I hope those of you that have been following our trip through the Southern States have enjoyed the blog. Apologies for not keeping it as up to date as I would have liked but some nights I was just too tired to type!
We travelled some 1530 miles in 10 days.
Some of you may have noticed that each blog had a musical reference as a title.
I tried to make them relevant to where we were, what we were doing or where we were going. If you couldn't get them all as my music tastes are sometimes a bit obscure, here goes:
Friday On My Mind......................................................Easybeats
Up, Up and Away..........................................................5th Dimension
Throwing It All Away...................................................Genesis
I'd Like To Teach The World To Sing...........................The New Seekers
Riders On The Storm....................................................The Doors
City Of New Orleans....................................................Arlo Guthrie
C'mon Take Me To The Mardi Gras.............................Paul Simon
There's A Porch Swing In Tupelo.................................Elton John
Highway 61...................................................................Bob Dylan
Walking In Memphis.....................................................Marc Cohn
Nashville Cats...............................................................The Lovin' Spoonful
I Washed My Hands In Muddy Water...........................Elvis Presley
Georgia On My Mind....................................................Ray Charles
Leaving On A Jet Plane.................................................Peter, Paul and Mary
Listen To The Music.....................................................The Doobie Brothers
Each time I hear one of these songs in the future it'll always remind me of our great trip. This was a tour based on some of the main areas that have influenced and made music into what we have today.
Jazz in New Orleans, Blues in Clarksdale and Memphis, Rock and Roll and Soul in Memphis, Country in Nashville.
The night in Clarksdale was special, it was my birthday and we heard some pretty special music that night. The tour of Sun studios was great, to be in the same room as where Elvis recorded "That's Alright Mama" and what followed was spine chilling.
Hope you all enjoyed reading the blog as much as Sandra an I had in doing the trip!!!
Bye y'all!!!!!!
Sunday, May 29, 2016
Leaving on a jet plane........................
Awoke early, had a complimentary breakfast in the Executive lounge. Sandra got talking to a couple of guys about the situation at airport security and the length of time taken to get through.
We had a shuttle booked for 2 ish, so we spoke to the shuttle co and got it moved to 1pm just to be sure we were there in good time to get through security.
We packed everything to ensure we weren't overweight on any bag. We had bought so much stuff as usual, so I didn't want to take the chance that we were overweight on any bag. Virgin charge $100 for overweight luggage, so I didn't want to take the risk.
After breakfast I returned the car to the rental co, we did over 1500 miles on our trip, and walked back to the hotel. It was a really sunny morning and Atlanta looked really great, a nice memory to take away from a great city.
The shuttle arrived just after 1 and we got to the airport about 1.30.
Virgin check in wasn't open, we got talking to the couple in front of us and they came from Chadwell Heath!!!!
Couldn't believe it.
We had some hot dogs for lunch, bought a couple of bottles of Jack Daniels and eventually boarded the plane.
We took off on time, usual safety briefing out the way we sat back to watch the television. Surprise, surprise Sandra's screen was faulty. It happens overtime. I'm sure she does it to get an upgrade!!!!
The crew tried to reset it a few times, the colours were all wrong, but that didn't work. Sandra got an iPad instead of an upgrade> Most disappointed.
We had our 2 bottles of champagne, no extra refills this time, and settled back for the flight.
I read a book about the blues based in Clarksdale, Sandra watched some films. We had our dinner, a few more drinks and before we knew it they were bringing round breakfast and getting ready for landing.
It was a smooth landing but he did slam on the breaks pretty fiercely!
Disembarked, went through passport control, got our bags, took the shuttle to the hotel and picked up the car.
We drove home via the M25 and got in about 9.30. As we had landed at 7am I didn't think that was too bad.
We had a great trip, meet some great people, saw some great sights, listened to some fantastic music and eat far too much!!!
Well, that's America for you. Till the next time.
We had a shuttle booked for 2 ish, so we spoke to the shuttle co and got it moved to 1pm just to be sure we were there in good time to get through security.
We packed everything to ensure we weren't overweight on any bag. We had bought so much stuff as usual, so I didn't want to take the chance that we were overweight on any bag. Virgin charge $100 for overweight luggage, so I didn't want to take the risk.
After breakfast I returned the car to the rental co, we did over 1500 miles on our trip, and walked back to the hotel. It was a really sunny morning and Atlanta looked really great, a nice memory to take away from a great city.
The shuttle arrived just after 1 and we got to the airport about 1.30.
Virgin check in wasn't open, we got talking to the couple in front of us and they came from Chadwell Heath!!!!
Couldn't believe it.
We had some hot dogs for lunch, bought a couple of bottles of Jack Daniels and eventually boarded the plane.
We took off on time, usual safety briefing out the way we sat back to watch the television. Surprise, surprise Sandra's screen was faulty. It happens overtime. I'm sure she does it to get an upgrade!!!!
The crew tried to reset it a few times, the colours were all wrong, but that didn't work. Sandra got an iPad instead of an upgrade> Most disappointed.
We had our 2 bottles of champagne, no extra refills this time, and settled back for the flight.
I read a book about the blues based in Clarksdale, Sandra watched some films. We had our dinner, a few more drinks and before we knew it they were bringing round breakfast and getting ready for landing.
It was a smooth landing but he did slam on the breaks pretty fiercely!
Disembarked, went through passport control, got our bags, took the shuttle to the hotel and picked up the car.
We drove home via the M25 and got in about 9.30. As we had landed at 7am I didn't think that was too bad.
We had a great trip, meet some great people, saw some great sights, listened to some fantastic music and eat far too much!!!
Well, that's America for you. Till the next time.
Georgia, Georgia, the whole day through.................
Set off after breakfast, Interstate was just a few blocks away. We were driving back to Atlanta via Chattanooga, some 250 miles.
The scenery was very green and slightly mountainous in places.
Driving is so easy in America, the distances you can travel in a day is made easy by the Interstate system.
The miles passed quickly, we stopped a few times for coffee and natural breaks and about lunchtime arrived in Chattanooga. The famous choochoo doesn't exist, it is now a hotel situated in the old station. As that was in downtown we decided to visit a place called Rock City. This is a collection of attractions including caverns, waterfall and mountain view.
The drive up to the top was really twisty but there were some great properties up there. Rock City is a small town on the outskirts of the city and is really beautiful. It looked a great place to live.
We reached Lookout Mountain, parked the car and went in. There were 3 trails to walk along, we chose the flattest due to Sandra's ankle hurting. We walked along the trail past rock formations, trees and flowers, it was really beautiful. The views were amazing, you can actually see 7 different states from the viewpoint. We grabbed a bite to eat in the Starbucks, (they get everywhere!) and set off back down the mountain to continue our journey to Atlanta.
We arrived back in Atlanta about 5pm, after some really heavy traffic. As we came off the Interstate we arrived at the Hotel. We had to cross 3 lanes of heavy traffic to get to the entrance, we managed it very easily and Sandra was well impressed.
We checked in, this time we were in an executive room, on the 27th floor. One of the concierges recognised Sandra and asked her how her trip was. Nice touch!
Being in an executive room entitles you to use the Executive Lounge, free nibbles between 5pm and 7pm. The Americans were having a load up, I'm sure they don't go out for dinner.
We had a few drinks and decided to eat in the hotel that night.
It was really a low key end to what has been a wonderful trip.
The scenery was very green and slightly mountainous in places.
Driving is so easy in America, the distances you can travel in a day is made easy by the Interstate system.
The miles passed quickly, we stopped a few times for coffee and natural breaks and about lunchtime arrived in Chattanooga. The famous choochoo doesn't exist, it is now a hotel situated in the old station. As that was in downtown we decided to visit a place called Rock City. This is a collection of attractions including caverns, waterfall and mountain view.
The drive up to the top was really twisty but there were some great properties up there. Rock City is a small town on the outskirts of the city and is really beautiful. It looked a great place to live.
We reached Lookout Mountain, parked the car and went in. There were 3 trails to walk along, we chose the flattest due to Sandra's ankle hurting. We walked along the trail past rock formations, trees and flowers, it was really beautiful. The views were amazing, you can actually see 7 different states from the viewpoint. We grabbed a bite to eat in the Starbucks, (they get everywhere!) and set off back down the mountain to continue our journey to Atlanta.
We arrived back in Atlanta about 5pm, after some really heavy traffic. As we came off the Interstate we arrived at the Hotel. We had to cross 3 lanes of heavy traffic to get to the entrance, we managed it very easily and Sandra was well impressed.
We checked in, this time we were in an executive room, on the 27th floor. One of the concierges recognised Sandra and asked her how her trip was. Nice touch!
Being in an executive room entitles you to use the Executive Lounge, free nibbles between 5pm and 7pm. The Americans were having a load up, I'm sure they don't go out for dinner.
We had a few drinks and decided to eat in the hotel that night.
It was really a low key end to what has been a wonderful trip.
They caught me way up in Nashville...............
Breakfast was ok, not the best. We decided to do a trolley tour of Nashville so we could see the rest of the city.
We took the shuttle to the ticket office and got on a tour just as it was about to leave. You go around in an old trolley bus with commentary from the driver.
Nashville is a truly great city, there is lot's to do other than the music.
It has some great museums and open spaces., the city is dissected by the Tennessee river and has a great skyline.
Our guide, Bradley, was obsessed with food. Everywhere we went he knew of a great place to eat. His wife was a chef and he had worked in restaurants for years.
He was very informative, lots of great places to see including some really old buildings that had been converted to breweries where you good do a tour and sample their wares!!
The tour took about an hour and a half and finished at the bottom of Honky Tonk Alley by the river.
There was a Hard Rock opposite so we popped in for a drink and a bite to eat as it was lunchtime.
After a little while we had a wander around town, looking at cowboy boots and stuff. Some of those boots are really gross. Alligator, snakeskin, ostrich, made from all sorts and in all colours.Some stores were even doing " buy one get 2 free"!
We found an ice cream parlour selling homemade ice cream. it was rammed. In we popped and tried some, it was delicious! We sat by the front window and people watched whilst eating our ice cream.
We walked back to our hotel, the bars were already starting to play music in readiness for the evening crowd.
Just opposite our hotel was the old train station, it has been turned into a hotel. We popped in to have a look. The lobby was really impressive, they had even turned the old ticket desk into the check in desk for the hotel.
There was a great big fireplace and there was lots of great big come chairs . The hotel is noted for its original Tiffany glass windows and they were really impressive.
It was a very impressive place and a really unique building.
We went back to our room and chilled for a bit before getting ready to go out. However during that time the skies got darker, the wind started blowing and the heavens opened!! Then the thunder and lightning started! The rain was torrential so there was no way we were going out that night.
We grabbed the hotel directory and found a few places that did take outs. we chose an Italian place quite close to the hotel.
About 45 mins later it turned up, we both ordered spaghetti and meatballs, it was really great and not very expensive. It was still raining really hard so a good decision to stay in.
Packed everything in readiness for our last journey back to Atlanta for the flight home.
We took the shuttle to the ticket office and got on a tour just as it was about to leave. You go around in an old trolley bus with commentary from the driver.
Nashville is a truly great city, there is lot's to do other than the music.
It has some great museums and open spaces., the city is dissected by the Tennessee river and has a great skyline.
Our guide, Bradley, was obsessed with food. Everywhere we went he knew of a great place to eat. His wife was a chef and he had worked in restaurants for years.
He was very informative, lots of great places to see including some really old buildings that had been converted to breweries where you good do a tour and sample their wares!!
The tour took about an hour and a half and finished at the bottom of Honky Tonk Alley by the river.
There was a Hard Rock opposite so we popped in for a drink and a bite to eat as it was lunchtime.
After a little while we had a wander around town, looking at cowboy boots and stuff. Some of those boots are really gross. Alligator, snakeskin, ostrich, made from all sorts and in all colours.Some stores were even doing " buy one get 2 free"!
We found an ice cream parlour selling homemade ice cream. it was rammed. In we popped and tried some, it was delicious! We sat by the front window and people watched whilst eating our ice cream.
We walked back to our hotel, the bars were already starting to play music in readiness for the evening crowd.
Just opposite our hotel was the old train station, it has been turned into a hotel. We popped in to have a look. The lobby was really impressive, they had even turned the old ticket desk into the check in desk for the hotel.
There was a great big fireplace and there was lots of great big come chairs . The hotel is noted for its original Tiffany glass windows and they were really impressive.
It was a very impressive place and a really unique building.
We went back to our room and chilled for a bit before getting ready to go out. However during that time the skies got darker, the wind started blowing and the heavens opened!! Then the thunder and lightning started! The rain was torrential so there was no way we were going out that night.
We grabbed the hotel directory and found a few places that did take outs. we chose an Italian place quite close to the hotel.
About 45 mins later it turned up, we both ordered spaghetti and meatballs, it was really great and not very expensive. It was still raining really hard so a good decision to stay in.
Packed everything in readiness for our last journey back to Atlanta for the flight home.
Nashville Cats,.............
Checked out of the hotel and picked up the Interstate about 5 blocks from the hotel for the trip to Nashville. It was a real easy drive, we had been on this route before some 4 years ago but travelling in the opposite direction. Last time we were heading towards a tornado, not this time though. The weather was really sunny, about 85 degrees.
We had a few stops for natural breaks and some food.
We got to our hotel, it was real easy to find, checked in and went to our room.
Very good size, hotel had a pool so we decided to have a relax before we went out for the evening.
The hotel offered a shuttle service to the downtown area known as Honky Tonk Alley. This is where all the bars and restaurants are. We tried a restaurant called Merchant, it looked real nice but there was a 40 minute wait so we moved on and went to Jimmy Buffet's "Margaritaville".
We sat down and our waiter Ethan came over. He was a really nice guy, found out that we came from London and asked me if I was "red" or "blue". Obviously this was a reference to football, or soccer as the Americans call it. I told him "there is only one team in North London!" and that I was a yiddo.
He was a Man U fan, purely because that was the team he watched when English football was first shown on American TV.
We had a great chat about the season just gone and football in general. We eventually ordered our drinks and food. There was live music playing, 2 guys with acoustic guitars, they were really good, playing all types of music.
Food came up, it was really good so we decided to stay and listen to the music for a bit longer.
Ethan kept us supplied with drinks and we kept chatting each time. We eventually exchanged email addresses as he is hoping to go to England one day and take in a game of football.
Honky Tonk Alley was still buzzing, it goes on till about 3 am every night but we had had a long day so decided we would go back to the hotel. We grabbed a taxi and retired for the night.
We had a few stops for natural breaks and some food.
We got to our hotel, it was real easy to find, checked in and went to our room.
Very good size, hotel had a pool so we decided to have a relax before we went out for the evening.
The hotel offered a shuttle service to the downtown area known as Honky Tonk Alley. This is where all the bars and restaurants are. We tried a restaurant called Merchant, it looked real nice but there was a 40 minute wait so we moved on and went to Jimmy Buffet's "Margaritaville".
We sat down and our waiter Ethan came over. He was a really nice guy, found out that we came from London and asked me if I was "red" or "blue". Obviously this was a reference to football, or soccer as the Americans call it. I told him "there is only one team in North London!" and that I was a yiddo.
He was a Man U fan, purely because that was the team he watched when English football was first shown on American TV.
We had a great chat about the season just gone and football in general. We eventually ordered our drinks and food. There was live music playing, 2 guys with acoustic guitars, they were really good, playing all types of music.
Food came up, it was really good so we decided to stay and listen to the music for a bit longer.
Ethan kept us supplied with drinks and we kept chatting each time. We eventually exchanged email addresses as he is hoping to go to England one day and take in a game of football.
Honky Tonk Alley was still buzzing, it goes on till about 3 am every night but we had had a long day so decided we would go back to the hotel. We grabbed a taxi and retired for the night.
Walking in Memphis..........
Up early for breakfast, a really sunny day in Memphis. Breakfast was good, ham and eggs, coffee and OJ.
We decided to go to Sun Studios. When we were last in Memphis we couldn't do this tour as we ran out of time.
As it was such a nice day we decided to walk the few blocks from the hotel. We arrived at Sun Studios, booked the tour and waited in the diner attached to the studios. It is exactly the same as it was in the 50's when Elvis, Jerry Lee, Johnny Cash and Carl Perkins played here.
It was really busy, our guide led us upstairs where there was lots of exhibits from the early years of Sam Phillips and Sun records. Sam was a guy who believed in soul and blues music and wanted to record it.
Some of the equipment used then looked so dated it was a wonder they managed to record anything at all!
They even recreated the radio studio at the station where a local DJ, Dewy Phillips, no relation, started to play Sam's artists.
It was nearly destroyed when the building it was housed in was demolished but the studio managed to rescue it and put it in the museum.
She went through the early years of the company and then led us down to the studio.
It is exactly the same as it wad in the 50's. This was the very studio recorded his first song, it wasn't a hit. He persevered, as did Sam, and eventually recorded "That's alright Mama". Sam took the record down to Dewy at the radio station and he had so many requests to hear it again after the first playing that he played it 14 times in 2 hours!
It was an instant hit and the rest is history!
Some time later after Elvis left Sun records he returned to the studio one night when he was in Memphis. Jerry Lee Lewis was already there and both Johnny Cash and Carl Perkins came in and they started jamming.
Sam left the recording equipment on and it was only released a few years back due to copyright issues.
The studio is a museum by day and an actual working studio at night. Lots of bands have recorded here including U2, who recorded Rattle and Hum here. They have even left the drum kit there.
They have the microphone that Elvis used to record his songs as well.
It was really wierd being in the room where so much influential early music was recorded. It sends a shiver down your spine, that's for sure, especially when you grew up with that music!
After the tour finished we had a Coke in the diner, bought some souvenirs and decided to walk to Beale St for lunch.
It wa still really hot but we took a leisurely stroll and had a look in A Schwab's, a kind of dept store that sells some really weird things.
We had some lunch I'm one of the bars and then went to the Peabody hotel to watch the "duck ceremony".
This dates back to 1933 when as a joke after a Jack Daniels fuelled hunting trip, the General Manager put some ducks in the fountain in the lobby. Expecting them to not be there in the morning, he was surprised to find them still there. More importantly a crowd had gathered to look at them. When he tried to remove them the crowd went mad and demanded they stay as long as they wanted.
The hotel then built them a place to stay overnight on the roof and each morning they are brought down in a lift. They walk along a red carpet and up a set of steps into the fountain where they stay until 5pm where the process is reversed.
They have a Duck Master who oversees the whole thing. The ducks are wild and the hotel change them every 3 months to ensure they do not become domesticated. The same duck farm have been supplying ducks for the last 53 years.
The lobby gets mobbed, it is a real Memphis tradition. We got there early and ordered a drink. We thought the ceremony was at 4pm but it didn't start till 5pm, so by the time it started we had had a few!
The Peabody hotel is the best hotel in Memphis, very luxurious, similar to the Dorchester or Grosvenor in Mayfair.
We staggered back to our hotel, thankfully it was opposite, showered changed and went out for the evening.
We decided to eat in B.B.Kings club. Good food and music. We got a table close to the stage and ordered our food. The band playing were the B.B.Kings Allstars, they are the resident band and are really good. The singer was belting out Stax soul songs and we had a really great time.
We left there about 1am, well fed, well watered and well happy!
We decided to go to Sun Studios. When we were last in Memphis we couldn't do this tour as we ran out of time.
As it was such a nice day we decided to walk the few blocks from the hotel. We arrived at Sun Studios, booked the tour and waited in the diner attached to the studios. It is exactly the same as it was in the 50's when Elvis, Jerry Lee, Johnny Cash and Carl Perkins played here.
It was really busy, our guide led us upstairs where there was lots of exhibits from the early years of Sam Phillips and Sun records. Sam was a guy who believed in soul and blues music and wanted to record it.
Some of the equipment used then looked so dated it was a wonder they managed to record anything at all!
They even recreated the radio studio at the station where a local DJ, Dewy Phillips, no relation, started to play Sam's artists.
It was nearly destroyed when the building it was housed in was demolished but the studio managed to rescue it and put it in the museum.
She went through the early years of the company and then led us down to the studio.
It is exactly the same as it wad in the 50's. This was the very studio recorded his first song, it wasn't a hit. He persevered, as did Sam, and eventually recorded "That's alright Mama". Sam took the record down to Dewy at the radio station and he had so many requests to hear it again after the first playing that he played it 14 times in 2 hours!
It was an instant hit and the rest is history!
Some time later after Elvis left Sun records he returned to the studio one night when he was in Memphis. Jerry Lee Lewis was already there and both Johnny Cash and Carl Perkins came in and they started jamming.
Sam left the recording equipment on and it was only released a few years back due to copyright issues.
The studio is a museum by day and an actual working studio at night. Lots of bands have recorded here including U2, who recorded Rattle and Hum here. They have even left the drum kit there.
They have the microphone that Elvis used to record his songs as well.
It was really wierd being in the room where so much influential early music was recorded. It sends a shiver down your spine, that's for sure, especially when you grew up with that music!
After the tour finished we had a Coke in the diner, bought some souvenirs and decided to walk to Beale St for lunch.
It wa still really hot but we took a leisurely stroll and had a look in A Schwab's, a kind of dept store that sells some really weird things.
We had some lunch I'm one of the bars and then went to the Peabody hotel to watch the "duck ceremony".
This dates back to 1933 when as a joke after a Jack Daniels fuelled hunting trip, the General Manager put some ducks in the fountain in the lobby. Expecting them to not be there in the morning, he was surprised to find them still there. More importantly a crowd had gathered to look at them. When he tried to remove them the crowd went mad and demanded they stay as long as they wanted.
The hotel then built them a place to stay overnight on the roof and each morning they are brought down in a lift. They walk along a red carpet and up a set of steps into the fountain where they stay until 5pm where the process is reversed.
They have a Duck Master who oversees the whole thing. The ducks are wild and the hotel change them every 3 months to ensure they do not become domesticated. The same duck farm have been supplying ducks for the last 53 years.
The lobby gets mobbed, it is a real Memphis tradition. We got there early and ordered a drink. We thought the ceremony was at 4pm but it didn't start till 5pm, so by the time it started we had had a few!
The Peabody hotel is the best hotel in Memphis, very luxurious, similar to the Dorchester or Grosvenor in Mayfair.
We staggered back to our hotel, thankfully it was opposite, showered changed and went out for the evening.
We decided to eat in B.B.Kings club. Good food and music. We got a table close to the stage and ordered our food. The band playing were the B.B.Kings Allstars, they are the resident band and are really good. The singer was belting out Stax soul songs and we had a really great time.
We left there about 1am, well fed, well watered and well happy!
Thursday, May 26, 2016
Just take everything down to Highway 61............
We both slept well after a great night last night. We got up and had breakfast, Sandra was chatting to the staff, they were getting her to pronounce words like Memphis, Clarksdale just to here here accent. In the breakfast room there was lots of laughing and chatting going on but not much replenishment!
Breakfast was really good, a great choice for the hotel. We saw the family we had met last night, didn't know that they were staying in our hotel. Their son was severely handicapped but they were so good with him, they were a really nice couple.
We went to the crossroads for some pictures, saw quite a few Harley riders. We then set off for Memphis up Highway 61. It is known as the blues highway, it runs all the way to New Orleans and many blues artists have connections with this road.
We passed field after field of corn, it wasn't very high yet, looked like it had only just been planted.
We passed an Indian reservation that had the usual bunch of casinos and hotels. The Indians pay no taxes on income from these resorts, think this is the trade off for having their lands stolen by the settlers all those years ago!
On the way to Memphis there were some outlet stores, so another spending spree, however, this time it was me doing the spending. Got myself some A &F hoodies for a tenner. Bargain!!!!!
The weather was really hot, high 80's, so it was a relief to get back in the car with air conditioning.
We set off to complete the remaining few miles to Memphis.
It was easy to find the hotel, we stayed there on our previous trip to Memphis. It is right opposite the Peabody, a Memphis institution, but more of that later.
Check in was a bit of an ordeal, we arrived at 3pm and check in wasn't until 4pm. We did our usual request, quiet room, not near a lift or ice machine and no connecting doors. Well, the one allocated didn't meet any of those criteria.
The bar didn't open till 4pm either, so we left our bags and went across the street to Huey's to have a drink and something to eat.
We returned to the hotel about 4.15 and another girl was checking us in, the one earlier had finished her shift. So we went through the same thing again re the room.When we got to our room we had a connecting door! We called down to request a change of room but after about an hour or so of waiting it was obvious it wasn't going to happen. So we stayed where we were.
We got ready and went down to Beale St. It was only a couple of blocks away and we soon came across the Hard Rock. It seemed different to us from last time. We went in, a guy was playing music, and sat down. There were a couple of families where one of the children had graduated and they were out celebrating. Some of these kids are really obese, they are huge.
Sarnie and I kept saying the restaurant looked really different and the waitress told us that they moved to this location a couple of years ago. No wonder it looked different to us!
After dinner, we went for a walk along Beale St. It seemed quite quiet, apart from the music coming from the bars. Great blues and soul, will have some of that tomorrow.
We decided to go back to the hotel and as we were walking back we saw a really drunk guy. He didn't know where he was and had trouble walking.
A black woman who looked like she was either drunk or stoned past us towards the drunk guy.
When I looked back he was being supported by 2 black women, one of whom was the one who had just passed us. I heard her say " do you want to come back to my place?". I guess he was going to get screwed in more ways than one that night.
Got back to the hotel, the bar was closed so off we went to bed.
Breakfast was really good, a great choice for the hotel. We saw the family we had met last night, didn't know that they were staying in our hotel. Their son was severely handicapped but they were so good with him, they were a really nice couple.
We went to the crossroads for some pictures, saw quite a few Harley riders. We then set off for Memphis up Highway 61. It is known as the blues highway, it runs all the way to New Orleans and many blues artists have connections with this road.
We passed field after field of corn, it wasn't very high yet, looked like it had only just been planted.
We passed an Indian reservation that had the usual bunch of casinos and hotels. The Indians pay no taxes on income from these resorts, think this is the trade off for having their lands stolen by the settlers all those years ago!
On the way to Memphis there were some outlet stores, so another spending spree, however, this time it was me doing the spending. Got myself some A &F hoodies for a tenner. Bargain!!!!!
The weather was really hot, high 80's, so it was a relief to get back in the car with air conditioning.
We set off to complete the remaining few miles to Memphis.
It was easy to find the hotel, we stayed there on our previous trip to Memphis. It is right opposite the Peabody, a Memphis institution, but more of that later.
Check in was a bit of an ordeal, we arrived at 3pm and check in wasn't until 4pm. We did our usual request, quiet room, not near a lift or ice machine and no connecting doors. Well, the one allocated didn't meet any of those criteria.
The bar didn't open till 4pm either, so we left our bags and went across the street to Huey's to have a drink and something to eat.
We returned to the hotel about 4.15 and another girl was checking us in, the one earlier had finished her shift. So we went through the same thing again re the room.When we got to our room we had a connecting door! We called down to request a change of room but after about an hour or so of waiting it was obvious it wasn't going to happen. So we stayed where we were.
We got ready and went down to Beale St. It was only a couple of blocks away and we soon came across the Hard Rock. It seemed different to us from last time. We went in, a guy was playing music, and sat down. There were a couple of families where one of the children had graduated and they were out celebrating. Some of these kids are really obese, they are huge.
Sarnie and I kept saying the restaurant looked really different and the waitress told us that they moved to this location a couple of years ago. No wonder it looked different to us!
After dinner, we went for a walk along Beale St. It seemed quite quiet, apart from the music coming from the bars. Great blues and soul, will have some of that tomorrow.
We decided to go back to the hotel and as we were walking back we saw a really drunk guy. He didn't know where he was and had trouble walking.
A black woman who looked like she was either drunk or stoned past us towards the drunk guy.
When I looked back he was being supported by 2 black women, one of whom was the one who had just passed us. I heard her say " do you want to come back to my place?". I guess he was going to get screwed in more ways than one that night.
Got back to the hotel, the bar was closed so off we went to bed.
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