I've been everywhere, man

Been gone for a while. Went to Lexington, Kentucky in early June. So much to see and do there.

This is the inside of Rick's White Light Diner, which was featured on Guy Fieri's Food Network show called Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. It's a small place near a bridge that goes over the Kentucky River. 

Rick's White Light specializes in Cajun food. Yeh, Cher. And we know it's authentic from having lived a year and a half in Cajun Territory, La Place, LA in St. John the Baptist Parrish, just over the I-10 bridge that stretches over the bayou from Kenner. No wonder they call New Orleans The Big Easy. Sometimes traffic would snarl on that bridge, but no worries. People would get out of their car. Most had a cooler and then a party would break out as we watched a gator or two swim under the bridge. Larry always said that the people there are so friendly that if Russia invaded America at that point, they'd get no further because they'd throw a crab boil for them!

While munching on an oyster Po' Boy (on in-house fresh baked French bread), I glanced up and there on the wall was Rick's diploma from the CIA. No, he's not an undercover spy, as far as I know anyway - CIA stands for the Culinary Institute of America. Remember when the CIA had a TV show? Used to love to watch it. Quite an achievement there, Rick!

We were lucky that the owner, Rick, was back from his Florida vacation. That's his daughter in the photos above. As soon as she finished her shift, she was taking off for the beach. Amelia Island, I think. Nice place with lots of Spanish moss in the trees.

We visited Claiborne Farm and got a tour. Can you believe they brought out Orb for us to pet and stand beside? Orb is last year's Kentucky Derby winner. Claiborne has had more KY Derby winners than any other stables. In fact, Secretariat's last resting place is on that farm. 

The names on the harnesses and stall doors read like a Kentucky blue blood thoroughbred who's who. The name on this harness is First Samurai.

The son-in-law of a friend owns Lexington Beerworks, so of course, we had to pay his establishment a visit. Great pizzas there, too.

This is the outside of Lexington Beerworks. Looks like a painting waiting to happen. I was astonished at all the historic architecture in this area of downtown Lexington. It rivals Chicago. Next time, an architectural tour is in order.

We walked a few blocks from his place up to Atomic Cafe. From the outside, it looks small, but then you walk through the restaurant, there's a whole lot going on outside, including two full bars and a stage. It was starting to get dark when I snapped this photo. Don't know why there's a red dot in the corner. Maybe turning this one into a painting would bring good luck.

So Lexington reminded us of New Orleans in more ways than one, because of Rick's Cajun food and also because the courtyard restaurants open up big to the outside like the Atomic Cafe. H-mmm, there's also a river that runs through it like the Crescent City.

Sad to leave, but c'est la vie. Here's one for you from the Atomic Cafe. Laissez les bons temps rouler!