He Said, She Said: Tennessee- Memphis

SHE SAID:
Due to our brief detour in Vicksburg, we didn't get to Memphis until after 8pm. While this isn't too late, we had decided to be adventurous at this point and find a place to stay once getting to the city. This is the true test of a relationship. While most would think my bug is a very patient person, he does not do well when things are not planned out. He may tell you he's spontaneous. However, the last thing he wants to do is drive around a strange city in the middle of the night looking for a place to sleep. But that's just what we did. The first few we tried out were WAY out of our price range. We settled on the downtown Motel 6. Honestly, this is the first time on the trip that we were both a little nervous. I'm not sure if it was all of Memphis, or just this particular part, but it looked a little shady. I saw all of the horror films I've ever seen replaying in my head as a warning of what not to do in order to remain safe. I even went as far as not letting the front desk boy see us leave because I was afraid he would call his friends to come raid the place.

With a bit of trepidation, we headed to Beale St. I could see how this place would be great in its time. It was a bit like Bourbon St, but not as smelly and with much better music. We walked up and down to take it all in and settled on a Johnny Cash cover band. I ate chili and Mario had ribs while listening to some of America's best music. It was pretty great!!!

The next day, I had only one request. We had to go to the Peabody Hotel to see the ducks march. They walk along a red carpet to the fountain every morning and back every evening. We got there about 15 minutes before show time and were surprised to see such a large crowd. There we stood as a large group waiting for the show. It felt like we were waiting to see the Electric Parade at Disneyland... only we were waiting to see ducks walk. When I said this out loud, I was quickly scolded by a Southern woman and assured it was well worth the wait. IT WAS!!! They are the cutest things ever. They walk in their little line along the red carpet with camera flashes going in every direction. It was like a Los Angeles premiere.... only better.

HE SAID:
Memphis was a little bit shaddier than what I had expected. The area where we finally ended up wasn't exactly out of Pleasantville, but what can you do. I had to hide our stuff under the bed cushion and behind the drawer where the TV was. After some thinking, we headed off to Beale Street. Beale Street looks like it would be a fun street on a weekend when the crowd is there. Of course, we got there on a Monday night and by the time we got there most places were closing down. We did end up at a restaurant with a Johnny Cash cover band and had some good southern cookin'.

After the restaurant, we wanted to walk the street to see everything, but after encountering a few bums that wanted us to pay them money for telling us what bar to go to, and another one that just tried to sell us some stuff, we opted to hop in a cab and head back to the hotel to make sure our belongings and the car were still there (and to our surprise, they still were!)

I'm glad we got through the night without any incident (I did hear a few ambulances and cop cars drive by the hotel in a 30 min. span). Tomorrow it's off to Lynchburg (Jack Daniels here I come!) and possibly Nashville.

Stay tuned, more to come.

Mario