From Golden David to Churchill Downs: Our Louisville Finale

Picture this: You’re strolling down Main Street in Louisville, Kentucky, minding your own business, when suddenly you’re confronted, face-to-err, well, everything, with a double-sized, gold-painted David. That’s right, a replica of Michelangelo’s iconic masterpiece, usually basking in the Italian sun, now stands gleaming (and unapologetically exposed) outside the 21c Museum Hotel, turning heads and raising eyebrows. It’s the kind of glorious kitsch that has been the theme of our RV journey - a trip where Amarillo, Texas, showed off its Cadillac Ranch, Edwardsville, Illinois charmed with its giant catsup bottle, and Austin, Texas brought sidewalk sculptures to life, - each stop a new chapter in my quest for the most delightfully eccentric roadside art. But Louisville’s golden David takes the cake (or maybe just the fig leaf); put it this way, with a statue this size, there’s no room for modesty. And if you happened to catch me trying to snap a selfie with David, well, let's just say my attempts at blending in were about as successful as hiding behind that statue's fig leaf.

If you’re new to Louisville, one of the best ways to experience its charm is simply to take a stroll through the heart of downtown. Louisville is a city that invites you to explore on foot, with lively streets, friendly faces, and an easygoing atmosphere. As you wander along Main Street, you'll discover unique attractions like the Louisville Slugger Walk of Fame, with its mile-long public art display featuring home plate plaques and towering baseball bat statues.

Louisville Slugger Museum & Factory

This walk connects the Louisville Slugger Museum & Factory to Louisville Slugger Field, honoring legendary players such as Pete Browning, Joe DiMaggio, Hank Aaron, Derek Jeter, Babe Ruth, Ted Williams, Jackie Robinson, and Roberto Clemente, all of whom swung Louisville Slugger bats.

Riverfront Plaza, Louisville, KY

Or, on a sunny spring day, you might prefer a walk across the Ohio River on the pedestrian-friendly George Rogers Clark Memorial Bridge. Better known as the Second Street Bridge, it was built in 1929 and links Louisville, Kentucky, with Clarksville, Indiana. On the Indiana side, you can explore Water Tower Square and Ashland Park. On your way back, be sure to take in the Louisville skyline stretching along the banks of the Ohio River.

After taking in Louisville from the riverfront and its lively downtown streets, Judy and I found ourselves exploring the Muhammad Ali Center - admittedly with a bit of skepticism. Growing up in white suburbia in the late 70’s, I mostly thought of Ali as a loudmouth and a showboater, so I wasn’t sure what I would make of a museum devoted to him. But the center gently and completely changed my perspective. It is a beautifully done museum, thoughtful in both its design and its storytelling, and what impressed me most was how fully it captured the arc of Ali’s life—not just the fame and the fights, but the man himself, his struggles, his faith, his courage, and the values that shaped him. Now, as a much older and wiser person, I came away with a deeper appreciation for his six core principles—confidence, conviction, dedication, giving, respect, and spirituality—which feel especially meaningful in today’s political climate. I walked in expecting a few trophies and some bravado; I walked out feeling grateful for the discovery of a place that told Ali’s story with such heart, wisdom, and humanity.

Kentucky Derby Museum

We visited Churchill Downs on a sunny, warm Sunday in April, just 20 days before the 152^nd running of the Kentucky Derby, and the excitement was already in the air. The grounds and museum were buzzing with activity as Louisville prepared for the longest-running continuous sporting event in America. Churchill Downs is an impressive place—grand in scale, rich in tradition, and unmistakably special as the home of the nation’s most prestigious horse race. Nicknamed “The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports,” the Derby is beloved for its dramatic 20-horse field, its deep Southern roots, and its place as the first leg of the Triple Crown. With a little planning, we were able to visit the Kentucky Derby Museum and take a tour of the sprawling racing complex,

Wagering Area, Churchill Downs

then spend hours strolling through the impressive Churchill Downs Museum and watching footage of Derby races dating back to 1952. But what may have stayed with me most was how much the people of Louisville adore this event. They truly love every bit of the pageantry and tradition—and honestly, it’s hard not to get swept up in that joy yourself.

In typical fashion, no visit to a new city feels entirely “official” for us without the inclusion of a food tour. If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a hundred times: we’re tasting our way across this great country, one food tour at a time. In Louisville, Katie led us through NuLu (short for “New Louisville”) and she was terrific. It was our first tour with earpieces, which meant we could actually hear her explanations over the happy chaos of loud, crowded restaurants. NuLu itself is a revitalized market district, and over the course of three delicious hours, we sampled our way across a pretty impressive culinary spectrum.

Delicious Coffee Drink at Biscuit Belly in NuLu,

One stop was Biscuit Belly, where we enjoyed mouthwatering biscuits with a variety of gravies—some with bacon, others with mushrooms—and coffee cocktails dreamy enough to make you consider a second breakfast. From there, we made our way to Feast BBQ, where we tried burgoo for the first time, a thick, savory Kentucky stew slow cooked with a mix of meats and seasonal vegetables. Our seven-stop food tour also included beer cheese and pretzels at The Galley and fried chicken strips with specialty dipping sauces at Royals Hot Chicken. And, as so many good food tours do, this one ended on a sweet note at the locally owned Muth’s Candies, where we sampled a caramel-wrapped marshmallow. It was a little too sweet for me, but Judy thought it was just about perfect. If I ever do put together a “Best Of” retrospective of our food-tour adventures, NuLu will have earned its place on the list.

Guide Katie Outside Muth's Candies, Secrets of Louisville Food & History Tour

Louisville turned out to be a wonderful final stop on our six-month journey. We saw our way through the city, ate our way through some terrific local spots, and soaked up as much of its character, history, and energy as we could before turning toward home. Once we left Kentucky, though, the next 1,000 miles—with overnight stops in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York—were really more about making tracks than sightseeing. Since we’ve traveled through that region on many previous trips, and with the weather becoming less cooperative, we decided to pick up the pace and get back to Massachusetts a couple of days earlier than planned. As it turned out, that was probably a wise move. Our calendar was already filling up fast, and we may have allowed a little too little time between pulling into the driveway with the camper and flying out again to visit our son Josh, who is in a veterinary medicine graduate program. We are so excited to see him, and those extra days at home will give us just enough breathing room to get “Neil” (the Northpoint) cleaned up and put in order before we set off on our next adventure.

If you’ve been following along faithfully, you may have noticed that this post has taken quite a while to arrive. Our last travel blog entry was nearly two months ago, and I know this one seemed to stop rather abruptly back in Springfield, Missouri, on April 13. The truth is, after getting about two-thirds of this post written, I simply ran out of steam. This six-month journey was a memorable one—28 stops, 20 blog posts, countless miles, and more wonderful experiences than I can easily count—but by the time we returned home, I found myself mentally and creatively tired. I also found myself wrestling with a bigger question: how does a travel blog like this one end, or should it end at all? That certainly does not mean we are done traveling, or that “Neil,” our faithful Northpoint, will be sitting still for long. But it does mean that Judy and I feel it is time to ease up on the accelerator a bit. When we first retired, it felt important to stay busy, embrace this RV lifestyle wholeheartedly, and make the most of the freedom we had worked so long to enjoy. Three years later, we can look back with gratitude on some remarkable numbers: more than 450 nights in the RV, over 22,000 miles traveled, and more than 80 blog posts shared along the way. They are impressive numbers, to be sure, but retirement is a long road, and we do not want to burn out on something we still love so much. So, this summer we will stay a little closer to home, enjoying places like Scusset Beach in MA, Newport, RI and the White Mountains of NH, at a gentler pace. And while we may be slowing down for a season, there is still more adventure ahead, including a wonderful month-long trip to Europe this fall, when we will cruise the Danube and Rhine Rivers and begin gathering a whole new set of stories to share. So, check back every so often, we’re not signing off forever, just shifting to a lower gear, as we tell… the Rest of the Story.