SAINT MEINRAD ARCHABBEY – LINCOLN BOYHOOD MEMORIAL – HUNTINGBURG’S ANTIQUE ROW.  WED., JUNE 16 (9:00-5:00) 

The first class tour bus leaves French Lick and travels through the bucolic countryside of southern Indiana. The first stop is Saint Meinrad Archabbey, a hidden jewel in the

northwest corner of Spencer County. The area was settled by German-Catholics in the early nineteenth-century. The monastery was founded in 1854 by Swiss Benedictine monks to serve the needs of this area. The monastic community has a rich history and is nationally known for its school of theology, and publishing house - Abbey Press. Today 80 Benedictine monks live, pray, and work here year round. The abbey church is filled with beautiful stained glass windows and marble columns. One has the sense of being in a European cathedral. We will have lunch at the monastery and visit the Abbey Press’s intriguing gift shop.

Next we drive through Santa Claus and Holiday World on our way to the Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial. Lincoln (our 16th president) lived on this property from age nine to around nineteen when his family moved to Illinois. The memorial's visitor center was constructed in the 1940s of sandstone cut from the quarries at Saint Meinrad which the monks operated until 1969. The park -- operated by the National Park Service -- preserves the most tangible link to Lincoln’s childhood and youth. Here he worked side by side with his father, read books that opened his mind, and grew from a boy to a man. We will see a short film and go through the air conditioned visitor's center. If you want exercise, a mile hike will take you to the living historical farm.

We now leave this historical area and go up to Huntingburg, another old southern Indiana town. Here you will have the opportunity to go through several antique stores on antique row. Then we head back to French Lick.

The cost for this all day bus trip including lunch is $27. Fees for entry into the Lincoln Boyhood Memorial: $3.00 per person, Family, $5.00. Free for those under 17 or those with the Golden Eagle or American the Beautiful Senior Pass, issued by the National Park Service. Space is limited for this trip so sign up early.

 
THURS. EVENING, JUNE 17, 2010.  DINNER-THEATER AT THE LINCOLN AMPHITHEATER   

We will travel in first class buses to the Lincoln amphitheater -  inside Lincoln State Park - for an Amish style dinner and, hopefully, the complete  bicentennial play about Lincoln’s life and childhood.  The theater  company will not know the exact performance until late spring but they will have at least some scenes from their Lincoln production. This performance according to the theatrical company, depicts, “Lincoln’s remarkable character, forged on the Indiana frontier, is the heart of a new play ... Hear President Lincoln’s own words as he struggles to preserve the Union. Your heart will ache as the slave choirs pure voice soars to the heavens.”  

Our coaches to the amphitheater will take us through scenic rural southern Indiana. Sit back and relax from the “mandatory tour” while viewing the wildlife and the rustic beauty of this area.  The price of $54  includes first class charter bus with bathroom, country dinner buffet, and theatrical production. Since the state park prohibits alcoholic beverages, plan accordingly. Seating is open to the elements but under a roof so do bring insect repellant.   After the production, the busses will take us back to French Lick through the misty late evening of Southern Indiana summers. The busses will  leave for the Lincoln dinner amphitheater  at 5:15 P.M. (EDT).