short vacation destinations nearby

From an email question I answered this morning from someone in our Sunday School class...

Tonia and I get away without the kids once a year for a few days-- and drive 1-2 hours. We've enjoyed every destination, but the smaller ones surprised us the most: Lexington, Evansville, Columbus (IN), Brown County (IN) and Madison.

Lexington had nearby Shakertown, a cool museum (but I forget the name), and a 54-hole Christian putt-putt course. Evansville had a historic mounds site that was cool, two interesting museums, and the ballpark for "A League of their Own". Columbus has amazing architecture (4th best in the country-- really!), a beautiful park downtown, and a nice outlet mall in nearby Edinburgh. Brown County has shopping, a fun downtown, a lot of artists, and big-time nature. Historic Madison created the most memories for us (including the surprising Lanier Mansion) and had access to big-time nature at Clifty Falls.

your faithful travel guide...eric