Traveling the 91 miles between Lexington, KY back home to Cincinnati, OH takes approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes if you take Interstate 75.
Backroads and frequent stops take the better half of a day.
Photographs made on March 23, 2015.
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| - Downtown Lexington, KY. |
Downtown Lexington, KY is a hybrid. Street upon street has classic buildings giving way to nooks and crannies of local shops and businesses. They're all complimented by a few modern office buildings and one massive construction project in the city center, a development project finally underway after years of delay.
Two things dominate the theme of Lexington: it's equestrian heritage and UK basketball - the former memorialized in works of art, the latter in bumper stickers.
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| - Sculptures in Thoroughbred Park. Lexington, KY. |
Following Russel Cave Rd. out of the city, acres upon acres of horse farms eventually begin to trail off into standard farm land with a few abandoned homesteads dotting the landscape.
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| - Abandoned home in rural, KY. |
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| - Abandoned home in rural, KY. |
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| - Abandoned property in rural, KY. |
US 27 will take you directly into Cynthiana, KY.
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| - Railroad tracks and street. Cynthiana, KY. |
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| - Storefront. Cynthiana, KY. |
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| - Storefront. Cynthiana, KY. |
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| - Ferris wheel and christmas decorations. Cynthiana, KY. |
On Main St. Cynthiana you'll find Biancke's restaurant, which traces its roots back to 1894.
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| - Biancke's Restaurant. Cynthiana, KY. |
It's a place where coffee and an ice cream sundae make a good lunch.
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| - Biancke's Restaurant. Cynthiana, KY. |
In nearby Paris, KY you'll find the world's tallest three story building:
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| - Shinner Building. Paris, KY. |
And surprisingly few references to the French capital of the same name:
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| - Storefront. Paris, KY. |
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| - Revolutionary War Memorial. Paris, KY. |
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| - Bourbon County Courthouse Steps. Paris, KY. |
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| - Bank window. Paris, KY. |
Back on US 27 as you approach Falmouth you'll come across "Punkyville," the mock town that looks like a movie set depicting nostalgic Americana. It's the constructed brainchild of collector Charles "Punky" Beckett, a friendly man who doesn't mind you pulling off the highway to see his collection and the world he's created.
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| - Charles "Punky" Beckett and his hand built town of "Punkyville." |
"Everything's unlocked, spend as much time as you'd like looking around."
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| - Inside the "Punkyville General Store." |
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| - Punkyville, KY. |
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| - Punkyville, KY. |
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| - Inside the jail of Punkyville, KY. |
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| - Caboose. Punkyville, KY. |
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| - Lionel trains inside the caboose. |
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| - Barn in Punkyville. |
US 27 then leads to Falmouth, Newport and back to Cincinnati.