BOWLING GREEN 's main claim to fame is as the only place where you can buy a drink between Louisville and Nashville, just sixty miles further southwest. It's a lively enough place and offers a treat for sports car enthusiasts. One-hour tours of the General Motors Corvette Assembly Plant , on Louisville Road, off I-65, take a step-by-step look at the manufacture of one of the great symbols of the American Dream (Mon-Fri at 9am & 1pm; tel 502/745-8419; free; reservations advisable). For real Corvette junkies, there's also the National Corvette Museum , south of the plant at 350 Corvette Drive (daily: April-Sept 8am-5pm; Oct-March 8am-5pm; $8).

There's a former Shaker settlement , with furniture displays and crafts for sale, 11 miles west of Bowling Green off US-68/80, in SOUTH UNION (March-Dec Mon-Sat 9am-5pm, Sun 1-5pm; $5). A mile or two away on Hwy-73, the 1869 Shaker Tavern (tel 270/542-6801 or 1-800/929-8701; $75-100), a B&B, serves traditional Kentucky recipes such as chess pie. However, only guests and groups of six or more can eat at the tavern.