I know nothing about race cars, and very little about cars in general. But we could not visit Indianapolis without checking out the Indianapolis Speedway. So, I got us the required tickets to the Speedway Museum and a 30-minute track tour.
The newly renovated museum was interesting, even for the racing uninitiated. Late the evening, before our “Kiss the Bricks” tour, we were informed the track would be in use and were switched to the “Victory Podium” tour. It was disappointing to learn we would not be able to ride the tour van around the entire track, but as a consolation, we did see some club cars racing. It was nice to hear the roar.
The track is massive and can hold up to 400,000 fans, making the Indy 500 race the largest single-day sports event in the world.
As a Miamian, it felt like old home week to hear about Carl Fisher buying the land for the track (which opened in 1911) and the involvement of co-founder James Allison and Eddie Rickenbacker (who bought the track from Fisher in 1927). Those men all had storied roles in the development of the Miami area.
Today it’s primarily owned by Roger Penske. His team of cars and drivers under the Penske Racing umbrella has won legions of races and awards. The museum provides an exceptional showcase of cars, drivers, and all things race-related.
Most people know the winner of the Indy 500 drinks milk instead of champagne to celebrate the victory. That tradition began in 1936, when a driver’s mother urged him to drink buttermilk after racing to help combat post-race muscle fatigue (which apparently it does). When that driver won his third 500 and drank milk after the race, the dairy industry decided to get involved. Today, winners are paid $10,000 to make sure they drink milk. They do get to choose between whole, 2%, or skim – buttermilk is no longer a popular option.
We couldn’t help posing on the victory stage for this cheesy picture!
We are off on a different kind of train trip. This time we are not rolling on the rails, but enjoying some non-moving and miniature train experiences.
But we have to see a few things along the way. First up – a stop in Pikeville, KY, a key location for the famous Appalachian Hatfield and McCoy feud.
Other than feuding families, Pikeville is best known for the Pikeville Cut-Thru, and the now-convenient Overlook. The Cut-Thru was an ambitious 14-year endeavor to move a river, highway, railroad, and impoverished housing. When the project was completed in 1987, it was the largest engineering feat in the US, and second only to the Panama Canal on the world stage. They moved 23 million cubic yards of rock and 18 million cubic yards of dirt; a task that involved 20 state and federal agencies (20! that is really beyond belief). The pics above show the town and river from the overlook.
Pikeville’s 1871 Dils Cemetery is part of the Hatfield-McCoy Feud Historic District and is on the National Register of Historic Places. Lasting from the Civil War until the 1890s, the two-family conflict eventually involved governors from Kentucky and West Virginia. There are cemeteries in other locations for each family, but this is the only one with burials from both. Randolph McCoy, who was the leader of the McCoy family, is buried here. Randolph outlived the feud until the ripe age of 88 but had an awful death afterward from severe burns resulting from a fall into a kitchen fire. Take a close look at his tombstone. I wonder who it was that couldn’t spell feud?
Dils is also the first known integrated cemetery in Eastern Kentucky, and 130 of the 500 graves are African Americans.
The site needs a bit of tender loving care, with overgrown areas and four sets of rickety stairs leading up to the graves.
On arrival in Indianapolis, we checked in to the Crowne Plaza Downtown. The only hotel with real train cars now under roof as hotel rooms. They have really done a terrific job. These are real 1920s Pullman Train Cars, and they actually ran on these tracks. They have been nicely remodeled into modern, comfortable rooms. The hotel was built around the ironwork, and it was reported that only three were cut during construction. Many famous people have passed through these halls, but my favorite story is about Thomas Edison, who worked here as a Telegraph Operator and was fired for conducting too many “useless” experiments! There is an incredible amount of history here, and if you’d like more, this link will take you to a brochure about the station’s history and repurposing as a hotel.
“Ghost” statues are throughout the property, attired in period clothes and helping stimulate visitors’ imagination about what the busy station was like in decades past.
Regular hotel rooms overlook the steel structure and the train cars. Even the sconces along the corridors display nostalgic touches of past glamour.
The view from the new overlook at Howard Knob Park in Boone is well worth the trip.
This post will be a test for linking from my personal Facebook page vs. my blog page (fingers crossed).
Located on Howard Knob Peak, at 4,396 ‘, well above Appalachian State University, you turn off into a residential area just past the Earth Fare grocery store on King Street. There are no signs. I think it’s helpful to put the address in your GPS. We were doubtful we were in the right place. Eventually, you see a small sign, finally make one more turn, and see the park sign shown above.
Parking is good; it is accessible with a paved walkway to the overlook and would be easy for those with disabilities. There are a number of nice picnic tables and port-a-potties on site. Even on this beautiful Sunday, it was not overly crowded.
The view was great. From this vantage point, you have a good overview of the ASU campus and parts of Boone. It was fun to guess exactly what we were seeing.
If you go: 604 Howard Knob Road, Boone, NC 28607 Hours of operation: 8:30 a.m. – 7:30- p.m., May 1st – Oct. 20th
A big birthday for my husband was approaching, and as we considered our options about how to celebrate, the one thing we knew was that we wanted to be with our family. So, we settled on revisiting my husband’s decades-past college spring break destination – Bermuda. And we decided to get there on an NCL cruise from NYC. It was a very different kind of trip for us.
Overall, we had some great family time and moments we will treasure forever. The NCL Aqua (a one-year-old ship) was great for the kids and not so great for the adults. I guess I’ve been spoiled by travel on smaller ships with more attention to detail.
A New York State of Mind
It was a nice start to be back in NYC to catch our cruise. We arrived by train at Penn Station and selected a hotel within walking distance of the New York Port on the Hudson. Ink48 was just OK; one of our rooms wasn’t ready at check-in, but rooms were comfortable, and the location was convenient. BTW – after the cruise, we departed from Penn the same day as the Taylor Swift wedding. In case you don’t know, Penn Station is under Madison Square Garden. Despite the street closures and general chaos, we didn’t have any issues.
That evening we all had fun at Jamie Allen’s AMAZE magic show. You have to be at least five to attend, and our grandson proudly made the cut. Allen’s combination of narrative and magic wove an interesting personal story, and his tricks were truly amazing and entertaining.
Three Generations in Bermuda
We really enjoyed our three days in Bermuda. The ship docks all the way at the tip of the 21-mile island at the Royal Navy Dockyard. It was easy for my daughter and her family to take a shuttle to the famous Horseshoe Bay Beach, and NCL does offer a complimentary ferry to St. George (a fact not well publicized in advance).
For $5, you can take a 20-minute ferry ride into Hamilton, which is what we did (exact change or buy a token in the ferry office). My husband and I spent a nice day in Hamilton. We had a tasty lunch at the breezy, open-air 1609 restaurant at the Hamilton Princess, and then, with the help of their kind and capable Bell Captain, secured a car and driver to see the island and revisit some special spots.
After a brisk morning walk, we relaxed in Victoria Park, Hamilton’s first public park dating from 1889.
Of special note, the cottages where my husband stayed – Mizzentop, were still there and had clearly been well-maintained. But sadly, his recollection of partying at the resort on Elbow Beach will have to remain just a memory. The resort is slated to be torn down, and its beach access has been closed. There was one narrow access point to the Beach, which was unsurprisingly not at all crowded on this day.
I really enjoyed getting to see this beautiful island with its pastel homes and British Colonial style. It was clean and safe, and we felt very welcome (even though we were off a cruise ship!)
The only excursion we took through the ship was a glass-bottom boat/snorkel trip billed as kid-friendly. It was kid-friendly until our granddaughter saw an eel and had a bit of a meltdown – but the very nice Captain Zoe helped calm her down. We were not too impressed with the coral reef or wreck we saw, but that’s probably because, being from Florida, it was not an unusual sight.
A hit for the kids was a visit to Dolphin Quest and a chance to spend some time with dolphins Juniper and Ely. It was pricey but well worth it. I included the prepaid photo package. I feel like photos are always the best souvenirs of any trip, and we got 147 pics! It’s an impressive operation.
Back to My Thoughts About the NCL Aqua
We chose regular connecting cabins vs the more exclusive option, The Haven. It seemed like a bad idea to take a 5 and 7-year-old into that presumably quieter area. The ship did not have family-style options. The cabins had good storage for two, but a challenge for four. They did have unusually comfortable, well-padded seating on the verandas.
The kids’ club, Splash Academy, for their age group was terrific, and they loved going. The miniature golf, game area, and arcade were all huge hits with our grandkids. The small pool and baby-oriented splash areas were not. Fortunately, the kids forgot about the winding water slide; they were under the 48” requirement to go (even with an adult). One rainy sea day proved to be a challenge, and we were thankful for the Splash Academy.
There is one kids’ menu, and it’s the same in every venue onboard. If kids eat from that menu, there is no charge for them in the specialty restaurants. That would be if you could actually book the specialty restaurants. We could not book any we wanted (even though we had paid). I guess the lesson here is that you need to book ASAP. Among our group, we finally were able to try two and also ordered from the steakhouse menu while dining in the main dining room. All were very uninspiring. The best thing I had on the ship was the hot fudge sundae in The Local.
The venues on board don’t seem to be able to accommodate the number of passengers. You can’t reserve a table in one of the two main dining rooms, and on the final night of the trip it was an hour wait for a table. Dining and bar areas always seemed congested, and getting a seat was a challenge. Staff at the included Indulge restaurant, in which diners order from food-hall-type options on a computer screen, seemed confused by our request for a kids’ menu.
The cabin bathroom was very well done with a large shower and plenty of storage. But no amenities such as conditioner or body lotion (only shampoo and body wash). Bring your own because they don’t sell any in the on-board shop either. Prepare for individual bottles of water that are $4.50 each. We could get a cocktail with our package, but not a bottle of water.
It was really annoying that you had to pay for the on-board Wi-Fi service to use the ship’s app. In my experience, ships’ apps work independently of the paid service, so you can get news info and often even communicate with other travelers.
Crew members were nice, but seemed overworked. Our attendant had 24 cabins to handle, alone. As a result, there is no evening turndown service and often late clean-up.
In summary, this was a great family trip and a disappointing cruise for the adults in our group. We chose this ship because of the itinerary. Next time for the family, it will be Disney or Celebrity.
