With Valentines Day just around the corner, a co-worker (Lisa Bories), got me to thinking about romantic hideaways. Lisa asked me if I knew anything about French Lick, because her & her husband were thinking of going there for Valentines weekend. Actually I did since Judy & I had been there a couple years ago. Forget French Lick & head up the road a couple miles to West Baden Springs Hotel, and into the lap of luxury. Billed as the "8Th Wonder of the World", when it was built in 1902. It boast a 6 story atrium & a wraparound sitting area complete with the huge white rocking chairs. Its grounds are well manicured & stunning in the summer time. In the 1920's it was host to sports stars, presidents, gangsters, and the social elite. It was a favorite getaway of Al Capone's. It was famous throughout the U.S. for its "sprudel water" with its supposed powers to heal. In 1934 it closed due to the Great Depression and would later become a Jesuit seminary and a college campus before closing for good in the 1980's. After years of sitting in disarray, a 30 million dollar renovation project (1996-98) was put in place to restore it to its original grandeur. Today it host's over 400+ rooms, a casino, and has to be seen to be believed. It is quite pricey at over $300 a night. However, if you have the means, definitely take your sweetheart and you'll feel what those in 1st class on the Titanic must have felt like...but this place won't sink. Bon Voyage !
