Photo Blog: Kentucky Treasures
From Tour Director Karen Kuch~
In 2017, Bob Neff planned a trip to Kentucky for 2018. It was a cool trip—full of diversity of things to see and things to ride. Since we had a smaller number of travelers on this tour, we decided to try an alternative means of travel. BNT mostly uses motor coaches, however, we’ve been known to use trains and planes pretty regularly as well.
For this specific trip, we decided to look into a Sprinter van. A “Sprinter van” is not just any van…it’s one of those funny looking high top vans, manufactured by Mercedes, and seats twelve. We hired a professional driver, took ten great travelers, and had a fantastic trip. It’s quite a different experience, and what a wonderful way to get to know each other.
Since we had five days of travel, we still rotated around the van. It seemed so much more personal. For example, we took time every morning to pray for two people, which gave us a great way to get to know one another, and also, demonstrate care. It felt more like a family as we played games, sang, and just fellowshipped along the highways and byways. What fun.
We visited many interesting place. The highlight for me was the horse world…especially as we visited the breeding stable, the auction block, and the training farm where the new 13th Triple Crown winner, Justify, came into his own. We watched beautiful horses train close to where we were standing and were awed at God’s creation. They are animals of power and dignity. We donned lovely veiled hats at the Derby site and learned about this world of horses, jockeys, and owners.
We moved from there to see horses of a different kind…the kind that lives in a Toyota! From future cars to the history of the Shakers, a visit to the Slugger Museum, and a Stephen Foster production full of color and familiar tunes, we had diversity of activity. We enjoyed a delicious paddlewheel dinner ride along the Cincinnati skyline at dusk. Beautiful and relaxing. We visited the amazing Ark Encounter, and learned more about the Bible and Noah. We ended our tour with a safari ride at The Wilds, a fascinating place that is preserving rare and endangered species on reclaimed strip-mined land.
I’m grateful Bob was willing to try something new with this tour. I’m also grateful to have gotten to know this group of travelers and have fun with them on our maiden Sprinter voyage. I hope we will do more “Sprinter” trips in the future. They offer a unique opportunity to have the joy of traveling with people in such a personal way. Thanks for your flexibility BNT travelers!
