Nashville, Tennessee

Nashville, TN
Travel Article 10/7/2004
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After visiting so many beach destinations this year we decided it was time to travel inland.  We visited Nashville in fall 1997 and had wonderful memories of its beauty and hospitality.  We decided to invite friends to join us for this fall escape to the mountains and that turned out to be a great idea.  On Saturday we left Beaufort to head for the northern Alabama-Georgia border where our good friends live in the mountains.  We had also visited there in the fall of 1997.  They own a log cabin in the middle of nowhere with two porches and a pool surrounded by woods.  I just find it so peaceful because it reminds me of the woods around my childhood home.  We talked and ate and then went out to the Menlo Rodeo.  That was so much fun.  Small town charm mixed with plain old fun made a fantastic evening.  At one point they called all the children into the corral to try and take a ribbon off of two calves tails.  It was hilarious.  Then teams of three had to try to catch and milk a wild cow into a Pepsi bottle.  More hilarity.  It was great fun.  We took a long walk in the woods Sunday morning then headed to Nashville about 2 ½ hours away.

We arrived at the Fairfield Nashville off Music City Drive around check – in time with the change to central time.  Our two-bedroom condo was gorgeous and we were right down the street from the Grand Ole Opry and the Opryland Hotel. The Fairfield Gold Crown Resort offered many superb amenities as well as planned activities to the hot spots of the Music City. The resort offers a tanning bed, guest computer, game room, indoor and outdoor pools, fitness center, and Sauna. The indoor pool was very plush. Picnic Tables with grills offered families a place to cook and eat outside. The resort Activities office offered everything from fitness walks, bingo, kids club and ice cream sundaes to excursions into town. Bob and Lynn attended one called "Cowboy Church" at Opryland and they enjoyed it immensely. Tootsies Tours, shuttles to the Stock-yard restaurant, van trip to the Opryland Hotel, Shotgun Red Dinner Theatre were all planned and offered through this office. The Fairfield staff pays extra attention to you and your vacation. This can help out tremendously when you all like us and too busy to do the research beforehand. You'll have a whole lot of fun if you just put yourself in
their capable hands.

Our friends Bob and Lynn from Pembroke, MA had checked in the previous day. We met up with their friends at the Opry Mills, a huge mall with over 200 stores and restaurants.  I’m not a shopper but this mall was a real treat.  We had dinner at a restaurant called the Aquarium.  We were literally surrounded by huge fish tanks.  It was relaxing and inviting.  Eight of us had dinner and everyone was very pleased with his or her food.  Lynn said the Mahi Mahi was one of the best she ever had, and believe it or not I had a killer meatloaf. The shrimp po-boy and fish ‘n chips also came highly recommended. 

On Monday my sister and her husband, Lisa and Johnny arrived from Providence, RI.  My sister was dying to visit the Opryland hotel and we agreed whole-heartedly that it was a must see.  They met Bob and Lynn and off we headed for Opryland.  Gaylord Entertainment describes its mammoth hotel:

“NASHVILLE, Tenn. (January 2004) - Nashville's Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center has earned an international reputation for its service and amenities, but is equally well known for its acres of lavish gardens that provide unforgettable experiences for the millions of people who have visited this landmark hotel.
Boasting 50,000 tropical plants, rare international blooms and romantic Southern species, the horticultural displays at Gaylord Opryland are among the most exquisite in the world. Meticulously selected and lovingly maintained by a staff of 20 full-time interior horticulturists, the landscaping is a colorful, year-round paradise tucked inside this amazing resort. Each of the gardens is housed under one of the hotel's soaring atriums, creating a series of breathtaking horticultural wonderlands. The Garden Conservatory features a collection of 10,000 tropical plants, representing more than 215 species. Towering palms and banana trees rise 60 feet above the atrium floor. In all, there are 37 different families of trees represented, including ficus, banana trees, palms and a sampling of miniature orange trees.”

We found beautiful paths through the conservatory, a fountain show, and even a delta flatboat ride through the center of the hotel – did we say this was BIG.  Restaurants were carefully placed to offer the best views and cuisine imaginable.  We decided upon an Irish Pub, Fidley’s.   I love Pubs and had the most incredible meal.  It was gigantic.  I had three popover pies—one was filled with corned beef and cabbage, another was beef pie and the last was chicken potpie.  It was incredible and the perfect taste of everything.  Everyone enjoyed it and we were set for a perfect time exploring the grand hotel.  The Grand Ole Opry stands right behind the Opryland Hotel and the Opry Mills.  It is a beautiful grandiose property.  Look out this winter (Nov 18 to Jan 2, 05) for A Country Christmas presented by Cracker Barrel.  I’m sure it’s a holiday splendor worth visiting.

After lunch we were ready to head downtown for some music and boot shopping.  We headed down to Broadway where some very famous bars have sent many on to fame.  We just had to go to Tootsies Orchid Lounge where the likes of Hank Williams, Patsy Cline, Loretta Lynn, Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson and many, many more were discovered.  It was a a bit rustic but the music was good.  We listened for a while and singers were coming up from the audience.  One tiny young woman singer was excellent.  My friend Lynn, a very friendly person, met a woman singer at the bar.  Her name was Deirdre Reilley and she was from Massachusetts also.  They talked for a while; Lynn bought her CD, and found out when and where she was playing this week.  We then moved on so that Bob could buy a pair of authentic Cowboy boots.  Bob loves his boots.  We continued across the street to Rippy’s Smokin’ Bar & Grill for more music and two-fors (two for one beers). This was a very friendly bar with ceiling to floor glass doors open all night to the air and city beyond.  We sat right on the cusp of the city and the bar. Right across from us was the Gaylord Entertainment Center Stadium where the Predator’s play hockey and other events take place. It was exciting.  Right next door on Broadway we had dinner at Merchants.  Once again dinner was superb although the two who had spicy crawfish ravioli endured heartburn for the rest of the night.  They said it was delicious but SPICY.

On Tuesday we headed back downtown for more music and boot shopping.  Lynn had not yet found her perfect pair.  We had lunch at the Hard Rock Café, which is right at the end of Broadway across the Cumberland River from the Football Stadium.  We have never been disappointed by the food at the Hard Rock and we weren’t this time.  My sister had a chopped salad that was enough for three people.  We all had huge salads and a great time.  We headed back up Broadway to shop for boots and this time Lynn found a pair.   We walked up Second Ave headed to the world famous Wild Horse Saloon.  The place was gigantic but very quiet in the afternoon. The weather was absolutely gorgeous.  Nearby we also looked in to B.B. Kings Blues Club, which also looked like great fun. We walked around the corner to the waterfront to Nashborough Fort where on January 1, 1780 Nashville was founded. James Robertson led his group of pioneers across the frozen Cumberland River to a place called The Cedar Bluffs. It was here that these men built a fort called Nashborough, which would be shelter for the first families until Indian attacks ended in 1792.

We continued roaming from lounge to lounge listening to great music and enjoying each other’s company and the company of other people and staff tremendously.  Southern hospitality is alive in Nashville, although I swear most people we met came from the north.  That evening we had a special cocktail party in our condo to celebrate a very special anniversary.  It was very touching and special and we all enjoyed a wonderful closeness that will forever remain a treasured memory.  To make sure the evening went unmatched Bob and Lynn took us to the other world famous Nashville Palace where Randy Travis started as a dishwasher and many an up and coming star is discovered.  There was a great house band and later that evening there would be an amateur contest.  We hunkered down over some real southern food like fried chicken livers (for me - everyone else but Johnny hated chicken liver) vegetable beef soup, BBQ plates, fried catfish sandwiches and much more.  The amateur contest was great and the performers displayed an amazing amount of talent. The audience voted the winner, a young women with a powerful voice named Tanya Teague, who would return Thursday night to sing with the band all night.

On Wednesday we had planned to take a trip on the General Jackson Showboat, which cruised out of the Opry Mills on the Cumberland River to downtown and back.  You may opt for a BBQ lunch or just the cost of a ride.  My husband and I ended up not able to go because I was not feeling well.  Our friends enjoyed the music and beautiful day but they said the scenery until they reached Nashville was nondescript.  Bob and Lynn had dinner plans with a friend so we decided to go to the Stock-Yard Restaurant on Second Avenue.  They offer a complimentary shuttle service, but we elected to drive.  This was one incredible restaurant.  It was solid stone and impressive.  The dining rooms were all small (ten tables at most) and the tuxedo-donned waiters were impressive.  We had a superb evening.  It is pricey, but a very special evening worth experiencing on your trip.  Lisa and I enjoyed Filet Oscar (crab, asparagus, and hollandaise topping) while the men enjoyed an end cut prime rib and a tropical steak.  We even splurged for key lime pie and cheesecake.  By now our clothes were getting very tight from all the fantastic food we had been eating all week.

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