Going to Kentucky

Discussion in 'Off Topic Area' started by Nachi, Jul 8, 2016.

  1. Nachi

    Nachi Valued Member Supporter

    It looks like this year will be full of travelling for me. If everything goes well, I'll be on a work trip to Kentucky second week in August. I'll be staying in or near Lexington.
    Sooo, I guess the probability isn't high, but are there any MAPpers near there? :)
    And since I've never been to the States before and no nothing about this particular place, does anyone have any tips of what would be interesting to visit? Considering I will be car-less and will be at work till the afternoon I suppose. But since I'll be there alone, I would at least like to go sightsee in the evenings instead of sitting alone inside, or perhaps try some MA class if there's something worth trying (just for fun and the experience) :)

    My only plan so far is to visit KFC :D

    Any tips or experience you could share? :)
     
  2. Obewan

    Obewan "Hillbilly Jedi"

    Well the very first thing you should do is watch the movie "Wrong Turn", and the second thing is... quit your job! ;)
     
  3. Guitar Nado

    Guitar Nado Valued Member

    Full disclosure - to my knowledge I have never actually been in Kentucky. Any MAPers that live there I defer 1000% to your knowledge.

    But with that said, I spent a big part of my life only a few miles away in the pointy southern part of Virginia. I was born and raised close by. So a few pointers from someone who has never actually been there, but has spent a lot of time nearby:

    1) It is certainly one of the most rural states in the U.S.A. This has it's good and bad. The nearby Virginia /West Virginia area is ultra beautiful wilderness, and I suspect a lot of Kentucky is as well. It's probably awesome to hike in. Keep in mind a fair amount of the U.S. is totally different from Kentucky in many ways. It's almost like a separate country from places New York City and California, even Northern Virginia too. It might have a "primitive" feel unique to Appalachia - this is not a criticism, necessarily - it's just "different".

    2) Kentucky is famous for bourbon and Kentucky Fried Chicken. I suggest you try both, as they are good in moderation. Of course these are available anywhere in the U.S. as well* . I bet you could get some great bourbon there that would be slightly hard to find elsewhere though.

    3) I hear there is an awesome cave system there (Mammoth Cave)

    4) It's in Appalachia, probably could hear some great Bluegrass Music there.

    5) There is an old timey American rifle name after Kentucky (Kentucky Long Rifle). Make of that what you will.

    * Never saw a KFC in Puerto Rico, so not 100% sure about this.
     
  4. SWC Sifu Ben

    SWC Sifu Ben I am the law

  5. Van Zandt

    Van Zandt Mr. High Kick

    I've been through Kentucky a few times. The state, not the drive through. I had a ball every time, it's definitely one of my more favourite destinations in the big ol' US of A. I'm a "great outdoors" kind of guy so I tend to stay at horse ranches and do all the horse trails, some can take up to a week and involve fishing and sleeping under the stars. Great stuff. As has been said, the Bourbon Trail is a lot of fun. And you can walk into most bars, restaurants and diners and be welcomed with open arms. One of the fondest memories I have in life is joining the live band on stage in a bar called Manny & Merle's in Louisville (I play the harmonica). So much fun. :)
     
  6. aaradia

    aaradia Choy Li Fut and Yang Tai Chi Chuan Student Moderator Supporter

    I know a guy who used to run another forum I used to be involved with. He lives there. I just Facebook messaged him to see if he has any suggestions.

    I have old family friends that now live in that area too. I will see if I can get any suggestions from them in time as well.

    Don't know if I will get any responses, but I will give it a go.
     
  7. Nachi

    Nachi Valued Member Supporter

    Oh :D
    Not going to happen! I'm just about to start there! :D
     
  8. Simon

    Simon Administrator Admin Supporter MAP 2017 Koyo Award

    I'll ask some questions via our Twitter account.
     
  9. Nachi

    Nachi Valued Member Supporter

    Heh, from the responses in general, I'm starting to get a feeling I'm going to visit a funny part of the States :D

    Thank you for the long answer. To be honest, I'm not really a fan of making trips to huge cities filled with skyscrapers etc. filled with people. I'v spent a month in London and that was probably my limit before going insane or elbowing the people in the streets who would just block the way :D
    So a place with nice nature isn't bad. That is, if I can see any of that nature. Since I'm going to be free probably only in the evenings... :/
    I like birdwatching, though! If there's nature, there're gonna be birds for sure! :) I'll look into it.

    I didn't know about bourbon. I think I'm not too much into whiskey, but I shall try! :)
    Mammoth cave... hmm, sounds nice. I'll google it out :)
    Perhaps there will be some nice museum where the rifle could be seen and I can learn a bit about history of the place. Thanks for the suggestions! :)
     
  10. Nachi

    Nachi Valued Member Supporter

    Sounds nice! :) I'm not a horse-rider (although I'd love to be), and I doubt I will have time for much hiking but especially if I'll live outside the city, which is a possibility, I will try to walk around and find some nice places. That doesn't sound bad! :)
    Oh :) I'm not a person who'd enjoy going to bars by myself, but this sounds fun also, so maybe I'll try :) Well, for the bourbon I'll probably have to anyway :)

    Thanks! :)
     
  11. Nachi

    Nachi Valued Member Supporter

    Thank you very much for going out of your way. I'll certainly be interested in any responses that you may get :)

    Oh, thank you! That is very helpful as well :)
     
  12. aaradia

    aaradia Choy Li Fut and Yang Tai Chi Chuan Student Moderator Supporter

    I heard back from my contact over there. Here are his suggestions. He also offered to meet up if you wanted. I should say I have never met him in person, but he is an owner of another long standing MA forum. He is the Aegis, Mitch, or Simon of that forum. He is a former pro boxer. I have cyber known him for years.

    I will PM you his name so you can look him up on Facebook and pursue having a tour guide over there if you so desire. If you are lucky, you can get some boxing tips perhaps! If you Friend him- just tell him you are aaradia's friend who is visiting Kentucky, so he knows who you are. Of course, use common sense self defense 101 and meet up in public only in any similar situation.

    Personally, I would LOVE to see the Mary Todd Lincoln house! That is a person and an era of US history that fascinates me. Not sure if it would interest you though. If you don't know, Mary Todd Lincoln was one of the more interesting and vilified First Ladies (President's Wives) in US history. And the debate is did she deserve it or did she get a lot of criticism for being an opinionated woman in an era where that wasn't encouraged? I think the truth is multi-faceted.

    Below are his suggestions.....
     
    Last edited: Jul 18, 2016
  13. Nachi

    Nachi Valued Member Supporter

    Today I'm returning back from my trip and since I'm getting bored waiting for the last plane to take me home, I thought I could write a short report.

    My journey started as a bit of an adventure. I had a 2 hour lay-off in Atlanta. Waiting in a huge line for a passport check and an interview before picking up my baggage to go with it through customs declare, I started to be quite nervous when I was in the middle of waiting and my boarding time was approaching really fast. Remembering a bit of my French I understood from a conversation of a French family behind me, that they have the very same problem. Personnel only told us sorry, can't help you :/
    So I just took the French family and went and ask every single person in the queue if they wouldn't ming letting us go to the front since we are in a hurry. We crossed maybe 20 people like this until we came accross a person who was in a bit of a hurry, too. It still took some time, so I jumped the questions in the interview, sort of, and proceeded to run in my flip flops to find my baggage and take it through the customs declare. Running to the nearest information to ask where my gate is, I was sent a different way to find a train to bring me there. This was 25 mins before take off, at a time when boarding should be closed in 5 mins. So I ran like hell to the train and to the gates and I made it! Totally exhausted, but I did! And the plane still waited for bit for another passenger. Luckily these local flights aren't in too much of a rush and actually wait for people. Going through the procedures normally, in no way would I be able to make it :angry:

    Anyway, after arrival I was picked up by my employer and his wife who took me for a dinner and by the first sentence ordering an orange juice I gave myself up as a foreigner. I was stared at as if I made a really weird order and was told yeah, they may have some and if I want like a big glass or what. Apparently, Americans only drink juice for a breakfast. Why?

    Anyway, I wasn't sure how my stay will be going and in the end I wasn't really free to walk around too much. I stayed in my boss's house, south from the city. And when I wasn't working, he and his wife would take me to interesting places to get to know Kentucky. I visited the Daniel Boone Nature Forest, Keeneland - the horse racing place and a bourbon distillery. I definitely wasn't bored, I met a big part of the family and generally felt very welcomed and was taken a good care of.

    I visited church, which was unlike anything I ever saw with people dancing to an incredibly loud life music, looking as if in ecstasy, crying, falling to the floor and loudly agreeing to the pastor's words. It was kind of crazy, but certainly an experience I won't forget too easily. About all the people here are religious - deeply religious. Praying before eating etc. I led a short discussion with my boss with him explaining to me his view and why he believes the Earth is 6000 years old. It was quite interesting. It is something that is completely different to where I live, with a great majority of people being atheists. All the people were really kind and some really fun to spend time with.
    The week flew by fast and still felt more like a holiday rather than a business trip. And my boss and his family turned out to be really nice people :)
     

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