ARKANSAS OZARKS EXPERIENCE

I had the opportunity to travel to Arkansas for a tourism convention in
early 2004. Prior to the start of the convention several of us were invited
to tour the Northwestern part of Arkansas for a three day period beginning
and ending in Little Rock. Kris Abbott at the Ozark Folk Center in Arkansas

The first afternoon we arrived in Little Rock and were graciously met and
transferred to our hotel for the night, the Hampton Inn, which is very new
and directly opposite the first "Krispy Kreme" store in Arkansas. The first
evening we were hosted at the local Murry's Dinner Playhouse for an
entertaining performance and buffet dinner.

Next morning we toured the Little Rock Repertory Theater and experienced a
back-stage view as well as balcony and orchestra level seats.

Immediately following the Theater, we headed north-east out of Little Rock
with our next stop being Mountain View. In Mountain View is the wonderful
"Ozark Folk Center", which is an Arkansas State Park dedicated to preserving
the Ozark Culture by promoting workshops in quilting, basket weaving, herbal
healing and Elderhostel Programs, meetings and Living History events. Music
is a vital part of this region and the dulcimer, fiddle, banjo, autoharp and
acoustic guitars can be heard all around the Center. In downtown Mountain
View the musical theme is continued with local musicians performing around
town at any given time. We visited Mountain View on a Monday and found a
group outside a restaurant "picking" their instruments, and naturally we had
to get in the act. The photo shows our tour director, Joe Gunnels of Joe
Gunnels Tour & Guide Service in Eureka Springs, borrowing a guitar from one
of the local musicians and "picking" away with the best of them. I am
standing next to Joe wishing I was able to contribute, but with two left
ears, there is no way at all....

Since most of us were not familiar with dry and wet counties, the Arkansas
way of having different liquor laws in different counties came as a shock to
us on the bus. Since our first evening in Little Rock was complete with wine
at dinner, it was a surprise to find that Harrison, Arkansas is in a dry
county. Panic broke out on the bus and the driver was convinced to make a
detour to Madison County which is wet. Just 200 yards across the county line
is a building all by itself in the woods - a liquor store! We piled off the
bus, invaded the establishment and stocked up for the rest of the trip to
avoid future surprises. Arkansas has 70+ counties and each has its own laws
covering alcohol sales and consumption. We found that even though a county
may be dry, you are allowed to bring your own bottle of wine to a restaurant
and have the staff open it for you.

We spent a lovely evening in Harrison, entertained by actors in a murder
mystery dinner set in Bottini's Italian Restaurant. Wonderful food and great
fun!

Next day we made a detour through Eureka Springs and had a peek at the Great
Passion Play venue and a brief city tour. We continued to Fayetteville and
a stop at Head Quarters House with a living history segment; followed by a
visit to the University of Arkansas Razorback campus. We finished our time
in Fayetteville with a city tour guided by a former Mayor of Fayetteville.
We drove past the house where Bill & Hilary Clinton lived while Bill Clinton
was teaching at the University.

Fort Smith was next on our itinerary. Our first stop was Miss Laura's -
formerly a whorehouse next to the railroad tracks, now a very well preserved
historical site serving as the home of Fort Smith's Visitors Center.
Following a city tour we checked in at the Comfort Inn before gathering for
dinner (wet county) and entertainment at the Lighthouse Inn.

We had now gone full circle and returned to Little Rock and the Peabody
Hotel. This property has ducks as their trademark - duck soap in your
bathrooms, duck shaped butter in the dining room and live ducks in the lobby
fountain. The ducks are ceremoniously herded to bed in a back room at 5:00
pm and returned to the lobby at 11:00 am each day! The Peabody Hotel and
Convention Center was host to our convention and did a great job.

If you and your group would like to experience this part of Arkansas, or any
other region in the state, ABBOTT TOURS would be delighted to assist with
planning. We have contacts in the states of Arkansas, Missouri and Tennessee
for a tri-state experience. It is beautiful country, changing from the Ozark
mountains in the north to the lowland, plantation country in the south.
Little Rock is also a good place to start your Branson and Memphis trips.

Kris Abbott

ABBOTT TOURS

www.abbotttours.com <http://www.abbotttours.com/>