From Grand River, Kentucky

   We arrived in Grand River, Kentucky yesterday around noon. We are here rather than Paducah because the water in Paducah is too high, or something like that. After we had lunch onboard we disembarked and boarded a bus bound for Paducah, where the Cumberland and Ohio Rivers converge, and a tour of The Loop. The trip was about 30-40 minutes by bus. The coaches we were on did the loop in a hop on hop off fashion so we were free to see what we chose to see. A local from Paducah was on the bus and provided narration for some of the sights we saw as we did The Loop. We got off and toured the National Quilt Museum which is an absolute must see if you ever find yourself in Paducah. From a distance, the quilts look like paintings and they are all exquisite. Patti, who is a quilter, was especially impressed with the fine stitching and explained how time consuming and labor intensive doing such stitching is. There was a very big quilt show the week before we arrived and the top three quilts were on display. They were absolutely gorgeous. After the quilt museum we went to a Civil War museum. The museum is housed in the home of Confederate General Lloyd Tilghman, a West Point graduate who, like many West Point graduates, chose to fight for the Confederacy when the Civil War started. He was killed in the Battle of Champion Hill in 1863. We were met by a proud Son Of The Confederacy who provided us with narration about General Tilghman and the artifacts in the house. There were uniforms, weapons, swords, cannon balls, Confederate money all on display. History nerd that I am, I found it very interesting as did Patti. We were on a bit of a time crunch and both wished we could have spent more time at the museum, but we also did not want to miss the bus that would take us back to the boat. Patti offered a comment to American Cruise Lines that it would be really great if they were to encourage more people to make the Civil War Museum a stop when they are in Paducah. Another sight to see is the flood wall in Paducah. The panels of the wall are covered with murals of historic Paducah scenes so one can get a sense of the story of Paducah dating back to prior the founding of the country. Last night's entertainment was an amazing local Blue Grass band called The Rousters. Each musician was extraordinary, particularly the fiddler who coaxed almost impossible to imagine notes from his fiddle. We also learned the difference between a fiddle and a violin. A fiddle has had beer spilled on it (according to one of the members of the band). This morning we walked in to Grand River to visit Patti's 1880's Settlement which is a development that includes a hotel,  restaurants, merchants, miniature golf, and a place where you can sample and buy moonshine. While we were there the skies began to darken and the wind came up, so we decided to hightail it back to to the boat to beat the rain which was soon upon us but seems to have passed. Just now we are pulling out of Grand River. Next port of call is Savannah, Tennessee.

  We are thoroughly enjoying our American Cruise Lines experience. This is Patti's second time with ACL, my first. The ship is clean, the crew professional and helpful, the food delicious and plentiful and with a half portion option, and the pace just right. Most of the passengers appear to be in the mature and well aged stage of life, so I guess we fit right in, although some people who know us well may question including us in the mature category. We have met some very nice people from all over the country and love learning from them as we share a bit of our life stories with each other. On to Savannah.