KENTUCKY: REASONS TO GO; WHAT TO DO
May 2023
My trip here was limited. The two main draws did not appeal to me. I don’t drink whiskey so did not see reason to tour the whiskey trail and I am not a fan of horse racing finding it inhumane so skipped Churchill Downs. There is apparently a nice natural bridge in the southern part of the state, but that was hours away and the wrong direction for me. So, I can’t say that I fully experienced Kentucky but I can say I fully experience Louisville which was nice though I have no burning desire to return. The drive in from Ohio was nice as there are a lot of trees and rolling hills. On the plus side Louisville has some really great homes, including a Victorian section and even the less wealthy neighborhoods have interesting architecture, no cookie cutter here. They also have some hip neighborhoods with good food and ice cream and a number of Olmstead parks which are quite lovely (would be even better if you could walk in them without the sound of traffic). There were a lot of bike trails throughout the city but given the aggressive behavior of the drivers, not something I was game for trying. I don’t understand why they even have crosswalks since cars will barrel down at you full speed even if you are crossing on a green light in the walkway.
LOUISVILLE. Most the neighborhoods are lacking lodging and the downtown did not seem worth staying in, but you can save a decent amount of money by finding a hotel near the airport. I stayed at the SpringHill Suites which was clean and quiet and gave me the chance to throw in a load of laundry. Things to see are:
Downtown. Some nice brick buildings and the art inside the 21c Hotel downtown.
Olmstead parks. There are seventeen throughout the city (and six parkways) and Cherokee Park and Iroquois Park are two of the largest. They have many trails through which to meander and are reminiscent of Golden Gate Park. Unfortunately you can hear the traffic from the nearby streets.
Old Louisville. Touted as having the largest Victorian neighborhood in the United States. The bordering area is all sketchy (the coffee shop I went into had narcon, condoms and rehab literature in the bathroom and the woman working there was super rude) but the Victorians are lovely and diverse in design.
Germantown. This is the hip neighborhood for young folks, originally settled by German immigrants in the 1850s. It is also known for its shotgun homes, generally about 12 feet wide and popular in the south through the 1920s. I stopped in for a tasty venison burger and duck fat fries at Hammerheads. Greasy but yum! Also the staff there are amazing and way friendlier and helpful than anyone else I met in town.
Nulu. Another hip area for food and shopping bordered by downtown and Buchertown. I arrived too late in the afternoon as all the good sounding pastries at the various coffee spots were sold out but would come here again if in town.
Clifton. Cute little strip of stores and more importantly, Comfy Cow ice cream.
BIG FOUR BRIDGE. I did the mandatory walk across the Big Four Bridge into Jeffersonville, Indiana which was worth it. They even have built in ramps for bikes on the stairs. On the Indiana side, I found an amazing food truck – Taqueria El Gran Tako Estilo Mexico. Go there, third best Mexican food on my trip (Houston still wins with California in second).
