Day 3 of our trip was a day of rest from the road and a chance to explore the delights of Nashville. As we are both keen walkers we decided to leave the car behind and walk into the downtown area from East Nashville. The fifty minute walk gave us the opportunity to cross the John Seigenthaler Pedestrian Bridge which links the suburbs to downtown and offered us our first views of the skyline and the Cumberland River.
To the right as you head across the bridge, modern skyscrapers loom over the original buildings along the waterfront which has now been turned into a riverside park.
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| the view to the right of the bridge |
Yet to look in the opposite direction gives a much different, more bucolic view.
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| the view to the left of the bridge |
Not surprisingly, Nashville offers a wide range of attractions for music lovers, but given our limited time there, there was one place that was an absolute must for me: the Johnny Cash Museum. From the outside it looks small but the collection of memorabilia is extensive and fascinating. From childhood, through his stint in the military, to his rise to fame, everything is well documented. The museum is actually considered the #1 music museum in the world by Forbes, Conde Nast and National Geographic Traveler. 
There was a section at the end of the exhibit devoted to the movie "Walk the Line" which is the most successful music biopic to date. I lost count of how many times I heard someone say "I must watch that movie again," and I certainly felt the same way.
Just around the corner from the Johnny Cash Museum is the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum and the Music City Walk of Fame which honors musicians from all genres of music, including Jimi Hendrix and Roy Orbison.
After all the music history it was time to head to Broadway to check out live music in some of the numerous bars that line the street. There was no doubt we were in Nashville!
We checked out two bars, Crossroads and Nudie's, both of which provided some great live music. Not a bad way to spend a Saturday afternoon!
Given this was our first visit to Nashville, there was only one way we could spend the evening - at the Grand Ole Opry. When we purchased tickets many months ago we had no idea who would be performing as the schedule is often not finalized until days before. In a two hour show, there are approximately eight different acts. As it turned out, while we'd heard of some of the names, we weren't familiar with their music, but we enjoyed performances by the Oak Ridge Boys, Jason Crabb and Dailey & Vincent among others.
The shows are broadcast live which, unfortunately, means that in between acts the show's host promotes the sponsors of the various segments of the show. This did get a little irritating after a while - after all we'd already paid for tickets and it ate into the time available for the musicians to perform - but I guess that's just the way things are done at the Grand Ole Opry. I couldn't help wonder what foreign tourists made of it though!
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| The Oak Ridge Boys |
Mel writes contemporary fiction with a twist of mystery and suspense. For more information about her books visit her website, or sign up for her newsletter at http://bit.ly/melparishnews
It's been ages since I was in Nashville. Looks like a LOT has changed!
ReplyDeleteIt's always amazing how much things change. We saw signs for a new Patsy Cline museum (the current one is upstairs from the Johnny Cash Museum) and a Merle Haggard Museum - and the Hall of Fame looked relatively new. Presumably Broadway was much the same when you were there? Lined with bars?
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