Christmas tours to enjoy at area churches, history center

If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then the folks who organized the Christmas Country Church Tour should deem themselves flattered. The 14th annual Christmas Country Church Tour will carry on today, the last of two days of which 33 churches will open their doors to showcase their Christmas decorations, which is sure to include many Nativity portrayals of the first Noel.

The participating churches are in Cape Girardeau, Perry and Bollinger counties, including Old McKendree Chapel in Jackson, which is new to the tour this year. To review a list of the churches involved, find the story on semissourian.com, or go to visitperrycounty.com. The tour runs from 2 to 9 p.m. today.

A new tour spawned from this concept, called the Southern Christmas Country Church, now in its fourth year, had a similar event last weekend. This tour included churches in the Gordonville and Tilsit area of Cape Girardeau County. Yet another church tour, this one in Scott County, is set for Dec. 21 from 4 to 8 p.m. For more information on that tour, go to semoevents.com and search the event under the Dec. 21 date.

Another destination event, requiring much less driving around, is the Cape County History Center's Christmas tree display. The center, on High Street in downtown Jackson, has decorated 20 trees with different themes, all with a concept of "Through the Eyes of a Child."

Historic, antique or homemade items are used to tell a story with each tree. Most of the trees have participatory books and activities included in the display. The center is open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday.