We headed up to Missouri after Hot Springs, AR. On the way up we came across a historical natural bridge, so we stopped to check it out.
It was spectacular and had alot of history with it. One being that Jesse James and friends used to hang out there to hide from officials. It also was a bridge that they used to log and travel over the bridge to go up to the highway area.
After that we headed around Table Rock Lake to stay at a resort. It started to rain so we just stayed in for the night.
The next morning we headed into Branson to check it out. Being that it was in early April, alot of things are still closed. So after looking around, we headed up to see my family.
We got into Murfreesboro about 3:30 and headed to the Crater of Diamonds to check it out and see what it was about. We learned that this park used to be a mine for alot of years. And finding a diamond would be very slim. But we ended up trying it out for about 30 min.
Due to rain from the day before it was Very muddy. And we did not have the proper tools nor gear to dig. So after deliberating for a bit, we decided not to come back the next day and just move onto the next town.
The next town was Hot Springs, AR. We really didn’t know too much about the town but we headed to a local brewery to have a beer and try to figure out where to stay. Now this city is known for their natural Hot Springs and as we found out Al Capone used to be there.
We checked into the hotel and headed to the Ohio Club, which was the old Al Capone bar and hidden casino. Alot has changed since then but the back bar wood decor still remains. Even one of the mirrors are the original from back in the day. Still with even the nicks from bullets.
There was alot of history there. And it seemed there were alot of gangsters that passed through back in the day. Definitely a place we will remember.
Next stop, Little Rock. We went through a good rain storm and when we got to our hotel in Little Rock, it was still raining hard so we just stayed in for the night, relaxing. We ordered food from the restaurant at the hotel. It was THE best Chicken Strawberry Walnut salad I have ever had!
The next morning we decided to walk the River Market area. Before making it to the River Market area, we came across the old State Building. So we decided to go look at it. This building used to be the original State Building for Little Rock. Congressmen used to meet up in this building and some took a boat on the river to get to this place. Then they moved buildings and this old state building became a police station, a mortuary, an university, a psych ward, etc. The building has alot of artifacts now.
After the state building, the River Market area was a typical downtown vibe. Bustling with all kinds of people. There were even students there for some kind of conference.
We kept walking and found a little hole in the wall restaurant for some sandwiches. It was okay but satisfied our hunger. Then we walked around little more, then headed out to Murfreesboro.
Memphis, Tennessee: Home of the Blues, Soul, Rock ’n’ Roll and BBQ proves to be good times.
Upon arriving in Memphis, we were greeted with warm hospitality like we were long lost family coming home to visit. All questions were answered with a smile. After settling into our hotel, we headed to the famous Beale Street for food, music, people, and Home of the Blues.
Beale Street, which has its own website, was 1 mile from our hotel. If you haven’t been here before, Beale Street is closed off for several blocks during the evening hours allowing people to roam the streets hopping from bar to bar without worrying if a car is passing by. The street was originally started in 1841 by entrepreneur and developer Robertson Topp and named the street for an unknown forgotten military hero. The collaboration of the street has changed hands several times through the years until it was finally turned over to the City of Memphis in 2012. Now the street boasts lively entertainment, good food, and cold brews but still remains historical.
It was a beautiful late afternoon to walk the short 1 mile trek. Arriving at the edge of Beale Street, it was full of life and people. So many places playing loud music you could hear out on the streets as you passed by. You could hear jazz, blues, old time rock-n-roll, and so many other genres taking you back to a simpler time when life slows down and worries leave for the night. Street performers gather in the middle of the street showing off their skills of juggling, dancing and no hands backflips for tips. With entertainment on every turn, and our dollars slipping out to the performers, it was time to slip into different places along the street to get the feel of times past and listen to some music. From small hole in the wall bars to larger than life bars, you can feel the history luring you in, caressing your soul.
After a few beers and before going back for the night, we tried Runway Grille BBQ off of Beale Street, a small hole in the wall outdoor grill. The smoke-filled air lured us in making our mouth water with anticipation. The owner told us they had started out with one BBQ grill and a dream in 2014. Now he has a small little place that people line out the door just waiting for his Memphis BBQ magic. And I can tell you, it was soo good! Fall of the bone ribs and moist smoked chicken that melts in your mouth with the perfect balance of seasonings, smoke, and sauce. Great food to finish off the great night!
The next morning we slept in to catch up on some rest, and then headed out to a downtown local pizza joint that had rave reviews, Aldo’s Pizza Pies, owned by Aldo Dean. The walk to the place took you past buildings that once were something back in the day. As we got closer, we started walking parallel to the trolley car rails and cobblestone streets heading to the downtown area. Upon arriving to the urban New York style pizza joint, the place is cozy, bustling with people both inside and out on the patio. Smells of dough, garlic, and tomato sauce loft in the air. Yes! We have arrived as our stomachs growl. We chose to sit outside, after all it was a nice afternoon and we wanted to enjoy the sunshine. We ordered the Willie Cheech & Bob pizza full of jerk chicken, mango chutney and jalapenos. Not the combination we were thinking but the sweet and spicy was spot on! We also ordered the White Pizza with chicken which is their garlic & oil sauce with 4 different cheeses. Vampires beware as there is definitely garlicky goodness on this pie. Both pizzas were delectable with great balanced flavors and the crust was perfectly crunchy on the outside and chewy on the inside.
After lunch we walked over to the lovely and relaxing Mississippi River Park area. This is a park you can sit and watch barges go by, play basketball, lounge on the lawn taking in the day, participate in their River Fit program, or just simply leisurely walk along the river enjoying the views and sculptures. We chose to do the latter since we were still full from such a great lunch.
My favorite sculpture on the river walk was the Tom Lee Monument. It shows an African American river man rescuing 32 people from drowning, reaching beyond race and class, recognizing all of our shared humanity. He is revered as a local hero, and truly he is, since he could not swim, risking his life to save others. It’s such a great moving sculpture reminding us of how we all should be.
After getting back from our river walk, we decided to check out the Bass Pro Shop pyramid. I mean really, a pyramid? In the Midwest? Yes indeed it was. A huge pyramid that looks like the Luxor hotel in Vegas but with lifelike stuffed animals and all the hunting and fishing gear you could ever need. Entering you are greeted with wildlife like the other Bass Pro Shop’s but with this one, a lady in scuba gear was inside a big water tank feeding the fish and talking about the different species the tank housed. The amount of people gathered around the tank was staggering. It felt like people were waiting for something big to happen but it was just fish getting fed. After watching her for a minute, we headed to the elevators to go up 300+ feet to overlook the city. And what an amazing view it was! The owners of Bass Pro wanted visitors to truly get a sense of the pyramid and see the city, so they made the observation floor out of thick glass. Glad neither one of us are afraid of heights since it was a long way down. We took a few shots of the city then headed back down to figure out where we were going next.
After getting some advice from a hotel employee, we decided to check out Overton Square, which is supposed to be the next new Beale Street. When arriving we noticed the area wasn’t as lively as Beale Street but more artsy restaurant food places. While walking the area, we stumbled upon a local German food place to get our beer and schnitzel on. After the delicious fare, we walked around a little more but before long we decided to go back to the hotel to get some rest.
Our last morning in Memphis wouldn’t be complete without visiting Graceland, home to “The King” of Rock n Roll. We took the self-guided at your own pace tour of the Graceland mansion with all of Elvis Presley’s accolades, memorabilia, hit records, various pictures, awards, and famous clothing that he wore. They even had the wedding tux and wedding dress that Elvis and Priscilla wore when they got married. The one place you could not enter was their bedroom, as he always kept that private. Meandering your way through the 1970’s colorful shag and mirrors you arrive in an area housing a piano, couches, and a racquetball court. Elvis loved coming to this room to think about songs and life. Unfortunately, this was the room he killed himself. Walking through this area, you felt the sadness in the room of The King’s presence of lonely nights and restless days. After wiping a tear from your eye, you are guided outside, where the family horses roamed. Next to the field are memorial graves of Elvis and his family you can pay respect to. Lastly, if you wanted to see more, you can go into the two (2) planes that Elvis had to get around to all his tour obligations. Again you are sent through a 1970’s portal with shag everywhere when you walk through the planes.
Now truly appreciative of all the flavors the city offered us, we headed out to our next adventure.
We headed to Nashville. When we got in we stopped off at the grand old opry, which was nothing like what I remembered from when I was little. The area seemed to commercialized.
But while in the area we also saw the General Lee car from the Dukes of Hazard. Next we went to the hotel but upon arriving the room smelled pretty bad and we ended up getting a refund and leaving. It was getting late and we ended up deciding to leave the area and just drive to the next town.
Which ended up being Dickson, TN. A small 14K ppl town that had a lot of restaurants and shopping for a small town.
We got to the hotel late but was hungry, so we went to the Asian restaurant and shared a meal. The hotel was clean and we got a good night’s rest for the next days drive.
From Myrtle Beach, we were going to stay in Spartenburg, SC which was on the North West border of the state. We got in and decided to try a local brewery to see where we should stay in the area. As we talked with gentleman behind the bar, we were advised that we should go to Asheville, TN instead. So we set our sights for Asheville.
We went to downtown Asheville to check it out then headed to our hotel. It was late so we just stayed in.
The next morning we went and got our oil changed. While waiting for it, we talked to an 80 year old lady named Elizabeth Taylor. She just went by Liz and she reminded me of my Step-Grandmother, Mary. Very similar personality and mannerisms.
After the oil change we checked out the drive through farmers market then headed over to the Moose cafe for some southern country cooking.
After Savannah, we settled on Myrtle Beach. When we arrived there was not much going on but we started walking to the boardwalk. It was a cool day but still nice. It seems that we arrived 2 weeks too soon as their kingdom adventure park was opening for Tennessee spring break April 8th.
Everything seemed like a typical beach town. Lots of corporate restaurants but still there mom and pop places out there. Thankfully. At the boardwalk, Michael convinced me to go through a haunted building. I did okay until the very end and ended up screaming twice at the end of it. Overall fun though. Then as we headed back to the hotel, we stopped off at a Filipino restaurant. Great food. Loved the lumpia’s. A great end to the day.
Upon arriving to Savannah, we checked into our retro hotel called the Thunderbird hotel. Then we proceeded to walk toward their downtown area.
We stopped at a local pub house that was from the prohibition era. They still kept the nostalgia of it with all the signs from the past.
Savannah is one of those towns that remains stuck in the past. The buildings are from the 1800’s. And as you walk the Riverwalk area, the streets and steps are cobblestone. You are taken back in time for just a glimpse as the shops around are more corporate and new.
Came into Daytona Shores Beach to a cute 1 bedroom hotel room right on the ocean. So after checking in, we walked on the beach to finally get the sand in between our toes. The water felt nice but cool.
After walking around for a little bit, we went to get something to eat and relax for the evening.
The next morning we walked 3 miles to the boardwalk, which most everything was closed. Ate at the Ocean Deck, then walked the 3 miles back to our hotel on the sand, letting the ocean hit our feet.
Once we freshened up, then walked 3 miles the other way to Crabby Joe’s, which is a restaurant out on a pier. Had some shrimp and started our 3 mile trek back to the hotel.
This was the most we have ever walked. 12 miles total. We were alittle tired but felt good overall.
Traveling from Key Largo to Orlando, we went through a severe thunderstorm where sheets of rain were coming down and there was a tornado warning. Speaking with Michael, we went through a tornado. Speak with Renee and we just went through a severe thunderstorm. Either way, it was intense as people pulled over underneath the overpass as if there was a tornado near by. We kept going through it to get out of the area.
We made it to Orlando, checked in and then walked over to Universal Studio City Walk as we were only about 1 mile from it. We walked around to check out what was there and find out from the concierge had any deals for us for Universal Studios. He didn’t so we decided to get the tickets from our hotel.
After walking around we worked up an appetite and headed back to the hotels restaurant which was an Indian/Chinese/Thai restaurant. It got good reviews, so we were looking forward to it. So glad we as it was great.
Then to relax we hopped in the hot tub and met a few great people.
The next morning we walked to the Universal Studio and started our roller coaster adventure. There was only one true roller coaster, the rest was simulated roller coasters. Overall, it was good but just expected more actual roller coasters.
After riding all the rides we ended up going back to the Indian restaurant to try something else.
