of rocking chairs and it was just very relaxing.

Oh, and one evening we decided to walk the whole building.  We stepped out of our room on the 6th floor and made a lap.  We then went down the stairs and walked the entire round floor, then went to the 4th.  It was nice walk (we clocked each floor at around 3-400 steps).  It was a fun way to explore the entire building!

French Lick West Baden Indiana Visitor Center

Pretty much right in front of West Baden Springs Hotel is a VERY nice visitor center!  It was open when we got to town around 8am, so we stopped by!

We did go through here a few years ago when we first visited the town, and we remembered this being a great place.  They had free postcards, and tons of brochures and magazines on attractions in the area, and in southern Indiana.

I left with lots of info on things to do!

Riley Jenkins at Pioneer Playhouse in Danville Kentucky

We went to SEVERAL great plays at Pioneer Playhouse this year.....  I wanted to mention that a young 16 year old Elvis impersonator named Riley Jenkins performed before one of their plays this year....  One that involved the legendary entertainer.

I thought it would be fun to get there early to see the opening act.  I love Elvis, and thought it would be novel.  Let me tell ya, this young singer blew the place up!

He absolutely nailed Elvis!  He sounded GREAT and simply had the Kings mannerisms down.  Even his between song banter made me think of Elvis.


He was a pro all the way.  At one point, his mic fell apart and he just went with it.  He interacted with the crowd and put on a heck of a show.  Towards the end of his set, the crowd called out for Suspicious Minds (one of my personal all time favorites) and he performed it flawlessly.

I picked up a couple of his CDs later that night and I have really been enjoying them.  I would say if you are a fan of 50s music, and you think you have heard everything....  hunt his CDs down.  They truly sound like great albums made in the 50s.

Oh, and the Pioneer Playhouse did a GREAT performance of a play inspired by the 1976 Elvis Concert at Rupp that never happened.  It was one of my favorites that I have seen at the Danville venue.

Downtown Lexington Kentucky Pedway

I hadn't walked through the pedway in Lexington in a some time.  I did the other night though, and it was really nice.  Sometimes I forget who attractive downtown Lexington can be!

Zim's Cafe in Lexington Kentucky

We had a GREAT meal at Zim's Cafe in Lexington the other evening!  Its in the old courthouse and it just has a ton of character!  Here are a few pictures.  Check it out!

"The Illustrated Directory of Uniforms, Weapons, and Equipment of the Civil War" Edited by David Miller

I was at a Half Price Books in Indianapolis recently, and I found this great treasure.  David Miller put out the book, "The Illustrated Directory of Uniforms, Weapons, and Equipment of the Civil War" back in 2001- so this one is coming up on 2 decades old!  AND, Miller is BRITISH!

Anyway, David Miller REALLY did an amazing job with this small book (Its over 450 pages long, but is made pocket sized- if you had a baggy pocket).  There are TONS of great, color photos of actual weapons and uniforms.  PLUS, there are a lot of VERY WELL DONE drawings.  As a figure painter, this is going to be a great resource.

This is the kind of book I will be keeping handy....  This is now one of my favorite reference books and I can easily say that it gets my highest possible recommendation!  I wish I had come across it sooner!

Sweetwater Bookshop- Campbellsville, KY

I wanted to give a quick endorsement to a GREAT little independent book store in Campbellsville....  Sweetwater Bookshop!

We've been in a couple of times and have had some great finds.  On this day, we found some Amish mystery books for my mother in law!  They have a nice local author section, and some other related items!

We talked to a very friendly lady running the shop about books, the local community, travelling, and Mammoth Cave!

This is just a nice shop to visit when you are in the area.....  As always, when visiting an independent bookstore, treat yourself to something special and support a place that isn't a chain!

"Making Their Mark: The Signature of Slavery at Mammoth Cave" by Joy Medley Lyons

Jerry Bransford mentioned that there was a great book about his family's history in the gift shop at Mammoth Cave.

I picked up "Making Their Mark:  The Signature of Slavery at Mammoth Cave" by Joy Medley Lyons for $7!  At that price, this would be a nice souvenir to pick up for a young reader.

PLUS, its a great, easy read.  There are lots of good photos.  It also gives an easy to follow and understand history of the early slave guides at the cave.

AND, the book literally tracks back the 5 generations of Bransfords that have been tightly linked to Mammoth Cave.

There is a disconnect that occurs around 1939 when the National Park takes over...  and all the guides are white.

MUCH is lost to history concerning the early guides- where they came from and sometimes even what happened to them after their guide careers.  Luckily, there are journals and letters that mention and describe the guides so we do get to know them.  There are a few photos, and a couple of sketches of the very early guides too.

Jerry Bransford at the Self Guided Mammoth Cave Discovery Tour Mammoth Cave National Park

We stopped by Mammoth Cave AGAIN the other day...  We love the place.

We ended up doing the Self Guided Discovery Tour as we had heard that Jerry Bransford would be helping out on this tour!  I had actually talked to Jerry before, and even traded emails with him, but I really wanted to see him in the cave, guiding, as members of his family have been doing since probably the late 1830s!  His family members were original guides to the cave.

So, we bought tickets for the self guided tour, and walked the slope down to the cave entrance.

The tour started at 10 (though this tour was a bit informal and self guided....  you could start the tour really any time you wanted to).  We got there right when they opened up and a couple of friendly young guides went over basic cave rules before letting us in.

We walked down into the cave and through the doors to get in.  We made our way to the saltpeter mining area at the front of the cave.

Jerry Bransford was there offering interpretation.

Jerry told the cave visitors about saltpeter production and how the cave was used for that during the War of 1812.  He gave a brief history on people visiting and exploring the cave.  He did briefly mention his own legacy, being a 5th generation guide, but he kept his talk about the cave.

We chatted with Jerry briefly but he had more visitors coming by.  We went further into the cave to see what else was on display.

We found an area where shoes, torches, and other man made/used items were preserved and displayed.

We walked around, at our own pace, and enjoyed casually exploring the cave.  We had actually been through this area many times before on other tours, but this was a fun way to see it again.

We were actually in the cave for well over an hour,
but we could have stayed longer.  The guides told us that people can do the self guided tour in as little as half an hour if they are quick, of they may read everything and take their time, which would probably take an hour and a half.

This would be a great tour for an elderly person or even a family with kids, since you can move at your own pace, and take as much time as you want.  This would also be a great tour for a traveler passing through the area on a road trip who had a limited period of time.

We ended up catching up with Jerry after the tour.  He is a very nice and friendly person who was great to talk to in general.  In my books, he is an exciting person with a VERY direct link to the past that really no one else does.  It is amazing that he is continuing his family tradition and it was a treat getting to see him in action as a guide!