Nashville, TN: Agricultural Life Then and Now

The fall harvest is still going strong here in Nashville, as we discovered at the Farmers Market downtown with Nick and Cindy, our friends who we met last winter at The Great Outdoors, in Florida. Cindy and I enjoyed looking at the turnip greens, four kinds of kale, summer squash, tomatoes, cauliflower, eggplant, and winter squash. The market here has a section that is just for the real farmers, and it was full of fruits, veggies, smoked hams and canned goods at unbeatable prices.  I picked up some tomatoes and kale.

I think they were also selling some produce from way out of town in some cases, but most was local. It gave us a sense of what the local farming scene is like. We haven't been out in the county too much around here, and haven't seen what's being raised. Some horses, some cattle, no crops to speak of.

There was another section with a well stocked international grocery store and a few restaurants and vendors selling baked goods. We couldn't resist the cinnamon buns ... so, next morning, after the cinnamon buns, the four of us loaded up in our GMC truck (usually reserved for towing the DRV) and drove to The Hermitage, home and plantation of Andrew Jackson, aka "Old Hickory."

After the basic admission price of $19 ($16 for seniors) an outstanding audio self-guided tour is provided at no extra cost.  The combination of the audio tour and the informative displays throughout the museum, grounds and mansion (above) taught us a great deal about Jackson, our seventh president. Rick and I had forgotten most of what we might have ever known about him. We even had Old Hickory confused with Stonewall Jackson, the great Civil War confederate general. Ignorant northerners. 

The audio tour also had optional tracks to learn about The Hermitage and Andrew Jackson through the life of his wife, Rachel. Cindy and I found that especially interesting. Andrew and Rachel Jackson are buried in the tomb next to the house (below). Their last living slave, Albert, in buried right next to the tomb.

The Hermitage website is also very informative about Jackson and The Hermitage. Jackson was a general, politician, president and a farmer. The Hermitage was primarily a cotton plantation, although they raised animals and produce for their own consumption. The Hermitage maintains a small patch of cotton on the grounds so that visitors can see what cotton looks like. There were still a few bolls on the plants that were mostly dead from a recent frost. 

 Jackson owned hundreds of slaves, and the Hermitage does an excellent job of relating the circumstances of their lives and their significance to the plantation. It was strange to hear the tape talking about Jackson buying and selling people. One track of the audio tape was especially moving. It was nothing but the recitation of the names of Jackson's slaves and it went on and on and on...

 These are two reconstructed slave cabins. 

On the grounds is a small herd of Belted Galloway cattle. The herd was completed unfazed by my approach to their two tiny calves. I guess they're pretty used to company. Galloways are a shaggy kind of cattle, as you can see on this little guy.

Live tour guides are ready in the mansion to lead you through the rooms and answer any questions.  I'd say the home fell somewhere between Jefferson's Monticello and Washington's Mount Vernon in terms of style and grandeur. There were no photos allowed inside, but the kitchen was actually out back. You can see how modest it is by modern standards.

There was also a horse and wagon tour available, but we passed on that. 

It was a beautiful day and we were happy to walk around on our own steam.

We were all pretty impressed with the quality of the Hermitage and the depth of information about Jackson and his plantation that was easily accessible in one visit.  Ours lasted about three hours and we were ready for a late lunch. We stopped at McNamara's, the "world's best Irish pub outside of Ireland." 

We had a nice pot of tea and some corned beef reuben sandwiches.

Well, we're leaving Nashville tomorrow and I hope to squeeze in one more post before we got. 

Then on the Memphis and Graceland! 

Nashville, TN: It' all about the music

...and we did our very best to honor Nashville's title of Music City. After getting warmed up with the Country Music Hall of Fame last week, we ventured on to the live music venues. (Even before arriving in Nashville I stealthily procured tickets to the Grand Ole Opry to see a "Big Name" in country music.) But our first live music experience was at Music City Roots at the Loveless Cafe, or actually the Loveless Barn out back.

The Loveless Cafe is one of the those places my hair dresser recommended, and though we didn't get there for a down home country dinner, we did get there for the music. In back of the cafe and the cutesy little Southern tourist shops, is the music venue that houses Music City Roots. Roots hosts the new and aspiring musician crowd, about five bands per evening. We saw Jonathon Scales Forchestra, Daniel Romano, Sturgille Simpson, Amanda Shores, and Leftover Salmon. One of the hosts, in the photo above, is a good ole local favorite, Jim Lauderdale.  Now, to be completely frank, we weren't wild about any of these folks, though they all had plenty of talent.  The big problem was that the volume was so loud that we were blown out of our seats by the second act. Too bad, because some of them might have been much more enjoyable with better sound engineering. 

On the other hand, our evening at the Grand Ole Opry was acoustic perfection.  I had been at the Opry about 40 (gasp!) years ago and saw some of the old timers: Minnie Pearl, Roy Acuff, Bill Monroe, Tex Ritter and more. That was some experience. Then the Ryman Auditorium, which was synonymous with the Opry, closed down and the Opry show moved out to Opryland. I never saw it there, but I am in vicarious agreement with common sentiment that it just wasn't the same. But, the happy ending to the story is that now the Ryman Auditorium is refurbished and open again and hosts the Grand Ole Opry show about half the time.  

We got there early and had time to look around, take pictures and wear out our butts on the hard pews that are still the only seating at the Ryman. Smart audience members bring cushions. 

There are two levels, and our seats were on the lower level, under the balcony, and (apologies to Rick) behind a pillar. Well, not completely behind it; we could still see around it, but had to do the "lean to the left - lean to the right" dance all evening.

Here's the view from the tip-top location of the sound booth. And, as I mentioned, the sound was perfection. Not too loud and clear as a bell. You could understand what everyone was saying all the time. The Grand Ole' Opry has always been a radio show, so there are announcers who orchestrate the whole thing and engage the audience in clapping at the right times.  

By the time the show started it was a completely full house. The show is divided in to four equal sections, with a different musical host for each, and one or two artists per section.  The hosts for the evening were Jeannie Seely, The Whites, Connie Smith and John Conlee who I gather are the regulars. They each sang a couple of old favorites and introduced the featured acts. Those were: Sara Haze (sweet), The Roys (traditional bluegrass), Jesse McReynolds (mandolin player extraordinaire, Opry member since 1964), Josh Turner (a very handsome baritone - popular with the young women in the crowd), Jim Lauderdale (yes of Music Roots - sounding better here), Chris Janson (young and exuberant!!!), and...

...Little Big Town!!! You may (or may not) know them from their very fun hit song "Pontoon."

They were all great. Although some were more well known to us that others, they were all performers of the highest quality, and the Ryman just takes the cake. If you're ever in Nashville, DO THIS.

The other place where Nashville music and party lovers go is "honky tonkin'" in "The District." A honky tonk is a dive where there is live music, plenty to drink and few inhibitions. Broadway and Printer's Row are the prime locations to go honky tonkin', so that's where we went.  Here you see the intersection of old and new on Broadway. That's the AT&T building, looking like Batman overlooking Gotham City.

Now, those readers who know us probably know that we are not bar hoppers, and one of us does not, has not ever, imbibed.  So this was a really unusual event for us. We got some support from our good friends Nick & Cindy who stopped in Nashville on their way to Florida.  We couldn't have done it without them.  We headed downtown early, before dark and before the crowds, we hoped. It was a good plan, because by the time it got dark, the place was hoppin'. In fact, it was hopping when we got there, but not as crowded as it would get later. 

Our first stop, or pass through I should say, was Legends. 

Most of the places have front and back/side doors to ease "just passin' through."

Here's a snap of the inside. It's a typical setup. 

Bar near the back, seating or dance floor in the middle, and the loud band in the window. 

The music up and down the street is a mix of top ten country, rock/country fusion and some older country here and there.  We stopped for a snack and beverage at Rippy's, where there were three bands in three rooms on two floors. In any location you could hear all three, so they had to play loud enough to drown one another out. You can imagine, I'm sure. The open air second floor of Rippy's seems to be a favorite spot. We actually found a room right next door to sit for a drink and a plate of nachos where there wasn't a band, so we could hear each other talk.

We got a great view of Broadway from Rippy's. We even saw Elvis. 

Across the street is the infamous Tootsie's. We braved that place last. 

Just a few doors down the street was Ernest Tubb's Music Store, a traditional place to get your country and blue grass CD's if you haven't discovered I-Tunes yet, or if you're just caught up in the whole country music thing of the moment.

As the evening progressed, we had only one encounter with a drunk local boy at the Swinging Doors Saloon, who took offense at Rick's Patriot's hat.  I'm surprised it didn't happen more than once.  

Later the carriages came out to convey weary or romantic music lovers around the town. 

But for the fun-loving hard-drinkers, the Pedal Tavern is an alternative mode of transport, as long as you have the strength and where-with-all to stay on your seat. We stuck with walking.

Finally we tackled Tootsie's, thanks to Cindy. She was right, as long as you're here you might as well see it all. And Bobby, the nice guy who cut my hair, said that Tootsie's was the most disgusting place ever but we had to see it. He was right too. Here's a view from the back stairs, looking through the bar toward the front. The walls are lined with old autographed photos that are coated with smoke and dust and seem to be rotting in their frames. The floor is sticky and littered. And everyone is having a ball. We got in and out long enough to get the idea. 

Now here's the kicker. The best music we heard all night was coming out of this utility box.  

Really. Only in Nashville.

Nashvile,TN: The Parthenon

 One of the most amazing places in Nashville is the Parthenon, a concrete replica of the original in Athens, Greece, erected for the 1897 Centennial Celebration. It is the only building left from that exposition, as it was rebuilt to become a permanent feature of what is now Centennial Park.

There's plenty of free parking and visitors are free to walk in and around the outside parts of the structure.  Rick, who has seen the original, says this one needs to be set up on a hill like the Acropolis to get the full effect. But it's still pretty impressive.

 To go inside, you enter through what looks like a cellar door in case of tornados, and pay a $6 fee ($4 for seniors).  That gives you access to the art museum on the lower levels (very nice permanent American art collection plus a gallery for temporary exhibits) and to the great goddess Athena.

And great she is. At 41 feet and covered in gold leaf, she completely dominates the inner recesses of the Parthenon. Although there may be more lovely statues of Athena, this is certainly the most imposing, and serves to remind one of the prominent place the gods and goddesses held in the lives of the Greeks and Romans.

The virgin goddess Athena was the patroness of Athens, and is associated with war strategy, divine inspiration, architecture and the arts. The original Parthenon was built in her honor, and housed a similar statue.  Here you get a closer look at Nike, the seemingly much smaller "winged victory," whom Athena symbolically holds in the palm of her hand.

After all that archetypal grandness it was time to take care of the mundane, so we headed over to nearby Roiter's for one of their famous burgers on French bread, and freshly home made chips. 

It's an old fashioned place (1945!) with a modern neighborhood built up around it.  Check out this link for a real taste of Tennessee. It's a local favorite and yes, we think it should be featured on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. 

While recovering from our generous lunch we hung out on one of the old swings that are scattered around Centennial Park. Very soothing. Probably my favorite part of the day. : )

Nashville, TN: Our First Week in Music City

It's hard to believe we've been in Nashville for almost a month and this is my first post about it! (Click on this link for some music to accompany your reading.) Well, I was off to NYC for a bit, and then we had company, and then I was swamped with some academic type work that all came at once... excuses, excuses. But here goes a quick report from our first week here. 

We're staying at the Nashville Country RV Park north of Nashville, in Goodlettsville. (They've got  music on their website too.) We have to take the interstate to get almost anywhere, and the traffic can be heavy in and out of Nashville, but we're getting used to it and figuring out how to avoid the rush hour traffic when possible.

The weather was wet and dreary, so we were looking for things to do inside. Like eat. : ) No, not really, but one of the first things I did was get my haircut, and the stylist who took care of me, Bobby, was so helpful with suggestions about what to see in Nashville. He had the whole salon in on it, giving me the "must see" list. (He did a great job on my hair too, even with all the talking.) It was a perfect example of warm Southern hospitality. 

So one of the top picks was Monell's in Germantown, and they were sure right about that. Monell's is a traditional Southern home-cooking, family style restaurant in a quaint, old and refurbished neighborhood, Germantown.  Here's one of the cute homes there.

When you enter Monell's they welcome you in like family and seat you with others who have just arrived and then start bringing the food out. OMG! It's like your grandmother's best Thanksgiving meal.  Fried chicken, biscuits, cornbread, green beans, lemonade, macaroni and cheese, sweet tea, pork chops, meatloaf, peach preserves, mashed potatoes, corn pudding, cucumber salad, and on and on and on. Pretty soon I was literally giddy with it all. 

It was one of the best meals I have ever had. No exaggeration. And the company was great too. All around you people are having a good time talking to each other, telling stories, making jokes. We met a nice guy who gave us more recommendations about what to do and see in Nashville: the best BBQ and the best hot chicken - a Nashville specialty. (More about hot chicken another time.) 

Another day we ventured downtown in the gloomy weather to see the Country Music Hall of Fame. After parking we walked by the Music City Center (below) which is a huge new convention center right downtown on the Cumberland River.  As we walked by we spotted some folks in costume, and thought it must be Halloween related. But as we got closer it became clear that there was a preponderance of super heroes, and we discovered it was Comic Con!!

Now, for those of you who don't know what Comic Con is - it's a convention of comic book fans who traditionally dress up as their favorite comic book characters. It also draws out the sci-fi, fantasy and horror characters as well. We thought we'd just walk through the lobby and see what we could see, and we saw a lot.... among them, a couple of superman-superwoman pairs...

...a storm trooper at the WEAPON CHECK POINT!?!

...and this ghoulish guy whose name I don't know, if he even has one.

So, that was different.  

The Country Music Hall of Fame is right next door, and seemed kind of tame compared to Comic Con, though a lot more polished. It's got three floors of collectables from the whole history of country music. Sprinkled throughout are some very informative historical videos and music sound tracks playing. Below is Bill Monroe's mandolin.

And here's Web Pierce's cadillac, with tooled leather upholstery, silver dollars on the console, a shot gun mounted on the trunk and six-guns in the doors. Wild.

It took us awhile to figure out that most of the building is this historical museum of country music, ending with contemporary artists' stuff like Carrie Underwood's costumes from her last tour. All the memorabilia and exhibits are not limited to artists who are actually in the Hall of Fame. That you see at the very end when you enter this round hall with plaques on the wall for those artists who were actually inducted. Kenny Rogers is just getting inducted this year. 

The words that run around the wall are "Will the Circle Be Unbroken." Very fitting.  

On our way home we drove through The District, which is centered around 

Broadway and Printer's Row, downtown. More about that soon.

We've done so much in Nashville, and I'll do my best to get caught up in the next few days.

 Y'all come back for the Parthenon, Cheekwood Gardens, The Hermitage, more of the District, 

and The Grand Old Opry!

(By the way, we watched the Country Music Awards last night. How perfect is that?)

NYC: The 9/11 Memorial

Here's a report from my five day detour to New York City for the American Dance Therapy Association Conference, held at the Brooklyn Bridge Marriott hotel.  In addition to presenting an intensive workshop and attending others, I had a great time visiting with my fellow dance/movement therapists, many of whom I am very close to, and some I hadn't seen for decades! 

I was born and raised in and around NYC, and have seen much of it over the years, but have never visited Ground Zero or the 9/11 Memorial. So I took one morning off from the conference and ventured over to Manhattan to pay my respects. Rick would have liked to be there as well, but we couldn't work that out this time. I hope we'll get back to see it together when it's completed.

The memorial site is still a work in progress and is surrounded on all sides by construction. The lines to enter the memorial (free admission) travel under and around the construction, and pass through security procedures much like those at the airport.  Once in, you are propelled into a grove of young swamp oak trees, and all you can see of the memorial pools are the crowds standing around them. 

As you wind your way through the people to a place by the edge, this view of the South Pool opens up. 

The two immense pools, the South and the North, are located exactly on the footprints of the "twin" South and North Towers of the World Trade Center that were destroyed in the attack on September 11, 2001. A constant cascade of water flows from the upper edges down into the flat bottom of the pool and then again down into a central "void."

An angled black stone shelf around the entire edge of both pools is engraved with the names of all the people who died in the attack. Immediately inside the name shelf there is a flat reflecting ledge, before the water flows over and down.  

Many of the buildings that surround the memorial are also constructed of reflective surfaces, so there is this fitting ever-present theme of reflection, a synonym for remembering. 

It certainly suggests reflecting and remembering the events of that terrible day and the sacrifices made. The material, metaphorical, emotional and spiritual depth of the memorial is remarkable.

As I mentioned, the memorial is still under construction, so as you walk around the twin pools, there are chain link fences separating you from the construction, the unfinished surrounding structures, and the rest of the city.  But it doesn't separate you from the noise. You can't forget you are the middle of one of the largest and busiest cities in the world.

It's also interesting that this is the oldest part of the city, right down at the tip of Manhattan, and there are historic buildings around you as well, like St. Paul's Chapel seen here through the construction.  St. Paul's played a dramatic role in the 9/11 tragedy by providing sanctuary for those fleeing the destruction of the Twin Towers. 

In addition to the two pools, there is a museum still under construction, two views of which are below.  It will house parts of the original Twin Towers and information about 9/11.  The whole history of this site from catastrophe to inception, through development and completion, is just fascinating and should make for a world class museum. 

The 9/11 Memorial sits in an urban valley of silver reflections, with a floor of black stone in and around the pools, blue reflected from the sky, and a softening green from the swamp oak trees. I imagine on a cloudy winter day it would be a pretty oppressively grey and black experience, and I felt fortunate to be there on this bright sunny day.

The tallest building among all those planned for the site complex is One World Trade Center.  1 WTC is a masterful and symbolic achievement, designed by David Childs, towering at 104 stories, and 1,776 feet (the tallest in the Western hemisphere). It is very near completion, with only one freight elevator remaining on the exterior, which you can see running along the right side of the building, below.

I left feeling immensely grateful to all who were responsible for the creation of this Memorial.  I think it is and will be for generations to come, a noble and meaningful representation of loss, deep sorrow, absence, presence, memory, hope and beauty for survivors, friends, and enemies alike.