Road Trip Part 2 - Memphis, TN - May 2013

And the road trip continues....

Little Rock was just an appetizer.  Memphis was the main course.  We pulled into Tennessee about 4-ish.

Crossing the state line from Arkansas to Tennessee.

Downtown Memphis.

We stayed at the Doubletree on Union Avenue, which turned out to be a fantastic location!  We were two blocks from Beale Street, right across the street from Autozone Park and three blocks from the FexEx Center, which is where the Memphis Grizzlies play.  They are in the playoffs!

  

The Orpheum Theatre was built in 1890 and was the "grandest theatre outside New York City".  In 1923, the theatre burned to the ground.  In 1928, it was rebuilt at the cost of $1.6 million dollars.  It was twice as big and more opulently decorated than the first theatre.  It was purchased by a movie chain and ran first run movies until 1976.  There was talk of tearing it down but then it was purchased by the Memphis Development Foundation and started having live performances again.

I believe it's a law that you cannot go to Memphis without going to Graceland to pay homage to the King.

The only picture of the two of us for the low, low price of $25!

So when they say 'mansion', I'm thinking Highland Park.  It's a really big house. 

The living room was decorated by Elvis.  He really liked that teal blue color.  They wouldn't let you go upstairs because that was Elvis' private area.  But we did get to see his parents' room which was on the first floor.  Nice.  The rooms were really a good size.

From the back yard.  There was a room called the "jungle room" that had shag carpet on the ceiling.  Oh those crazy '70's...

The back yard was huge.  It was definitely an estate.  There were horses and lots and lots of trees. 

After you walk from the back yard, you go into what is called the Trophy room.  There's all kinds of photos and memorabilia.

This long hall way is filled with Elvis' gold records.  He won three grammys - all for gospel music.

Scene from Jailhouse Rock.

Elvis' Army uniform.

The room after the trophy room was an old racquetball studio that was converted. 

Hunk-a hunk-a burnin' love...

This is just sad.  Elvis, his parents and his maternal grandmother are buried on the grounds of Graceland.

The "Lisa Marie" - Elvis' private jet.  It's not aging well...

The famous pink Cadillac. I think it was his mamma's.

Right next to the Graceland complex is the Heartbreak Hotel.  It really is at the end of Lonely Street!

When in Memphis, it's all about the BBQ.  We stopped at A&R Barbecue which was listed as one of the Top 7 places in Memphis according to some foodie magazine.  It was a dive!

I got pork shoulder with potato salad and fried pickles.  It was SO good.  John got a slab of uncut ribs, no knife and a plastic fork.  The rib meat fell right off the bone.  Very tasty!

After Graceland, we drove around Memphis some.  The city sits right on the banks of the Mississippi River.  I took this from a park that runs along the river. 

This goofy looking structure used to be the convention center.  Now it's being turned into the Bass Pro Shop.  What do pyramids have to do with fishing?

Another view of the river.  I love the river.  It's very peaceful.  It's kind of brown and I wouldn't want to swim in it but I like to sit and listen to what it has to say.

Right across the street from our hotel is Autozone Park - home of the Memphis Redbirds.  This is a feeder team for the St. Louis Cardinals.  They were playing the Round Rock Express which is a team that feeds the Texas Rangers. 

This guys was pretty funny.

Really good pitching.  The Redbirds skunked the Express.  It was fun. 

Beale Street.  My kinda place.

Beale Street after the game.  It was crazy!  You couldn't get near the drink window.  It was like Bourbon Street.

Sun Studios where rock n roll got it's start.  Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash all started here.

It started out as a recording service rather than a record label.  At 18 Elvis came in and recorded a song.  A year later, they called him back to be part of a studio group.  We got to hear tapes of him trying different songs.  Then he sang 'That's alright mama'.  The rest is history.

After Sun Studios, we went by the Civil Rights Museum.  This is the balcony of the Lorraine Motel where Martin Luther King was shot in April of 1968.  In the window, you can see a reflection of the building across the street.  It's the boarding house from where James Earl Ray shot him.  The boarding house is now part of the museum.  It's very sobering to be here.

 

Standing in front of MLK's room and looking back at the boarding house.  The open window right above the tree (the first building) is where the shot came from.

That night,  Sir Paul McCartney played at the Fed Ex Center two blocks from our hotel.  We thought we might "drop in" but for $300 each, we decided to pass.

Right off Beale street is this status of Elvis.

It was a really good trip.  I liked Memphis.  It was too bad that like all vacations, it had to come to an end.  We drove back to Dallas the next morning.  We left about 8 and were home by 3:30.  It's pretty bleak between Memphis and Little Rock.  Not much going on.  Lot's of fields though I don't know what they were growing.  Hang a left onto I-30 at Little Rock and the scenery changes.  Between Little Rock and Dallas it's all ranch land.  Nothing but belligerent cows planning their escape.

We let out a 'woohoo!' when we crossed the state line into Texas.  75 mph all the home, baby!

Thanks for a great time, Memphis and Little Rock!

Road Trip Part 1 - Little Rock - May 2013

This is the year of the road trip.  We planned a mini-vacation over Memorial Day weekend to Memphis, Tn.  We got a wild hair and decided to leave late Thursday and spend Friday in Little Rock, AR since we'd never been there.

Crossing the state line into Arkansas.  Okay - this is cheating a little.  This is crossing the state line from Tennessee but when we crossed over from Texas and I was driving.  John wouldn't let me try and take a photo as we passed under the sign at 75 miles an hour.

First stop on Friday was the William J. Clinton Presidential Library.  This will be the third presidential library we've seen (the other two being JFK and LBJ).  It's shaped like a bridge as it is a reminder of Bill Clinton's campaign promise of "building a bridge to the 21st century".

John in front of the library. 

This is the Rock Island Railroad bridge that spans the Arkansas River and is right next to the library.  It was built in 1899 and led to the Choctaw Station.  According to the tour guide, the city was going to tear it down so Clinton made it an extension of the library and it's now only open to pedestrian traffic.  It's a cool bridge.  

Inside the library, one of the exhibits is the replica of the Oval Office during Clinton's administration.  The same woman that decorated the office while Clinton was there did the replica using leftover bolts of cloth and unused cans of paint from when she did the original.

They also had a replica of the Cabinet Room.  Guess which chair John is sitting in.  This was take about 20 seconds before the room was taken over by kids on a field trip.  They were everywhere!

One of the temporary exhibits at the library was called "Jazz through the eyes of Herman Leonard".  It was a series of photographs of various Jazz musicians and singers that were made by Herman Leonard.  That's Billie Holiday.

After the library, John and I wandered around downtown looking for something to eat.  Downtown Little Rock is on the bank of the Arkansas River.  Over Memorial Day weekend, they had Riverfest.  It was a festival with food booths and lots of beer and apparently Darius Rucker.  One of the security guards was telling us and asked if we knew who Darius Rucker was.  John said, "Sure - it's Hootie."  It took that guy a few minutes....what can I say?  We're old.

We passed by this place once and there was a line out the door.  The smell made your mouth water.  We weren't really in the mood for fried chicken but we didn't see anything else that grabbed us.  Plus, this place was really busy so we thought - go with the locals.  I got chicken tenders and John got chicken breast.  Turns out this place is a chain and this location had just opened.  They hadn't worked out the kinks yet.  John's chicken was dry.  Mine was a little better but not much.  It was no Babe's.

Next was the Old Statehouse Museum.  It was completed in 1842.  When Arkansas became a state in 1936, the government moved in even though the construction hadn't been completed.  This building was used as the state capitol until 1911.  It was on the steps of this building that Bill Clinton declared his candidacy for President.

I LOVE this staircase.  This in the main hall.  There are two staircases, one on either side and they lead to the second floor.  On the second floor is another set of stairs that leads to the third floor but was blocked off.  The second floor was where the Senate was.

The arches in the Old Statehouse Museum.  It was a really cool old building.  They had exhibits representing all the governors, dresses from the first ladies of Arkansas and several exhibits of what homes would have looked like (sitting rooms mostly).  Also, it was free. 

Next we went over to the Arkansas State Capitol.  Initially we were going to walk over from the Clinton library.  I don't know what the heck we were thinking.  It was clear on the other side of town!

I thought this was really cool.  There's a statue to the side that is of an eagle (I think).  But the way it's set up, it creates this shadow.  This particular memorial is for those from Arkansas that had been awarded the Medal of Honor.

Little Rock Central High School.  This is the school that the Little Rock Nine were barred from attending until President Eisenhower stepped in.  In an effort to desegregate the schools in Little Rock, nine black students were chosen to attend this all white school.  These nine students had to be escorted by the National Guard.  Needless to say these kids were treated badly and yet they kept coming back.  Amazing courage.  I don't think I could have done it.  Apparently, there's a statue of these kids at the State Capitol.  I didn't see it.

This is, as the next photo says, the 'Big Dam Bridge'.  I read about this bridge before going out there and felt like I needed to see it.  It's a pedestrian bridge that spans the Arkansas River. 

I was a bit underwhelmed.

We only had one day in Little Rock and it wasn't even a whole day.  By 3 pm we headed out for the 2 1/2 hour drive to Memphis.  I'm glad we stopped.  The library made it well worth the trip.  If we'd had more time, we could have walked around a bit more. 

Next time...