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Nashville, TN
Travel Article 10/7/2004
Page 2
 On Thursday Bob and Lynn decided to do
some work from their condo, the self employed never rest entirely as my
husband also knows as he took several long calls from clients throughout
the week. We headed off for the famous Parthenon in Centennial Park at
Vanderbilt University. It was an incredible phenomenon. The Parthenon
stands proudly as the centerpiece of Centennial Park, Nashville's premier
urban park. The recreation of the 42-foot statue Athena is the focus of the
Parthenon just as it was in ancient Greece. The building and the Athena
statue are both full-scale replicas of the Athenian originals. It was built
for the Tennessee Centennial Celebration. We then headed to lunch at the
Blackstone Restaurant and Brewery on West End. They offered 6 home brewed
ales on a sampler tray. Harry and John said there were too many dark ales
on the sampler but both agreed and liked Chaser Pale the best. We had so
so sandwiches, but
 excellent service and conversations with our waiter
Nicolas. We then headed to a place we found sifting through brochures, the
Rare Bird Antique Mall on Main Street in Goodlettsville about 10 minutes
north of Nashville. It was like stepping back in time. The mall held over
90 quality booths from independent vendors, selling a wide assortment of
antiques, collectibles, gifts and country store items. We were all lost in
our own memories for a couple of hours. Old china, toys, clothes, sports
memorabilia, etc were displayed in a glass or kiosk setting. It was a huge
store and meandered maze-like throughout. We had a great time.
 Lisa and Johnny flew home Friday morning
and we hit the pool for a few hours. It was another gorgeous day and we
needed some downtime. Harry and I still had some pictures to take so we
headed back to Opry Mills. We had lunch at Jillian’s, an incredibly huge
restaurant with varied rooms and menus. We ate in the Video Café, which
has two huge screens at each end of the room. We enjoyed a club sandwich
and a grilled cheese and chili both on Texas Toast. It was very good.
Among the other rooms offered were Hibachi, Bowling on video screen, pool,
billiards, and an arcade. Each offers different menus and something for
all ages.
 Our plan was to head to
Broadway around 3 or so to hear Deirdre Reilley sing at Rippy’s. We
enjoyed the wide open doors again, the busy sidewalks and most of all
Deirdre Reilley. She is a spirited singer who grabs the audience by its
heart and insists on a good time. We learned two things from Ms Reilley:
how to “holler and swaller” a gigantic country holler followed by a swallow
of beer. We also learned that most musicians in Nashville do not get
paid. Their sole revenue is from tips. Lynn helped by passing the tip jug
and drummed up big tips and even selling a few CDs along her way. That
girl can work a room. Deirdre Reilly will appear on Andy Cooney’s Cruise
of Irish Stars 2005 in the Caribbean for 7 nights.
 We then drove back to the
West End to Valentino’s Ristorante, across from Blackstone’s. There we
enjoyed incredible Italian cuisine. We also had a splendid evening in
illuminating conversation with Tomein our Afghanistani waiter. He had been
brought to Canada as a refugee and placed in Nashville according to
demographics. He had served as an interpreter in Afghanistan and spoke 5
languages. He was an absolute delight and is still impressed with the
freedom and opportunity in America. We also enjoyed the company of guests
at the table next to us whose son was attending Vanderbilt and Bob bantered
with the father about whether the Red Sox or the Yankees were the better
team. It was a superb evening for our last night in Nashville.
Nashville has so much to offer all ages.
It is a fabulous family destination with a zoo, museums, beautiful
mountains, great history and of course fantastic music. It is a city of
all seasons and well worth more than one trip. I can’t wait until the next
time I return to Nashville.
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Photo Credits:
Unless listed below all photos taken by Harold Patterson
Little River Alabama Photo - Alabama Bureau of Tourism & Travel,
Dan Brothers
Delta Boats - Gaylord Entertainment, Nashville TN
Alan Jackson - Nashville Convention & Visitors Bureau |
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