12/29/2010
According to the Book, Kentucky’s bluegrass country covers 4,000 square miles and 15 counties. Getting a little vague there, Patricia.
Ok, so the big thing about this part of Kentucky is the horse culture and Patricia says there’s nowhere better to start than the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington. We left at 5:30 in the morning in order to get there in time for the 9:00 opening. We made record time and actually arrived around 8:30. It was pretty chilly outside and the workers were kind enough to let us wait in the lobby until the park opened, but it was a little awkward. They must have been thinking, “Wow. These people really like horses. A lot.”
Eventually the park officially opened and we were allowed to wander freely. We were the only people there, which made sense since who in their right minds goes to a park on a December morning? People who want to pay half off their admission – those kinds of people. We are those people.
Actually, the weather wasn’t too bad, although we didn’t get to see too many live horses. Philip was hypnotized by the horses we did see, while Daniel kept pointing at a service vehicle. “Car! Car! Car!” Yes, honey. There’re also horses here.
At the center of the park is the International Museum of the Horse, which is an indoor facility where we spent most of our time. This is a huge museum organized chronologically – starting from the evolution of the prehistoric horse all the way to modern moments in horse racing. Everything you have ever wanted to know (or not know) about horses seemed to be covered to non-equestrians like us. We felt thoroughly thoroughbred by the end. (Ok. That was lame.)
Laura had the most fun. When she entered the museum she took what looked like a business card from a slot. Throughout the museum were computerized kiosks. Each time she would swipe her card over the kiosk she would make decisions for a virtual horse she followed throughout the museum experience. This was a really cool touch.
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