Seniors Enjoy Ridgeland

Senior travelers will find Ridgeland nestled just north of Jackson, the state’s capital city. Ridgeland, with a population just over 20,000, offers individuals and families a vibrant economy and a rich cultural tapestry that is part of Mississippi’s largest metropolitan area.

Known for its outdoor recreation areas and community events, Ridgeland attracts an abundance of visitors on a regular basis. Ridgeland borders the 33,000-acre Ross Barnett Reservoir, an excellent fishing, sailing, and watersports destination. Ridgeland’s multiuse Bike Trail provides over 13 miles of surface for walking, jogging, bicycling and enjoyable strolling.

If you are feeling your “Wheaties…” the Hangout Indoor Rock Climbing Gym awaits your muscle testing. I know that my wife and I would enjoy just driving around Ridgeland admiring the many beautiful homes.

Senior Women Find ‘Repeat Street’

Senior women, don’t miss Repeat Street, Mississippi’s premier consignment shop in Ridgeland. With an eclectic mix of both furnishings and fashion, you never know what you’ll find when you walk through the door. Repeat Street has been voted Mississippi’s Best Consignment Store for the past five years.

Ridgeland was originally known as Turner Brashear’s Stand. In the early 20th century, Ridgeland was home to a hotel, sawmill, and a canning company. The main business section of Ridgeland was along Jackson Street, where the Illinois Central Railroad was located.

Pack a picnic and head for The Old Trace Park that offers a host of recreational facilities. Another notable attraction not to be missed in nearby Jackson is the Old Capitol Museum.

Seniors Drive The Natchez Trace Parkway

Ridgeland hosts the Red Hot Red Hat Weekend, and Renaissance Fine Arts Festival where seniors can enjoy a sampling of Ridgeland’s elevated art forms, from visual to cultural and culinary to musical. The higher education institutes near Ridgeland include Jackson State University, Mississippi College, Hinds Community College, and Holmes Community College.

 Senior travelers, plan to drive along The Natchez Trace Parkway, (simply called the Trace), a National Parkway that commemorates the historic Old Natchez Trace and preserves sections of the original trail.

This designated All-American Road’s central feature is a two-lane road that extends 444 miles from Natchez, Mississippi, to Nashville, Tennessee. Commercial traffic is prohibited along the entire route, and the speed limit is 50 mph, except north of Leiper’s Fork, Tennessee where the speed limit is reduced to 40 mph.

Ridgeland, founded at the turn of the 19th century, has all the charm of a small southern town with the multitude of amenities of a much larger city. Seniors, note the Upcoming Events and plan a stop in Ridgeland. -jeb

Seniors Enjoy Oldest Town In Maine

This time seniors will visit Kittery, Maine, home to the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard on Seavey’s Island. Kittery includes Badger’s Island, the seaside district of Kittery Point, and part of the Isles of Shoals.

With a population that runs right at 10,000 inhabitants, Kittery is 53 miles north of Boston. The town is a tourist destination known for its many outlet stores.

The name Kittery goes back to the early 1600s. This “oldest town in Maine” was settled is 1623 and incorporated in 1647. Like almost all towns along the Piscataqua, Kittery was named after the birthplace of Alexander Shapleigh. Many English settlers named towns in honor of their homeland, however Kittery, Maine was named for a manor house of Kittery Court at Kingswear in Devon, England.

 Seniors Enjoy Colourful, Historical Town

Kittery, Maine is a colorful town with a fascinating history. The town grew piece by piece around the natural harbor of the Piscataqua River estuary. The Whaleback Lighthouse in Kittery is always a favorite stop for senior visitors.

 A visit to the Kittery Historical and Naval Museum is a must for seniors interested in the area’s rich history and the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard Command Museum for those who enjoy shipping.

Senior visitors can take in Maine Gate Factory Store Shopping Center, Church of Christ and the Fort McClary State Park. Additional sites of interest include Fort Forster Historical Site, the Fort McClary State Historic Site and the Kittery Outlets.

TripAdvisor’s suggests a visit to Kittery Trading Post and Fort McClary State Park. My wife and I would enjoy a visit to the Kittery Premium Outlets mall that is only minutes away from the quaint harbor town of Portsmouth, NH.

 Seniors…Lobster, Clam And Sake

I’d want to put Warren’s Lobster House, Robert’s Maine Grill, Bob’s Clam Hut and the Farm Bar and Grill on my list of places to dine. Enjoy sake? Check out the Blue Current Brewery that brews handcrafted American Sake, “rice wine”.

Vaughan Woods State Park and Fort McClary State Park are both popular parks for a good stroll enjoying the New England air. The University of New Hampshire, Northern Essex Community College, the University of New England-University Campus and Merrimack College are valued nearby educational institutions.

Visitors discover that naval vessels have been built along the Piscataqua River since the Revolution, starting with John Paul Jones’ sloop The Ranger which launched from Badger’s Island in 1777.

Kittery is home to Robert William Traip Academy, a formerly private, preparatory school which became public and town-run in 1967.

Seniors can spend some quality time in this interesting and historical town.  Hope to see you there, perhaps in one of those fine restaurants dining on Maine lobster or crab.  -jeb

Seniors Discover Seed Spitting

The big draw to Pardeeville, Wisconsin is the 49th Annual Fall Festival featuring watermelons. Seniors, drop by and enjoy both the Watermelon Speed-Eating and Watermelon Seed Spitting contest.

The women’s record for eating is 4.48s and men’s 6.37s. Now the spitting part last year went to Mike Walton who spit a seed 29.7 inches. Katie Kaz beat him with a 32.6 inch fling. Pretty impressive, right? Just try it yourself sometime. Hint: Use a large seed. Hear what a judge says about the seed spitting contest.  Looks like a lot of fun to me.

Be sure to take a look at the various events that include the largest watermelon, watermelon carving and a host of other fun things to do.

Seniors Smile At Strange Town Names

If you think Pardeeville is a strange name, just poke around Wisconsin and you will see others.  Anyway, let’s visit Pardeeville (The City of Lakes) and see what else might attract seniors.

The community was named after John S. Pardee, American diplomat who died in Nicaragua. Pardeeville is a village in Columbia County with a population that runs around 2,200.

Senior travelers will find Pardeeville 35 miles north of Madison on highway 22. The scenic Fox River begins as a small stream northeast of Pardeeville and is dammed in Pardeeville to create both Spring Lake and Park Lake.

 Seniors Enjoy Lakes

Pardeeville hosts a Triathlon that brings in athletes of all ages. This spectator-friendly 1/4 mile swim, 15 mile bike ride and 5K run course weaves through the town after a good loop around the park.

 Senior campers might enjoy Indian Trails Campground. There are several hiking trails around Pardeeville, ingest some ideal Wisconsin air and enjoy the scenic routes.

Notable people who hail from Pardeeville include Mark Bortz, former all-pro guard for the Chicago Bears, Claude Elliott, Major League Baseball pitcher and Debbie McCormick, Olympic athlete, world champion curler.

The Angie Cox Memorial Library is an historic building that folks of all ages enjoy. Senior boaters will find seasonal boat slips available on Park Lake and they are state of the art floating piers. Park Lake is a great spot for watching awesome sunsets almost every evening. Enjoy your visit. -jeb

Seniors Visit Fremont

Fremont, Ohio, senior travelers find out,  was the home of Rutherford B. Hayes, who served as President of the United States from 1877 to 1881. The Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center remains one of the focal points of Fremont. The National Arbor Day Foundation designated Fremont as a Tree City USA.

The area was established in 1817 under the name of the “Lower Sandusky” town. However, this resulted in major confusion for postal delivery because there were two other places in Ohio with the name “Sandusky” and “Upper Sandusky”.

In 1849, the name was changed to Fremont in honor of the explorer and presidential candidate, John C. Fremont.

Seniors Check Out The Fairgrounds

Senior visitors can check out the city hall and public librarie to learn more about the history of the city. Some of the other notable attractions in Fremont are the fire stations, the Sandusky County Jail, and the Sandusky County Courthouse.

The Sandusky County Fairgrounds hosts a variety of flea markets, fairs, and racer’s swaps that are popular among tourists as well as residents of the city. Visitors can also take a trip to the various churches and cemeteries lining the streets of this city.

The Spiegel Grove State Park, the Stephenson Park, the Anderson Field, and the Roger Young Memorial Park are among the parks offering recreational opportunities  enjoyed by both adults and children. Enthusiastic shoppers will enjoy browsing through the shops at Fremont Plaza Shopping Center and the Potter Village Shopping Center.

 Seniors Visit Presidential Library

Historically, the area which is now Fremont was originally a Wyandot village. In the 1750s a French trading post was established there. In 1787 the United States established the Northwest Territory, of which Ohio was a part.

During the early and mid 1800s a few Europeans and African Americans, predominantly runaway slaves, settled in the area, which became known as Lower Sandusky for its location on the Sandusky River.

Higher educational opportunities are available at the local Terra State Community College. Other institutes nearby include the Bowling Green State University-Main Campus, the University of Toledo, and the University of Findlay.  Seniors, enjoy this view of Fremont.   

I’d want to be sure and take in the Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Library & Museums a complex comprising several buildings related to the life and presidency of Rutherford B. Hayes.

Seniors, enjoy the museums, fine restaurants and historical buildings and plan to spend some time in Fremont. -jeb

Seniors: “Texas Made Here”

Senior travelers will find Garland, a suburb, 15 miles northeast of Dallas. The population runs over 200,000.

With the completion of the Garland Center for the Performing Arts in June of 1982, the City of Garland began a trend among Texas suburbs to build local facilities where the arts would flourish. The Garland Symphony would interest my wife and me. Garland is ranked the 9th safest city in the USA and for senior visitors, that is meaningful.

The genesis of Garland can be traced to early rural communities and townships, the first of which was Duck Creek. Established during the mid-to-latter part of the 19th century, Duck Creek became an agricultural community whose principal crop was cotton.

The arrival of the Santa Fe Railroad in 1886, which bypassed old Duck Creek by almost a mile, gave rise to a competing community known as Embree. Later that same year, the Missouri, Kansas & Texas Railroad (MK&T) built its own station a little north of Embree and called it the new Duck Creek.

The competition between the communities was resolved in 1887 when the government located a new post office between the two towns and named the new location Garland in honor of then U.S. Attorney General Augustus H. Garland.

 Seniors Find The Hat Capital

By the mid-20th century, Garland has begun transforming itself from an agricultural town to an industrial one. Production during World War II gave the city a large economic and population boost.

The Garland Opry is a non-profit organization which has been providing the Garland community with weekly Country and Gospel music entertainment for over 32 years. There are numerous attractions outside the city limits of Garland but within minutes of the city in the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area.

Garland is the hat capital of the world with brands like Stetson. Senior golfers, play Firewheel, the largest municipal golf course in Texas. And get this… as a former language teacher myself… 115 languages are spoken in Garland. That’s a lot of polyglots.

 Seniors Enjoy Firewheel Town Center

The Patty Granville Arts Center complex attracts more than 170,000 patrons per year with two-thirds coming from all over the region.  The center houses two elegant proscenium theaters that accommodate everything from Broadway touring shows to symphony concerts. The center also includes The Atrium and the Plaza Theatre.

Garland invites senior visitors to spend some quality time shopping and dining at Firewheel Town Center, an open air, urban complex with more than 100 shops – from unique boutiques to major retailers. Garland has 63 parks… sounds to me like one on every corner.

Garland today is one of the state’s larger cities, yet retains the character of a small family town. So set your GPS for Garland and enjoy. -jeb

Seniors Spend Time In Ljubljana

 Seniors, have you heard of Ljubljana (pronounced [ljuˈbljàːna])? Me either, until recently when I read that this is where Donald Trump’s wife Melania spent her youth.

This capital has transformed from gray and drab with very little nightlife, into a picturesque and lively city full of restaurants, cafés, and nightclubs filled with tourists from across the globe.

Do you have your coffee?  I’ve got mine. Let’s go to Slovenia.

One of the first impressions you will get is that it is an exceptionally young city. Ljubljana is home to over 50,000 students, who give it a special vibe. The symbol of the city is the Ljubljana Dragon.

 Seniors Enjoy This People-Friendly City

With approximately 280,000 inhabitants, Ljubljana is classified as the only Slovenian large town.  As its inhabitants and numerous visitors will tell you, Ljubljana is, indeed, a people-friendly city. Ljubljana offers everything a metropolis does yet preserves its small-town friendliness.

Situated at the middle of a trade route between the northern Adriatic Sea and the Danube region, Ljubljana was the historical capital of Carniola, a Slovene-inhabited part of the Habsburg Monarchy, and it has been the cultural, educational, economic, political, and administrative center of independent Slovenia since 1991.

Ljubljana, Slovenia is dominated with a huge majestic castle on a hill near the River Ljubljana that splits the town into two parts, like Buda and Pest. The city’s traditional color is green and the castle is illuminated at night all in green.

Seniors Enjoy City Of Wine And Vine

In Ljubljana the old meets the new and it seems that history has spent all of the settlement’s five millennia preparing it to become the nation’s capital. It has managed to retain traces from all periods of its rich history.

 Senior oenophiles, Ljubljana did not earn the label of “the city of wine and vine” for nothing. In the past it was the wine-trading center of the region and grapevines were planted on the slopes leading up to the present-day castle by the inhabitants of the Roman settlement of Emona.

Strolling along Ljubljanica River is the Tromostovje Triple Bridge with small dragonlike statues on its side that connects two parts of the center. Seniors can visit Prešelen Square, Ljubljana’s most popular meeting point with the Franciscan Church of Annunciation on popular Čop Street, one of the main shopping areas in the city.

Home to numerous theaters, museums and galleries,  Ljubljanica boasts one of the oldest philharmonic orchestras in the world. Seniors can fully relax in Tivoli Park or in the Town Square, then ride on a funicular to the top of Castle Hill, often labeled a “must see and do.”

TripAdvisor notes that Slovenia, wedged between Austria and Italy, is a perfect blend of German, Mediterranean, and Slovenian culture. Old Town tops TripAdvisor’s list and the Triple Bridge follows right behind. Enjoy scenic Slovenia and spend time getting acquainted with Ljubljana. -jeb

Seniors Scout Out Columbus

Columbus, birthplace of America’s greatest playwright, Tennessee Williams, is the ultimate southern destination in Mississippi. Senior visitors will find over 650 grand historic homes in three National Register Historic Districts.  Columbus was presented as the winner of a “Great American Main Street Award” in 2010.

Columbus was founded in 1821. Before its incorporation, the town site was referred to informally as Possum Town, a name which was given by the local Native Americans. The name Possum Town remains the town’s nickname among locals.

Downtown Columbus offers gorgeous historic homes; treasure-filled antique and specialty shops; and superb southern cuisine.  The Columbus Air Force Base, located approximately 9 miles north of Columbus is a major employer and home of the 14th Flying Training Wing.

The first record of the site of Columbus in Western history is found in the annals of the explorer Hernando de Soto, who is reputed to have crossed the nearby Tombigbee River on his search for El Dorado.

Seniors Find Themselves On The Blues Trail

East of the Mississippi Blues Trail’s Delta region, Columbus tells its own story: one of hometown characters like Howlin’ Wolf amid a cast of traveling musicians, and of the vibrant districts and venues that hosted them.

Blues Trail markers and preserved architecture conjure the past; choose from African-American heritage sites, historic home tours and historic places. Properties range from the first home of Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Tennessee Williams and an 1843 cottage built by two free black men.

The Whitehall Mansion, the winter home of Henry Flagler, Standard Oil baron from the Gilded Age is a beautiful pillared mansion, built near the street, although the property extended over an entire city block. It includes gardens, stables and servants quarters. During the Civil War, it served as a hospital for Confederate soldiers.

 Seniors Join Spring Pilgrimage

Seniors, time your visit for a Columbus annual Spring Pilgrimage, a house and church tour with carriage rides. “Catfish in the Alley, a Sensational Saturday Fish Fry is a day of live blues and fried fish which nods to Columbus’ erstwhile Catfish Alley, an African-American district where fishermen came in and bluesmen played through.”

In its heyday, Catfish Alley was a vibrant, one-block-long row of businesses just off Main Street in downtown Columbus. A world within a world, the Alley was a gathering place for the area’s fishermen and farmers, merchants and residents, people from every walk of life.

The Chattahoochee RiverWalk is a 22-mile walking and biking area along the Chattahoochee River in Columbus. At my age…I think that biking would fit my body better than hiking that far. Then  stop by Family-style Jones Restaurant that has operated in the neighborhood for 50 years.

Wherever seniors go in Columbus, you’ll be sure to catch an earful of local tunes or regional artists giving their all. Seniors, set your GPS for Mississippi and experience Columbus, one of the outstanding small communities in the nation.  -jeb

Seniors Drop By Riverside

I worked out this AM and the fellow next to me said he was originally from Riverside, California, a city seniors will find in the Inland Empire metropolitan area.

Often referred to as the city of “Arts and Innovation” as well as “A New SIDE of Classic California,” senior visitors start off their visit to Downtown Riverside,  finding it to be busy and teeming with attractive businesses.

The population is over 300,000. Experience one of the top Southern California destinations with an incredible sports scene, high-quality dining, a unique assortment of activities and one of the state’s best convention centers.

 Seniors Catch The Riverside Airshow

TripAdvisor suggests seniors visit the March Field Air Museum followed up with the Mission Inn Museum. The Riverside Airshow is a one-day show that yearly attracts over 90,000 spectators to see the most exciting aerial performers in the air show business.

The University of California, Riverside hosts the Riverside Sports Complex. Other attractions in Riverside include the Riverside Metropolitan Museum, the California Museum of Photography, the California Citrus State Historic Park, and the Parent Washington Navel Orange Tree, the last of the two original navel orange trees in California.

There is a lot of history in and around Riverside and in the late 1700s and early 1800s, the area was inhabited by Cahuilla and the Serrano people. The Joshua Tree National Park is Riverside’s largest national park.

 Seniors Discover The Inland Empire

The metropolitan area comprising Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario and the  area is known as “The Inland Empire” because it was once separated from Los Angeles by a large rural expanse. Riverside lies 60 miles east of Los Angeles and the Pacific is about 35 miles to the southwest.

The Intelligent Community Forum named Riverside the world’s Intelligent Community of the Year 2012. The Forum, an independent think-tank, recognizes the intelligent community as the most compelling model of best practice in economic and community development worldwide.

Riverside is the regional center for arts, culture and entertainment in the Inland Empire. The Riverside Fox Theater, also known as the Fox Performing Arts Centre was built in 1929, and is a Spanish Colonial Revival style building in the heart of downtown Riverside.

Mount Rubidoux, a city park and landmark, was named after Louis Rubidoux, an early settler to the area.

In 1906 the cross at the top of Mount Rubidoux was dedicated to Father Junipero Serra, a Roman Catholic Spanish priest and friar of the Franciscan Order who founded a mission in Baja California and the first nine of 21 Spanish missions in California.

Seniors, The Mount, overlooking Downtown Riverside, presents an awesome view. -jeb

Seniors Check Out Battle Ground

Battle Ground, senior travelers learn, is a city in Clark County, Washington with a population of just over 10,000, and growing rapidly. Actually the city was named for the Absence of a Battle.

Sheltered by the Cascades to the East and the Pacific Coast to the west, Battle Ground has rather pleasant weather all year long. Head out on the river for a boating trip, go skiing or fishing or perhaps take off for a visit to Mt. Hood and senior visitors will enjoy some awesome views and adventures. 

A rare tornado swept through Battle Ground on December 10, 2015 and ripped up the city, badly. 36 homes were damaged but luckily, no one in town was injured.

Battle Ground, Washington lies near the geographical center of Clark County, 16 miles northeast of Vancouver. The Cascade Mountains are off to the east and the Coast Range to the west resulting in a climate that is generally mild.

Seniors Learn Of The Battle That Didn’t Happen

At the time of first contact by Euro-Americans the area was occupied mainly by Chinook and Western Klickitat Indians. The name Battle Ground, which commemorates an 1855 “battle” that never actually happened, originally referred to a site northeast of the current city, near what is today called Battle Ground Lake.

Senior oenophiles, Battle Ground is at the epicenter of the growing Clark County wine industry with three wineries and one tasting room. Always worth a visit for some great Washington State Wine Tasting.

Of the eight attractions that TripAdvisor wants visitors to be aware of, half of them deal with wine and vineyards. Both Lewisville Park and Battle Ground Lake State Park are popular spots for unwinding and perhaps a picnic.

Seniors Enjoy Battle Ground Lake

Battle Ground Lake (often erroneously seen spelled “Battleground Lake”) is a small maar volcano of the Boring Lava Field and worth your visit. A maar volcano is the result of hot lava or magma pushing up near the surface of the earth and then coming into contact with underground water. This results in a large steam explosion, leaving a crater that later forms a lake.

 The 280-acre Battle Ground Lake State Park is located 21 miles northeast of Vancouver, Washington. The park offers five miles of horse trails and a primitive equestrian camping area. The spring-fed lake is stocked with trout and is a favorite of anglers, so bring your pole along and give it a try.

Then there is Lucia Falls, another favorite site. It has been said that area offers one of the most idyllic living experiences in America. Seniors, perhaps you will see why when you visit. -jeb

Seniors Check Out Henrico County

Henrico County, officially the County of Henrico, is in the Commonwealth of Virginia with a population of around 307,000. If you, like me, are a senior who loves history, then Henrico County is the place for you to visit.

Henrico County, like all of Virginia, is rich in history. Henrico residents and events have shaped America’s story and its heritage. In 1611, Henrico became one of the eight original shires of Virginia and in 2011, thousands of visitors helped celebrate the 400th anniversary.

Present-day Henrico County curves around the City of Richmond, surrounding it to the west, the north, and the east. The county is bounded by the Chickahominy River to the north and the James River and Richmond to the south.

 Seniors Immersed In History

In Henrico County senior visitors can discover what it was like to work a 19th-century farm or walk the same battlefields as General Robert E. Lee or Ulysses S. Grant. Visit the Virginia Randolph Museum, a National and State Historic Landmark that pays tribute to one of the greatest educators in America.

If you have a full day to explore, immerse yourself in a few of our Civil War battle sites in the Richmond National Battlefield Park (Malvern Hill Park and Fort Harrison). During the Civil War, in 1862 Henrico County was the site of seven  battles during the Peninsula Campaign.

Hike the nearby Virginia Capital Trail, a dedicated, paved pedestrian and bicycle trail connecting the Commonwealth’s past and present capitals of Jamestown and Richmond along the Scenic Route 5 corridor. The Trail traverses approximately 52 miles, four jurisdictions, and more than 400 years of history along one of the first inland routes in North America.

 Seniors Find Historic African American Cemetery

East End Cemetery, a historic African American burial site, is a great place for a little historical research. East End is the final resting place of an estimated 13,000 people, among them some of the most prominent black Richmonders of the turn of the 20th century.

Henrico hosts more than 140 tournaments annually from lacrosse to Quidditch to flag football. Then there is Three Lakes Park, a favorite stop for many senior visitors featuring woods, fishing lakes, wetlands and wildlife. It is called by many…a “hidden gem.”

The Old Henrico County Courthouse dates to 1898 in Richmond. Something is going on all year long. Senior oenophiles, the 41st Annual Virginia Wine Festival takes places in September in Run Regional Park in Fairfax and is the oldest wine festival in the state.

So set your GPS for Henrico and enjoy the many amenities that the area has to offer. -jeb