Nashville – May 14 – Phyllis

We stopped in Nashville because it was on the way to the Mammoth Caves in Kentucky. So, when in Rome:

Straight up, this was all about being a tourist. We walked along the strip, all four blocks of it; had a drink in Alan Jackson’s Honky Tonk; sat on a roof top terrace in the late afternoon and listened to the dull roar of unidentifiable noise as the musical offerings cancelled each other out.

We spent several hours in the Country Music Hal of Fame. Taylor Swift had been at the Nissan Stadium for a three-day run just before we came into town. There was still a lot of buzz about that event, especially the one night where there was a 4-hour delay due to rain. I really enjoyed going through the museum, though I hate to admit that I knew more about the old performers than the newest ones. I hadn’t realized that so many of the bands I listened to as a kid are considered part of the country scene. Nor did I know that Shania Twain is still the biggest selling female country music star. That includes Taylor Swift.

Spending time at the Grand Ole Opry was not on our original to do list. It’s not far from where we are camped and we were just going to walk around. However, you do get caught up in the history and importance of the institution to the music industry. The tour was led by our most enthusiastic guide, yet. The building holds just under 5000 people and had a lot of similarities to the tour at the Winspear Amanda led us on a few years ago.

On Friday night we attended the Opry. Neither of us recognized any of the people performing, yet they were all Grammy award winning acts. The show is a live radio broadcast, complete with the announcer covering ads.

The classic twangy type of music was not our cup of tea. Charlie McCoy, on the harmonica, was fascinating to watch. Drake Milligan was the best performer of the night. Seeing any live production is special. We enjoyed it!

I think everyone in Nashville is a past, future or present performer. We even had a local group, Emberland, play at the campsite on Thursday evening.

Cycling:

1. It rains, and rains a lot out east. Our attempt to ride on Thursday was cut short by rain. Saturday morning we tried to beat the predicted showers, but got caught. The weather cleared later in the afternoon and we had much better luck. Shelby Park in East Nashville was a great place to ride
2. It’s always a good idea to have your bike ‘guy’ along with you when you’re out and about. Sure enough, one of my tires had gone flat and Ken was prepared and was able to get me back on the road.