Land of Lincoln Lacemakers

The first trip will be to historic Galena, Illinois.  The bus will travel for about 1.5 hours west to the small town of Galena, situated near the Mississippi River and named for the lead rush in the 1830s.  The group will tour the history museum and visit the home of President U.S. Grant.  After the scheduled tours, the participants will be able to explore downtown for lunch on their own and an afternoon of shopping at the numerous small and interesting shops.  There will be a lot of walking on this tour and historic buildings involve some stairs.  Cost:  $45.00 (Includes transportation and all entrance fees.)

The second trip, Dressing the Divas, will be to the city of Chicago.  The bus will travel downtown to the Chicago History Museum.  You will view a Normandy Lace banquet cloth made by the ladies of the Chicago Women’s Club in the 1930s from family lace heirlooms belonging to prominent Chicago families.  After the tour of the historical museum, the participants will travel to the Lyric Opera House of Chicago for lunch and a special presentation of the costumes by one of the performers at the opera.   Cost:  $75.00 (Includes transportation, lunch, and entrance fees.)

The fourth trip will take you to three outstanding sights in the city of Rockford.  You will travel a short distance from the hotel to the famous Anderson Japanese Gardens.  The participants will have time to visit the gardens and have lunch at the new visitor center.  You will then travel to Tinker Swiss Cottage, which is a historical home of the founders of Rockford.  The final part of the trip will include a visit to Burpee Museum to see the skeleton of the dinosaur “Jane.”  The bones were found in the western U.S. and brought to Rockford.  The exhibit is very educational and impressive (even if you are not a dinosaur enthusiast).  There will be considerable walking on this tour and potentially uneven terrain at the gardens.  Cost:  $45.00 (Includes transportation and entrance fees.)