The Holidome in Lawrence becomes an ersatz country fairground (minus the port-a-pottie tragedies) for one weekend every winter with the Free State Music Festival, perhaps to the consternation of weary turnpike travelers. But you won't find a more bangin' Holiday Inn for miles around with the Nashville Bluegrass Band, singers of the sweetest harmonies in bluegrass, and local groups the Midday Ramblers, Bluestem and the Wilders (notorious for using the bleak months for pulling out turn-of-the century hymnals and learnin' new tunes) providing the in-house entertainment. This year, there'll even be "jamming rooms" available for those who want to rub instruments with the stars. A motel Stack-It chair ain't exactly a campground stump, but it'll do in February.
