When we had a lovely warm sunny day earlier this week (sandwiched between endless days of rain and more rain), he said we should go for a drive...but with a destination where we could get outside and walk around as well.
I scrounged up a "Kentucky Visitors Guide" and started looking through it. In the first few pages I noticed the listing for the Abbey of Gethsemani in Bardstown KY.
Neither of us had been there before and it was just far enough away to make a nice day trip.
Here is their website if you are interested....http://www.monks.org/
More info on Wikipedia... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abbey_of_Our_Lady_of_Gethsemani
They have a visitors center where a film was shown about the daily routine of the Trappist Monks who live there. There was also a small room with lots of photos and plaques to read about the history of the monastery. It is the oldest monastery in the US that is still operating.
The photo below is the entrance to the church, which is long and narrow and very plain looking.
We were allowed inside the gated-off visitors area as the monks filed in for one of their several daily services.
We walked around the grounds a bit. There are two cemeteries, one for the monks, with plain small cross markers (public not allowed in that one) and this cemetery...both men and women...stones dated in the 1800s.
There are miles of walking trails on the property but there had been so much rain the ground was muddy and slippery.
We did walk up a hill to a statue on top. Somehow in the photo below I have a tree right in line with the statue on the hill so it's hard to make out.
They had some chairs up there so one could collapse and catch their breath enjoy the view.
We couldn't find any info about who the statue represents. More than likely one of the saints.
It was very windy up there. It blew my ponytail apart!
Easier going back down than it was going up!
And there was a gift shop. We had enjoyed our visit so Lonnie felt like we should buy a box of fudge to help the monks in their fund raising efforts. There were several flavors but they were handing out samples of the Bourbon Butter Walnut fudge...it was good so that's what we bought.
The monks actually make fruitcakes and fudge at that location. The gift shop had jams, honey and more, made by Trappist monks at other monasteries as well.
They also bring in income by selling books by well known author and theologian Thomas Merton who became a Trappist Monk there in 1941 and lived there until his death.
Guest houses and dormitories for those who wish to make a retreat are offered at the monastery as well.
We left with more questions than we had when we started out...leading to a lot of discussion and looking up things on the internet.
Overall, it is a beautiful and peaceful place to visit.
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