A lot of stuff

Bascilica of Our Lady of San Juan del Valle is a National Shrine in Texas

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This was one of the memorable places we enjoyed while wintering in the Rio Grande Valley a few years back.

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The Basilica of Our Lady of San Juan del Valle is a remarkable place in the Rio Grande Valley. The Basilica has a fascinating history that traces back to the 1600’s in Mexico with a reported miracle. The current location has been the sight for pilgrimages for decades.

The bell tower

The Sanctuary

Sher and I decided to go to the Basilica on a Sunday for mass. The Sunday schedule has masses all day, with Spanish, English and bi-lingual. There is a mariachi band providing the music on Saturday and Sunday masses. We opted for the 3 o’clock English mass. The mass was very inspiring.

Free Holy Water fountain

First Station of the Cross

The sculpture on the back sanctuary wall

When we arrived, the 1 o’clock mass had not yet let out, and the parking lots were very full. I was able to find a handicapped spot. The complex has…

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New home for an old bridge

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By 1870 Shelby County Indiana had 154 miles of new gravel roads. It was time for the county to start building bridges at principle crossings of rivers. By 1880 there were 10 “substantial and elegant” iron bridges  with additional bridges planned each year thereafter.

The bridge’s new home, seeing bicycles and pedestrian traffic only

The Clover Ford Bridge over Buck Creek was constructed in 1889 by the King Iron Bridge & Manufacturing Company of Cleveland, Ohio. The cost of the bridge, Shelby County Bridge No. 13, was $3,384.50. The bridge served many years but was closed due to structural issues in 2011.

Beautiful and sound reconstruction

History board

Deemed historically important, it was refurbished in 2018 and moved to the Blue River Memorial Park in 2019. It is now part of the Blue River Trail that traverses Shelbyville. USI Consultants was the company that oversaw the relocation of the restored…

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Nashville’s Hard Truth Distillery

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Nashville Indiana is home to a relatively new distillery, brewery, restaurant and entertainment venue. The Hard Truth website tell its story: “Hard Truth Distilling Co. began distilling in 2015 in the small upper rooms of Big Woods Pizza Co. in downtown Nashville, Indiana. … by 2017, construction had begun on a new facility…  That property became the gorgeous Hard Truth campus, with the Hard Truth Tours & Tastings Center being the first building to open its doors to guests at the very end of 2017.” The Restaurant at Hard Truth opened in the summer of 2018, followed by the new sweet mash distillery that fall.

Large variety of distilled on site products

On our recent day trip we noticed a sign pointing to a distillery just outside of Nashville. We followed and ended up at the Hard Truth facility, a beautiful setting with several buildings including the distillery tasting room and the restaurant. The first building we came to was the tasting room.

Entrance to the Distillery Tasting room

We had five samples each all different

By sharing we tried 10 samples each

 

 

 

 

 

 

The wide variety of liquors was in itself quite an adventure. We tried everything from certified Indiana Rye whiskey to Cinnamon Vodka to imported Irish whiskey from the owner’s family in County Cavan, Ireland. The bartender shared that Hard Truth sends their own barrels to Ireland to be filled with the whiskey. Then the filled barrels are transported on the seas back to the States. We purchased two different bottles before we left.

This building houses the restaurant

Entrance on Old SR 46, a mile 1/2 east of Nashville

 

 

 

 

 

The grounds of this facility are very beautiful, peaceful and even serene. The hills of Brown County make a near perfect setting for this multi-faceted business. We do plan on returning sometime to try out the restaurant, and to also hit the tasting room of the brewery. Oh yes, they also have a large brewery.

 

Camping in the Monongahela National Forest in West Virginia

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A fun trip we took a few years ago.

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The Monongahela National Forest is a national forest with over 920,000 acres located in the Allegheny Mountains of eastern West Virginia. We recently camped at the Horseshoe Recreation Area in the forest. The campground is at the extreme northern end of the Forest, surprisingly close to not only Maryland, but also Pennsylvania as well.

We drove from the Columbus, Ohio area after meeting up with one of our sons a and couple of grand kids. I must say it was quite the adventure driving the narrow, nearly one lane roads as we approached the Horseshoe campground. We got to the campground mid afternoon. The camp host was very friendly and delivered our purchased firewood right to our site.

Large campsite: I am standing in front of the tent

Starting out on a leisurely hike

Our site was huge! The asphalt pad for our Four Winds RV was long enough for…

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New Orleans’ famed above ground tombs in St Louis Cemetery No. 1

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We consider our trip to New Orleans one of, if not the favorite place we have visited during our travels. It was four years ago, but the memories are still fresh. Hope you enjoy our photos of the famed above ground tombs.

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St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 was established via a Royal Spanish Land Grant in 1789. It was originally outside the city limits, and was at least twice its current size. The Archdiocese of New Orleans now has control of this cemetery. Currently the only way you can get into the cemetery is with a licensed tour guide. Unfortunately vandalism has forced this action.

Multiple designs for the tombs, some fancy and some plain

The famed above ground tombs and wall tombs are designed for use by generation after generation. Many of the tombs are owned by individual families. Some of the very large tombs are known as society tombs where several families or groups have combined resources.  The laws dictate that a year and a day passes before an additional burial is permitted. As you would expect, there are many well-known, famous and infamous people whose tombs are located in…

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