Great Smokey Mountain National Park

Wednesday, October 26

Yesterday we started our eighth and final week.  We have traveled 10, 500 miles so far (but we’re not done yet) and are on our way to Alex and Andria, Virginia.  As we traveled across Tennessee we started to see the colors in the trees that we are more accustomed to and we have traveled back into the Eastern Time Zone  ~ all signs that we are nearing home.

 Before leaving Tennessee we visited the Great Smokey Mountain National Park. The road around the park wound through the beautifully colored hard wood trees of the east coast. 

At higher elevations where it is colder, the leaves were already gone but along the lower elevations there was still considerable color; certainly more than anywhere we have been.     

The leaf peepers were out if full regimen today.   It was a gorgeous fall day and we expected it might be busy but not to the level that we encountered.  It almost rivaled Letchworth State Park on Columbus Day weekend.                                                                                   

                                                                                  

 At the southern end of the park, along the Oconaluftee River, was the Oconaluftee Mountain Farm Museum.  The museum consisted of original mountain buildings from this area that had been moved to the park to create the museum. It is meant to replicate a typical early 19th century farm. 

As we were leaving the park, we decided to go to one more viewing area (it must have been fate).  As we arrived we noticed a large number of people gathered in one area.  Earlier in our trip we would have thought there must be wildlife, but here we just thought it was the foliage.  When we got out of the car someone told us there was a bear.  A BEAR~ our trip was now complete.  John has been waiting to see a bear since our Alaskan excursion last year. We saw two on the mountain side in Glacier but John didn't consider them close enough to count however THIS was a legitimate sighting. 

what are all you people lookin at?

I'm just enjoying my grass snack

We ended our day with dinner and a walk around Gatlinburg.  What a busy place.  The parking attendant said it wasn’t bad ~ wait until Halloween weekend!  The town was beautifully decorated for fall in preparation for the leaf peepers and the big Halloween crowds.

This seems to be a huge resort area with the National Park,  Dolly Wood and ski areas all near by.  There are three towns in succession along rt 441; Sevierville, Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg, and one is busier than the other. At least Gatlinburg is an actual little village.  The others are just rows of restaurants, hotels and attractions along the highway ~ such a drastic difference to the natural beauty of the National Park.

No longer are we the distant license plate in the parking lot and after the scenery we have seen today we really feel like we are heading home.  The last leg of our trip is Virginia.

On Thursday we continued our drive to Alexandria via the Skyline Drive through the beautiful Shenandoah National Park and Valley arriving just in time to catch the end of soccer practice. It was a cloudy day but at least it didn't rain.

Nashville, Tennessee

We drove three and a half hours to Nashville last night, the home of Country Music, also the home of Ken Yanicky.  Ken is from Pittsford and was John’s good buddy and partner in crime at Xerox before John retired and Ken left Xerox for greener pastures.   

Ellie, Andrea, Tex,Tyler, Ken & Ruby (in front)

We were able to stop at Ken and Andrea’s house, meet their two beautiful daughters, Tyler and Ellie and of course Tex and Ruby, the dogs.  We caught up with current news and John and Kenny shared laughs reminiscing about ‘the good old days’ (Ken is all of 34 years old).  We had a great visit.  

 We weren’t able to see a show at the grand Ole Opry but we did the next best thing ~ we went to the famous Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge. 

 

 Tootsie’s has been a landmark in Nashville since the early days of the Grand Ole Opry at the Ryman Auditorium.  The history is that Tootsie’s is located right behind the Ryman Auditorium so many of the famous performers from the Opry would come into Tootsies before or after their performance.  Even today it’s not uncommon for Country Stars to show up unannounced.  We didn’t notice any stars but I’m not sure we would have recognized anyone because it was so crowded ~ even on a Tuesday night.  

Tootsie’s is located on Broadway, better known as Honky Tonk Highway, where you can just stand on the street and hear the country music pouring out from every doorway.  This area reminded us of Beale Street in Memphis but on this particular night it was much more lively and of course the music was country, not blues. 

Playing at the Grand Ole Opry that night, among others, was Keith Urban. 

I was disappointed not to be able to see him and even more disappointed when Andrea told me that she sees him with his wife Nicole (that’s Nicole Kidman) at Starbucks, down the street from her house,  every week! 

Memphis, Tennessee

Monday, October 24

We left Chickasha, Oklahoma this morning and headed to Memphis, Tennessee.  After the eight hour drive we were ready for some Beale Street Blues. 

Beale Street

We walked up and down the streets, got some jambalaya, had a beer and listened to some music.   Being a Monday night we were surprised at how many people were out and about.  We can only imagine what a weekend must be like.   

 

 The roads were barricaded for two city blocks and music poured into the streets from each establishment.  Young guys tumbled down the streets hoping for a tip.   Everyone seemed to have a drink in their hand and a bounce in their step as they meandered from place to place.  

the carriage awaits you

busy Beale Street

Tuesday morning we headed to see the King!

We took the audio tour of Graceland and were surprised that it wasn’t quite as large or outlandish as we had expected.  It is however,  quite a production.   

living room & music room

parents bedroom

dining room

Priscilla & Lisa Marie

TV room

game room

Lisa Marie's favorite chair in the jungle room

Lisa Marie's swing set

The Sun Label years

trophy corridor

After walking through the recording studio at the house and strolling down the ‘trophy’ corridor we had to be in awe of the accomplishments of this young entertainer.  Several videos of his performances were running continuously throughout the tour along with interviews with him and family members.

awards from the later years

Elvis Aron Presley

 The meditation pool where Elvis, his mother, father, and grandmother are buried along with a marker for his twin brother, Jesse Garon.

Elvis' gift to Priscilla

Elvis' favorite car

We paid the extra four dollars that allowed us to also see his car collection and airplane. 

his famous pink Cadillac which was his mother's favorite

the Lisa Marie

Next we drove over to the old Sun Recording Studio, the ‘Birthplace of Rock ‘N Roll’ where it all began.  

This was a great tour and we really enjoyed it even more that Graceland.  Our guide was humorous and enthusiastic about the information he conveyed to us which really made the tour enjoyable.

This is the place where Elvis strolled in one day and asked if he could record a song for his mother’s birthday.  So, for three dollars he made his first recording. 

Sam Phillips

 Sam Phillips wasn’t there that day and wasn't impressed when his secretary played it for him. In fact it took almost a year before Phillips got a ‘sound’ he liked out of Elvis.  And then,  the rest is history.

                      

 Other famous artists who also got their start at Sun Records include; Carl Perkins- Blue Suede Shoes,  Jerry Lee Lewis- Great Balls of Fire, Roy Orbison- Ooby Dooby, and Johnny Cash,- I walk the Line.    

The 'Million Dollar Quartet' ~ Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash, Elvis Presley

During our presentation, the tour guide explained how Johnny Cash got a unique sound out of his guitar by wrapping paper around the neck, under the strings.  To demonstrate this technique our guide chose Johnny George to strum the guitar as everyone sang along to; I Walk the Line. 

It was great and John got to keep the pick he strummed with.

Then we went to see the National Civil Rights Museum but it was closed on Tuesdays.  Bummer.  Anyway, the museum is located in the Lorraine Motel, the assassination site of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.  It was interesting to see the site, familiar to so many.  Guess for now we’ll have to put that on the list for our next trip.  

So we moved on to the Pink Palace.  The Pink Palace was supposed to be the pretentious home of the owner of the Piggly Wigley supermarket chain.  

 However, before its completion Mr. Saunders lost his fortune to the stock market and the house was left to the city.  The city completed it and over the years has used it in various capacities ~ today it houses a mix of natural history and cultural history exhibits.  It wasn’t quite as ‘pink’ as I expected ~ maybe the sun was too bright.

On to Nashville.