LOUISVILLE , just south of Indiana across the Ohio River, is firmly embedded in the American national consciousness for its multimillion-dollar Kentucky Derby . Each year, the horse race attracts over 500,000 fans to this cosmopolitan and well-diversified industrial city, which still bears the traces of the early French settlers who came upriver from New Orleans. Today a third of the country's bourbon is made here.

Louisville's history revolves around a perennial rivalry with Cincinnati, a mere one hundred miles upstream. For example, despite being pro-Union during the Civil War, it promoted itself thereafter - erecting Confederate statues and so on - as the place for Southern business to invest, as opposed to Midwestern Yankee cities like Cincinnati.

Besides a lively arts scene and lots of citywide festivals, Louisville boasts an unrivaled network of public parks, many designed by Frederick Law Olmsted. One native son who took advantage of the recreation facilities was three-time world heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali , who used to do his early-morning training in the scenic environs of Chickasaw Park.