Thoroughbreds just one facet of Louisville Southern Living maps out three ways to experience the city
No matter which way you see Louisville, you'll make it to the winner's circle. A bumper sticker sums it up perfectly: "I wasn't born in Kentucky, but I got here as fast as I could."
Isn't it funny to think of people planning to travel to your town like you plan to travel to other places?
I think of every town or city as a possible destination, particularly if there is any art there. There are so many unique neighbourhoods in Toronto to explore that I can spend a long weekend day here just "being a tourist", and then come home to my own creature comforts! Sometimes it is nice not to have to leave home to find something interesting and new to explore.
Until I went outside to college, I really couldn't understand why people dreamed of visiting Alaska. Now I have a better perspective on what this state has to offer to those who want to see the wilderness, mountains, and etc., and etc.!
Sometimes we have to go somewhere else so we can appreciate what we have at home.
Art and I were talking about this the other day! For Derby week, Louisville is a lot of fun....assuming you're into that sort of thing! Personally I'd never go to a horse race here or anywhere, and would never consider the possibility that others might plan their vacation around one! As a local it's great to see the fireworks and airshow at Thunder over Louisville (tomorrow!!!) or to watch the ballons practicing all week long for the Great Balloon race. I'm still a sucker for parades, and the Derby Parade does a good job, but still....to me these are nice things to locals, not a reaon to come here.
Then I was thinking, what else do we have here? the Louisville Slugger baseball factory/museum....that's a nice stop for a beseball fanatic, but probably only as a short stopover on their way to Florda/Chicago/wherever. Then we have a AAA ballteam and an great new ball park, but that certainly wouldn't make me come to Louisville for a vacation. Louisville Stoneware? Old Louisville? Jim Beam or other distilleries? Bernheim Forest? A stop at Mammoth Cave would be nice, but that's pretty far south of here. So the bottom line is altho I think Louisville is a FABULOUS place to live with LOTS and LOTS of things to do, it's certainly not on my vacation destination list for anyone!
Now if I lived in Chicago or New York I'd probably have to work for the tourist office because I'd want to k ow everything there is to see and do every day of the year!
I had to laugh at this post. I can go anywhere from here but getting back is always a problem, especially when I travel on business and try to get home on Friday night.
Where is Winter Park???
ORLANDO.... home of Mickey, Shamu and Spiderman!! And I wish for once, someone WOULDN'T want to come her!!
Doug
Doug
ANCORA IMPARO
Posts: 2102 | Location: Winter Park, FL | Registered: 18 May 2005
The amazing thing is that people can come as "tourists" to our area (an hour from the Great Smokey Mountains National Park)... and even to our city... and see and do things that we've never done!!!
Sometimes we all do take our own hometowns for granted--
Do check out the Gourmet special issue on Montréal. Obviously everyone here would have several quibbles with it, but it does provide a surprisingly good overview. I've had quite a few friends both from Europe (mostly France) and the USA (mostly NYC) head here to visit Montréal - I have no trouble whatsoever seeing it as an interesting tourist destination, though like everywhere else - even Venice - most people live routine lives of work, cooking, sleep and occasional partying and socialising.
Posts: 868 | Location: Montréal | Registered: 29 January 2006
Originally posted by lagatta: Do check out the Gourmet special issue on Montréal.
Is that currently on the stands? I'd like to go to Montreal. I read a narticle a while back on Quebec about the food and that piqued my interest. (Sometimes I feel like the person in the joke ... " I don't have Attention Deficit-Look, there's a butterfly! ")
I took a back issue of Gourmet with me to Paris - it was their Paris issue - and had some wonderful meals because of it.
Everything seems to end up in me saying ... "ooh, I want to go there!"
It's too hard to ignore that Hawaii is a very popular tourist destination and also that tourism is THE major industry in this state.
Most people I know are too busy working and raising children to enjoy what tourists do but once in awhile, I get together with a few friends and "play tourists" for a day.
I've lived here for 14 years but I've never been to any of the neighbor islands except for Maui and Big Island for work. Isn't that sad??? I've been meaning to hang out on my friend's family farm on the Big Island, go hiking on Kaui, and such but whenever I have that kind of time, I tend to head else where.
No Dana, wer'e not going to Thunder....Art's still recuperating from his back surgery and I don't think he'd last the whole day, no matter where we went. Our SIL works in the Glassworks building so that was a possibility, but if I had my choice I'd buy a ticket to the Riverbats game and spend the day there...I think that's the best deal around! I have already let it be known that I plan to watch the arishow and (later) the fireworks on the big screen TV in the basement! Have a great time and stay warm!
No, I don't have any problem at all seeing Vancouver as a travel destination.
I have lived here for thirty years and every single day I appreciate the natural beauty that surrounds us.
I love that tourists come. Seeing them here is a constant reminder of how lucky we are to live in this incredible area - and how lucky that the industry here is tourism and not something that would require huge factories spewing garbage into the air!
It is a glorious sunny day, and as I write this my daughter is about to leave for Whistler. The skiing has been great this year, and they have just had a fresh dump of snow - world class skiing under two hours away. Or she could have skiied on the local mountains just ten minutes away.
This is one of those fabulous 'spring in Vancouver' days.....do I ski or do I go to the beach?
OK bragging over - and by the way, I don't work for Tourism Vancouver, I just love living here.
Sheena
Posts: 2271 | Location: West Vancouver, B.C. Canada | Registered: 28 February 2004
Sheena, but Vancouver is too big a city just to live on tourism. Funny, I can certainly think of the big resource industries in BC (the fishery - yum, sockeye salmon; forestry, resources) but I can't think of any important industries offhand in Vancouver proper - except for Mountain Equipment Co-op, of course!
As for my friends there one is a nurse (a man; his wife is also a nurse), the other a journalist and writer...
Vancouver is also a major foodie destination, especially Asian food and seafood.
As for Gourmet, alas that issue is no longer in the newsstands and sold out everywhere here. I was lucky enough to score one (feel like I'm talking about street drugs, or at best scalped tickets!!!) and it has been making the rounds. The boulangerie on the cover is directly opposite the offices of a production company I work with - I remember looking at their façade while working there in December.
I also know the owner of the Italian food shop who also gives cooking lessons - she explained in detail how scrupulous Gourmet's food spies are. One had signed up for a cooking course with her and only at the end did the person reveal his/her (not saying) true identity, and then ask her for recipes appropriate to the late winter theme of the issue.
It was fun to see, but I do hope they will think to spotlight a few more summery pictures, especially all the people (of all ages and types) who ride bicycles here, to work, to run errands etc.
Posts: 868 | Location: Montréal | Registered: 29 January 2006
I never thought of Sacramento as a tourist draw, but one day I was out in Old Sac doing postcarding for an environmental group, and I was really surprised at how many foreigners I met. I even got a Czech family to sign one of the postcards to send to the governor
----------------------------------- Pekorino, my food blog On The Road, Again [travel stories from 2005-2006]
It seems to be common that many people don't get out and "play tourist" in their own backyards. I couldn't believe how often I'd meet people who had lived their whole lives in New Mexico and had never seen the incredible things right in the area. Then they couldn't believe how much we HAD seen all over the state! We just made the effort to do so, but it was fun and we had an interest in the historical and natural sights, so I guess that helps.
Growing up, hardly anyone would visit my hometown (why would they? It's a blue collar farming community without anything to really see here) so I'd never viewed it as a tourist area. But lots of tourists came through the area to see President Hayes' home and throngs of people flock to Cedar Point-the world's largest amusement park. It always amazed me when I'd be in lines for roller coasters as a kid and I'd hear 5 different languages being spoken, and I'd think, 'now why would someone come all the way from a foreign country to podunk Ohio?' Now I realize there is something nearby to anywhere you are if you're willing to view it as interesting and fun.
I snickered when I read the topic! We live in the middle of north Texas - at least an hour from a town with a decent grocery store! The only claim to fame is Old Rip, a horned toad that was (supposedly) buried alive in the cornerstore of the courthouse and was alive 100 years later. (yeah, uhuh) So no, this is not a place where anyone would visit, unless they had family here, and then only for a couple of days. Thank God for TRAVEL!
Carol / Brahmama
Posts: 383 | Location: Cisco, TX US | Registered: 24 December 2002
"It seems to be common that many people don't get out and "play tourist" in their own backyards."
Valerie - you are so right!
I`m lucky enough to live in a beautiful part of North Devon which depends almost entirely on tourism but, when you actually live & work here, you just don`t manage to get out to all the places you`d like to. It`s one of the perks of being on vacation that your time is your own We do try to play "grockle" (Devonian for tourist) when possible but not nearly as often as we would wish.
Ann
Posts: 64 | Location: England | Registered: 14 March 2006
Lots of people come to Anchorage as a "destination." Although I do not think many spend any amount of time in any one location. Which is a shame. I guess it is probably pretty expensive and really far and really big so people must think that they must "do" all the sites in one whirlwind tour. In any event, here is a webcam of our main downtown street, 4th Avenue. http://camera.touchngo.com/ and a link to Mt. Augustine's website and webcam. Mt Augustine erupted not too long ago and they put cameras all around. I am pretty sure one is on the island with the volcano. http://www.avo.alaska.edu/activity/Augustine.php
Dawn
Posts: 80 | Location: Anchorage, AK | Registered: 04 April 2006
[QUOTE]Originally posted by juliaO: Is it just me or are people in Canada happier in general?QUOTE]
US and Canadian happiness survey Does this help answer the question? And of course, us folks who live in Vancouver are happiest of all because we believe this is the most beautiful city in the world. (the 2 other contenders are Sydney and Rio, been to both and Vancouver still is best in my books)
We LOVE having guests come to Vancouver because we take them sightseeing and get to discover our lovely city all over again. And of course, we bask in the compliments about Vancouver. And when they leave, we wonder why we don't make the time to do it more often for ourselves. Fie on us.
our city,San Diego, is pretty and a popular tourist site, but i love Vancouver too. And we will be there next month. Its a neat change for us, so many things to do, and i love the food there.
[QUOTE]Originally posted by valerie: It seems to be common that many people don't get out and "play tourist" in their own backyards.
We have been so busy going to other places we had forgotten what a wonderful place we both went to school in, were married in and lived most of our life in, central coast of Ca. We recently canceled a trip to London and Europe and decided to spend our 40th wedding anniversary near our home. We had a glorious time. The weather is so nice, the seafood excellent, and we found very, very nice places to stay. The resturants were full of people from somewhere else, USSR, UK, New York....we looked at each other and said, they are all coming to this little town? We were so happy after three days of relaxing that we didn't have to get on a plane and fly for hours to get home. Fun thread T-Mac. Maggie
Posts: 77 | Location: Central Coast, CA, U.S.A. | Registered: 05 January 2006
Topic Closed
). I work downtown so I have access to my building. That's the only reason I agreed to go.
